Six months ago, we made an offer on a short sale property in Orlando. In its current form, the house is kind of an ugly duckling. The previous owners abandoned the property a year ago, so the yard is a mess. The pool was home to at least 2000 tadpoles when we first saw it.
For unexplained reasons, several bathroom vanities have been ripped out...and replaced with wine racks. All of cabinet door pulls in the house are in the shape of grapes.
The previous owners had dogs.
An eight-foot tree limb recently crashed through the screened lanai and fell into the pool, chipping off several pieces of tile.
The owners attempted to take the laundry room wash tub and several pieces of drywall with them when they moved out. Unsuccessfully.
Currently, the house is occupied by an illegal renter who has five flat screen television sets mounted to the living room wall, along with a seven-foot sailfish.
I may or may not have peeked through the windows.
The list goes on.
Despite, or maybe because of all of its problems, my husband and I love neighborhood and the floor plan and kept our fingers crossed that it would work out.
In a few weeks, the house will be ours.
Assuming we can get the illegal renter/squatter to move out.
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Sounds like you have some project coming up. Good luck!
Congratulations! And good luck with the squatter... how in the world does that even happen??
You have missed the biggest problem with your new house - the laundry is on the top floor. :)
Oh, good luck! We gutted a house too and it took almost 2 years. It was a bigger undertaking than what we expected and we did ALL of the work ourselves. When we moved out a year and a half ago, there were still things we hadn't finished after living there for 2 years! It's a long process, but totally worth it in the end!
Wahoo! We are going thru the same thing right now in Virigina. We made an offer on a bank owned house we are hoping has potential. Good luck. Oh and be sure to post some before and after photos (of the house not the illegal squatter or tadpoles).
Cousin Eddie? Is he at it again?
I can honestly see, though, how the wine racks in the bathrooms would be advantageous. You never have to leave the room! I say you keep them there.
So, if he leaves he'll have no place to put those flatscreens, will he? Can I give you my address?
Congratulations!
Oh please, oh please, share before and after pictures?
A laundry room on the bedroom floor is THE BEST place to have it!! No lugging the laundry up and down the stairs!! I loved it that way. Although I did have to go down and get the dirty kitchen towels etc....Just think of how close the bedrooms are when it comes time to put away the laundry!
I love Before and After photos too!
Leave the kids there with the renter for a couple of days and tell him that they come with the house. He'll be gone inside of 24 hours ;-)
Congrats!
I do think DJ's idea is excellent. We are house shopping, and a good floor plan is SOOOOOO important and so hard to find. A new vanity? Easy peasy!
Yay! Exciting! If you need some names to help fix it up....let me know! I like the idea of sending the kids over to "help" your squatter move out...however, with all those TV screens...they may want to adopt the guy! :)
Squatters are a good reason to invest in a shot gun.
Good luck with your new home.
Oh, blessings to all y'all in your new home. May the squatter quickly absquatulate, and may you have a dandy time prepping your new digs!
I'm so excited for you to finally have a space. Good luck.
You have to post before pictures!!!
Can't wait to read all of the future stories.
Debra
We just put an offer on a short sale too! So glad it worked out for you guys!
You can do it! Good luck!!
Vanilla,
Great use of the Latin verb blend of abscond, squattle and perambulate. I'm sure there are some sharp mid- 19th century comedians who are chuckling in their graves.
As for me, you have provoked a trip to the dictionary for which I have been rewarded with a new word: absquatulate, (verb) to leave abruptly.
:-)
Good luck with the house. I can't wait to read the stories that come out of the remodel.
I'm guessing you can, since the shortest adverse possession law I've ever seen is three years, and those laws are based upon the requirement that the adverse possessor improve upon the land, which it sounds like your little friend has not done.
The tadpoles may be another story. . . those little Kermits will not relinquish their hold!
Congratulations!
Maybe the squatter will take the tapoles with him!
Congratulations! Take the tvs outside and I'll bet he follows...
Does the squatter HAVE to move out? You could offer him a room with the stipulation that you get to keep the sailfish.
Offer to let the squatter stay rent free for the next 6 months, in exchange for doing all the remodeling on the house. :)
Haha :) Sounds like the house my Mom chose to move into when I was 15. We called it the "Poo Poo" house for reasons I won't get into :) Sounds like you've got some work to do :) Thanks for a great post :)
We're waiting on our short sale mess too...luckily there aren't any squatters but we found out somehow the lady losing the house is in on the deal and trying to squeeze extra money out of us despite the fact we have suspicions she had something to do with the house being stripped after we were in escrow...no matter what happens it ends up being an emotional nightmare.
Good luck! Even with the work to do, it will be wonderful to have it as your own.
Ummm- congratulations?:)
Wine racks in place of bathroom vanities?! That's genius!! lol....
Congrats on the new home.
Enjoy your blog- reading about the "fun" things other's kids put them through makes the things my kid does not seem so bad...yet
So I am a little late discovering your blog. I have been a real estate appraiser in Cent FL for the last 7 years. I was laughing so hard at this post I was crying. I love it wine racks! Now let me tell you I have seen many things in the short sales and foreclosures but seriously that is classic. Be proud and own it. I actually am starting a blot it goes viral tomorrow (I hope). I have spent the last hour and plan on continuing reading your posts, my goodness do we have a similar voice. I really hope you will check out my blog. I feel like I am reading about our neighborhood!(in a area north of orlando) Anyways I look forward to continuing to getting to know you through your posts!
Tara
http://ourlifeinthedeepend.blogspot.com
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