Our Leap of Faith had a Bungee Cord Attached

When Ashley and I took the "leap of faith" and put down an offer on our house on Westwood, we knew this jump was going to be a little risky. There was a ton of work the house needed done (weeding anyone?), a contractor had to fix a lot on a tight budget, the 203k loan process was complicated and our freezer was running out of Ben & Jerry's S'mores Ice Cream due to pints of anxiety. Like the penguin below, we figured our leap of faith would consist of a splash, a couple swift maneuvers avoiding the jaws of seals and sharks and then a leisurely swim into the sunset, happy as can be. PSYCH!

Instead, some prankster penguin tied a bungee cord to our little penguin feet and our leap left us in perpetual limbo narrowly avoiding shark teeth as we bobbed up and down fearing absolute disaster for the last month. Thankfully, the bungee cord finally snapped and it appears that Ashley and I have avoided the last remaining obstacles and the little house of horrors on Westwood just might be ours after all!

For those who have been stuck in limbo with us as we've kept everything close to the vest, we apologize. Finally ... now that we've been given the thumbs up ... we can share with you the ups and downs of our house purchase.

July 18th: Our offer is accepted by the bank.

July 23rd: A contract is signed by both parties with a rather ominous warning by the bank's agent: "It is extra wise to be prepared for ANYTHING when purchasing bank-owned property."

July 25th: HUD Inspector Tom and Contractor Jim walk through the house and draft up a report of things that need to be fixed ... everything from gutting the basement to providing a stable base for our water heater (it's on wheels right now)!

July 27th: We have a structural engineer look at the cracked brick near the foundation of our tuck-under garage and it is determined the issue isn't a major impediment to us purchasing the home.

August 1st - 17th: Contractor Jim trots through an electrician, plumber, concrete guy and a few other specialists to determine the true extent of the work and what it will cost to complete. The required city repairs are going to eat up almost our entire budget and we won't be able to complete the kitchen remodel or master bathroom build.

August 20th: Contractor Jim has second thoughts on the project and determines that after the subcontractors complete their tasks and without a bathroom or kitchen project, there's just not enough money in it for him to make it worthwhile. He regrettably informs us that he quits.

August 20th: With our Realtor on vacation, we (mistakenly) decide to try to fix everything ourselves and set-up an emergency meeting with another contractor.

August 21st - 27th: Our new contractor meets with HUD Inspector Tom and is quite negative on the house. His bid is excessively expensive and we are crushed, thinking we have to walk away and forfeit our earnest money.

August 28th: Realtor Shelly returns from vacation and attempts to save the day by setting us up with a contractor she highly recommends. Contractor Lee quickly surveys the property, provides us with an estimate and restores our faith back in the house. Better yet, he thinks we can fit the master bathroom build back in the project!

September 3rd: In an attempt to give us a little more cushion, we make the bank aware of our situation and ask for a decrease in purchase price of $10,000 and a closing extension to October 25th.

September 8th: As we await the bank's decision, we finalize our work proposal and sign a mountain of documents.

September 10th: The bank refuses to give us an answer on either issue until we complete an appraisal of the property. They want to see if the "as is value" of the property is fair compared to the purchase price. Unsure of whether to risk even more money on this property, we decide to roll the dice and order the appraisal.

September 17th: The appraisal comes back and the as is value is basically identical to the purchase price. We won't be getting a further discount on the price, but are comforted by the fact the other comparable properties are impressive and will provide us solid future equity.

September 17th: Just when we think we're in the clear and FINALLY able to move this forward, we get a note from the bank stating, "The lender/owner is getting nervous and feels there has been too many red flags to grant an extension that far out." Myself and Mortgage Broker Dave frantically send letters imploring the bank to provide us with an extension because our file is rock solid now that we've gotten through the contractor hi-jinks.

Inside Josh and Ashley's brain:


September 18th: Ashley and I start devising methods of cruel and unusual punishment against the bank if they decide to screw us over at the 11th hour. We put in an order for 10,000 locusts to be delivered to Wells Fargo's corporate office.

Inside Josh and Ashley's brain:


September 18th: The bank decides in our favor and grants us the extension. We are in the clear and will be closing on or before October 25th! We contact the United States Postal Service and divert the aforementioned locusts to Comcast because, well ... everyone hates Comcast.

Inside Josh and Ashley's brain:


So that's the story of the last few weeks of our life. It's been emotional, nerve-wracking, stressful and frustrating. There are myriad awful things I'd rather do instead of go through that again. In fact, going to a Creed and Nickelback concert on the same night and shooting a bottle rocket from my butt both sound a lot more fun!

But like I said, the hard part of our loan process is over and the Williams on Westwood is back on!