So we did bid on that ‘interesting house’ I mentioned a month ago:
- Thursday – Came out on MLS, owned by a bank (foreclosure) and listed way below market
- Friday – Saw it in the morning before work, really liked it
- Saturday – Met with our Realtor, decided on a strategy that targeted bank’s priorities
- Monday – Put in our bid, there were three others (I believe)
- Tuesday – Had our bid accepted!
The closing was scheduled for last Thursday but apparently REO (an industry acronym for foreclosed properties) sales never close on time. Our’s certainly didn’t, because a, er, highly qualified employee at the owning bank sent all the necessary papers to the title company except one. New deeds cannot be recorded without original signed copies of every single form.
Friday came and went with no sign of the paper, so there goes the weekend.
Late this morning our Realtor called to say the bank sent the paper. Great, right? Except the highly qualified employee sent it to the title company’s office near Sacramento instead of San Jose. I guess from Texas everything north of LA seems like the same neighborhood. So the title company Fedexed it to San Jose and we seem to be on for a closing tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed.
I’m not saying that tech companies never miss deadlines or make errors. But when this kind of thing happens at companies where I’ve worked, customers can at least generally get someone on the phone to get a resolution or at least an explanation. The owning bank doesn’t allow this, even for the real estate agents who work for them.
The house is a nice one, and only needs a little work. Well, if $20,000 or so is little; at least it isn’t much compared to how much we might have had to spend on that first place.
I’ll post some photos soon (teaser) but here are the highlights:
- Quiet street in Mountain View with an elementary school across the street
- 1860 square feet on two levels built on an approximately 6,000 square foot lot
- Four bedrooms, three baths, two car garage
An extensive remodel in 2005 (with permits!) added the second story, which has the master suite with a huge bath, loft and full-size walk-in closet, as well as a lovely full guest bath and kitchen. There are signs that the people who did the work ran low on cash and so we’re going to have to finish that with the help of contractors.
Starting Wednesday, we hope.
BillSaysThis 
