Monthly Archives for
July 2005

So, yesterday I sat a colleague’s open house (more on that later) that was so popular it ended up going a full five hours instead of the four it was intended to last. I had eaten a big breakfast, but no lunch, so by the time I pulled into our driveway at home at about 5:30pm, I was famished and exhausted. Jason had the kids ready to go get some dinner, so I went in, changed my (painful) shoes and we hopped in the car.

As we were turning out of our street, my cell phone rang. I sighed and answered, trying to muster a professional, “This is Elizabeth,” from my low blood sugar. It was Brad, the husband side of my Tempe clients. We hadn’t spoken in a few days because everything was proceeding as planned, for once, and no input had been needed.

“Hey Brad, how’s it going?” I said, conversationally.

“Um… not good… I guess you haven’t heard?” he questioned in a tone of voice I’d only heard from him when things had been especially bad. He is usually a very jovial and friendly guy. My stomach dropped and my head immediately started to ache in that very special place reserved just for my Tempe clients and their slippery deals.

“No, I haven’t heard anything. What’s going on?”

“They’re pulling out of the deal, everything’s off,” he said, with just the right touch of desperation.

I almost lost it at that moment. No, OK, I did lose it.

“WHAT?! Who’s pulling out? What are you talking about?!!! No one has called me!!” I could not possibly have been more horrified or destroyed. I was hungry, tired and completely out of ideas for how to make this deal close. I almost started crying.

“Bwahahahahaha! Just kidding!” and the Brad I know and love was back. I could hear the rest of his family cracking up in the background.

Oh man. Suffice it to say that I reminded him that I know both where he currently lives and where he soon will be living and that he should from now on sleep with one eye open.

I decided to interpret it as a positive. If they can be cheerful enough about the catastrophes we’ve been through to joke about it, so can I. Now I just have to figure out how to get them back…

San Diego is a fabulous get-away spot for Phoenicians. Surf, sand and cooler temps less than 6 hours away by car (I swear, we went from Mesa to Mission Beach in just under 6 hours and we even stopped at the Mickey D’s in Yuma); how can you beat that? When you get there, I have a little advice.

Things I recommend in San Diego:

1. Surf Lessons – My sister, brother, father and I took a lesson one day last week while my mom stayed back at the house with my kids. It was awesome. I’ve always wanted to surf, but never had the chance to take a lesson before. I was sure it was one of those impossible things that there was no way I’d be able to do the first time, but our instructors were awesome and all of us got up and rode waves in. It was quite a workout, but the rush of standing on top of a wave as it approaches the shore is well worth it.

2. Kayaking – This activity we did minus my brother (he had to come home for work), plus Jason (he had just come up from work). It was spectacular and relaxing. We paddled along the coast and admired the stunning cliff-side homes (our tour-guide pointed out Dr. Seuss’s former home, his widow still lives there). We sidled up and chatted to the sea lions who lounge near the La Jolla caves. We sat in the middle of a kelp forest that was so huge and far from the shore that I felt like I was on another planet.

3. Sea World – I’ve already posted a bit about the fabulous time we had there, so I won’t go on. Just suffice it to say, it’s totally worth the cost. Do it. Sea World rocks.

4. Mizu Sushi - We LOVED this restaurant. We cooked almost all of our meals while we were in San Diego (our beach house had a great kitchen), but we wanted to do one night out at sushi. We chose Mizu pretty much singularly because it was close. It was awesome, though. Not crowded, great food, not super pricey. The bay-side walk there and back only added to the experience. So nice.

Things I do not recommend in San Diego:

1. Eating sand -

EW.

2. The Red Tide – We were told that the dark red, cloudy water was a result of bacteria interacting and that it brings the jellyfish out in droves. Basically, it was a bummer on all fronts. My dad, our surf instructor and my sister’s boyfriend were all stung by the jellyfish. We weren’t able to do the ‘snorkeling’ side of our kayaking and snorkeling tour because the visibility was about 3 inches. My sister ended up with a hideously itchy, dark red rash from the bacteria getting under her skin. The Red Tide is just no good at all. Boo!

3. Driving home in the first monsoon of the season -

OK, so that’s more of an Arizona thing than a San Diego thing, but still, it was spooky.

Just getting sunscreen in the general area, isn’t always enough to ensure resistance to flaming painful skin. (That’s my brother, Bobby.)

But then again, it’s better than a total lack of sunscreen.

(These are Jason’s legs a full five days after the sea kayaking incident that led to the brightest fuchsia legs I’ve ever seen.)

Whew. We are just back from an eight day vacation in sunny San Diego. I will post about some details of our trip and the fun we had later in the week, but for now, I just wanted to give you and update on my Tempe clients and the house they are selling plus the house they are buying.

Just to recap, the house my Tempe clients are selling was originally supposed to close on July 15. It is being purchased by a college student, who plans to rent rooms out to his friends. Initially, his step-father was going to buy it with him and have his name on the title as well. This was actually planned to close on the 15th, at least partially because it was before I was to leave on our vacation and before my clients’ planned vacation as well. Unfortunately, the buyers made several changes to their financing plans, including removing the step-father from the title, which pushed the perspective closing date out to the 20th, which landed right in the middle of our vacation. We all took a deep breath and adjusted to the new time table. I packed all of my paperwork and registered for a new fax number that would forward right to my email address.

Wednesday the 20th came and went. I spoke with the other agent, my clients, the title company and the lender and all agreed it would close Thursday, Friday at the latest. I didn’t worry too much. The lender swore to me that the documents were on their way. He was sure there wasn’t a problem. Thursday passed with little activity and more promises.

Friday we woke up early and packed the kids into the car for the requisite trip to Sea World. We were all excited. Jason and I hadn’t been since we were kids and neither of the kids had ever been. We showed up with our hats and sunscreen, stroller and a healthy amount of anticipation. The first thing we did when we arrived at Sea World, was to check the schedule for the Shamu show. Since we had an hour before it started we visited the sting rays. They were my very favorite. They were like big graceful swimming puppies. They seemed to want to be petted. They swam over to where we were standing and poked their heads out of the water to be stroked. I loved them. So did Ben.

After the rays, we headed up to the Shamu show and selected our seats. We decided to stay out of the first 16 rows (or the ‘splash zone’) this time. It was a great show. The killer whales were amazing and the boys adored watching them do their tricks. Even Gray, at only a year old, was totally entranced.

When we filed out of Shamu stadium, I grabbed my cell phone to see if I’d missed any calls. There were two messages and three missed calls, all from my clients. I listened to the messages as we strapped the baby back into his stroller. With every word from my phone, my stomached knotted. It wasn’t good news. The closing was off. My clients had called the title company to confirm their signing and were met with the news that the lender had called (on his way to catch a plane to go on vacation in Alaska) and said the loan was denied in underwriting. There would be no funding.

I was shocked and horrified at the news. Did deals really go south ON THE DAY OF CLOSING? Apparently so. The other agent was just as upset. Needless to say, my clients were a mess. Not only were they not going to sell their house, but the purchase of their new house was in serious jeopardy as well. It was a total nightmare, and it happened, for me, at Sea World.

Fortunately for my family, it was time for Gray to take his afternoon nap, and there were plenty of rides that Ben wanted to go on that could not accommodate his little brother. So I took the baby and walked him around the park in his stroller until he fell asleep while Jason took Ben to the big kid stuff. It gave me time to make the zillions of necessary calls.

My manager recommended attempting to salvage the deals. Honestly, I was calling him for advice on how to cancel the deals and get the most earnest money back we could. However, his suggestion set my wheels turning. After speaking with everyone involved at least three times, it became clear that there might be a way out of this mess without starting over. Because when it came down to it, we had two sellers who wanted to sell, and two buyers who wanted to buy. So if we could just work out the time line, everything would be OK.

The buyers for my clients’ house began working on finding new funding and we started in negotiations with our sellers to see if they would be willing to extend our deal. As of today, three days later, it looks like the buyers have been locked into their new funding and their lender has promised me that the underwriting problems of the previous loan will not rear their ugly head, and the sellers of the house we want to buy have promised that they will sign an addendum to extend our closing date. It’s a miracle that everything has survived.

Here I am, yet again with the lesson learned. This time, it’s “Never depend on anything until the sale has been recorded.” Boy oh BOY do I hope it’s the last lesson on this deal. I’m all for learning, but my lord, my poor clients don’t need any more classes in the fickle nature of real estate!!

My two deals currently in escrow almost went crashing out and spewing their wreckage all over the real estate, mortgage and appraisal personnel of the greater metro Phoenix area today. It was a close call, I’m telling you.

The problem started out large; a significant gap in the selling price and the appraised value of the house, and even though I had been convinced at first it would be the ruin of everything I’ve been working toward for the last month, that part was resolved fairly quickly. The discussions became quickly uglier and more bogged down when we got to the little details. Who gets the 10-year old fridge? Who will pay to have the A/C serviced? These were the questions that almost led to the breakdown of all negotiations.

It really highlighted the emotional component of all of this for me. When it comes down to it, home owners are selling the most personal and expensive thing they own. They feel possessive and defensive about their house. They are miserable to leave the height charts of their children on the kitchen wall. They will miss the memory of where the family cat had kittens in the master bedroom closet. They don’t like to hear about the faults the home inspector finds in it. They don’t want to know that the appraiser thinks the home they raised their kids in isn’t worth as much as they think it is. The whole process is an exercise in pouring salt in the wounds that actually leaving a home you’ve had for any length of time has created.

For the buyers, this process is about making sure they get their money’s worth. It’s a huge, scary investment and they are terrified of buying a lemon. Buyers are convinced the sellers must be hiding some huge defect in the house.

It’s a tough, exciting, emotionally draining thing, purchasing or selling a house. At the end of it, usually everyone is quite pleased, but road to Pleasantville is often quite rocky.

I’ve been meaning to post about my broker. Honestly, I am employed with the broker that I am because of a fluke. When you take the classes to become a licensed Realtor in Arizona, you receive lots of solicitations to work for brokers all over the Phoenix Metro area. I didn’t really have a clue as to what I was looking for in a broker, so I chose two brokers with offices near to my home to interview with. I ultimately chose the one that had better name recognition for me (and, admittedly a nicer office). I got very very lucky. It has taken me some time to realize this, but I have ended up, through no fault of my own, with an awesome broker and a great company. I could not be happier with the training program I’ve been through and the people I’ve worked with. I hear other agents talk about my broker, Floyd Scott, and describe him as a “fair and honest” person. That, above all else, is what has impressed me most of all. Before I became a Realtor I worked for an amazing company with a President who I will always admire for his intelligence and kindness. He really cared about his employees and the work that we produced. He made me proud to be a technical editor for them. Just from what I’ve experienced so far, I feel like I’m in a position to eventually feel the same way about Century 21 Arizona Foothills. This makes me happy.

If you haven’t already traveled the path, I have a bit of parenthood planning advice: make sure your children’s birthdays are not in the same month. I know it sounds charming (“Aw, they’ll both be Cancers, I’m so good with Cancers!” Yep, that was the sad thought running through my head) but by the time the birthday parties roll around and you’ve got two ‘family’ parties and then two ‘kid’ parties all within two and a half weeks, you’ll be banging your head against the wall. Trust me.

Anyway, that rant aside, my eldest turned five (FIVE, I am SO OLD, I can’t believe I have a five year old!) last Friday and we had two fabulous parties. The second was a party for just the kids at this Heaven-on-Earth-for-little-people called Makutu’s.

If you live in the East Valley and have a kid under the age of 10, I highly recommend taking a trip to Makutu’s. It is super cool and they even let the grownups play (as long as you have socks… they have a weird obsession with socks).

Ben grabbed me as soon as we walked in and took me on a tour of the tunnels and slides that make up the inside of the play area. I have to say that as I struggled to get my hips through kid-sized crevices in pitch blackness two stories up, I gave thanks that I’m not claustrophobic.

I heartily recommend the banana slide. It totally made me scream. And don’t forget to take time to shake your maracas!

Happy Birthday, Ben!

Are you looking for something fun to do this weekend? Here’s just a sampling:

For kids:

Sizzling Summer Saturdays is an activity time for kids at the Heard Museum. Kids get in free and do arts and crafts, listen to book readings and learn native dances. This Saturday is based on the Hopi People.

The Great Arizona Puppet Theater is currently showing Jack Rabbit & the Desert Tortoise and will have two shows on Saturday.

For sports fans:

The Diamondbacks play the Cincinnati Reds at BOB this weekend both Saturday and Sunday.

If you’ve been looking for a game of beach volleyball you can join in, head to the Gene Autry Sports Complex in Mesa this Sunday at 6:30 PM. It’s just $3 to play.

For Adults:

Judas Priest and Queensryche are playing at Cricket Pavilion on Sunday night. Tickets are still available!

The Sound of Music is playing at the Broadway Palm Dinner Theater in Mesa on Saturday at 6 PM.

If you’re looking for something, anything else fun to do, try this link. Have a great weekend!

I hope you are all having a fabulous holiday and getting ready to enjoy some spectacular fireworks.

Just a quick update about life here in Newlinville:

My Tempe clients didn’t get the house that was in bankruptcy that we put an offer on last weekend. I guess it wasn’t fate after all. However, we are over it and have moved on. It was a risky deal anyway. Saturday this weekend we saw four more houses and made another offer on one. Sunday morning we found out we didn’t get that one either.

In case you’re keeping track, that was our fourth offer on a house for these clients. I know it sounds like we’re doing something wrong here; not offering enough, or offering on houses that are already a lost cause, but really, it’s just the downside of the market. Sure, you can sell your house in two days for twice what you bought it for three years ago, but then where will you go? All of the houses you would be looking to buy (in Arizona, at least) are going to be inflated in the pricing just as much as yours is, and not only that, but they will each have 10 other buyers fighting for them. It’s a hard life out there for a buyer.

In any case, Sunday afternoon we scoured Gilbert and Chandler for four bedroom houses again and finally came up with a winner. It’s a lovely home with beautifully upgraded carpet, tile and cabinets. We made another offer and currently have a verbal acceptance in place. Cross your fingers it holds up and we get the paperwork tomorrow.

In other news, last week was my last week at my old job and also my last week of having my kids in daycare/school. It was an emotional time for everyone. I’m looking forward to this new time in my life, home with my kids and doing real estate full-time, but I’m sure it’s going to be an adjustment for everyone. So we’ll just take it one day at a time.

(My going away lunch at DDI)