Leno & the dog park

Just another sunny weekend in Cali...

Armada Latina

Dealing with our first real estate heartbreak has not been easy. We constantly find ourselves talking about 'the one that got away'. Did we make the right decision? Are we going to find another house that we like as much as this one? What if someone else comes along and makes an offer? Should we counter again? Can we really afford it? We can live without our Starbucks, premium gasoline, and toilet paper, right? After drowning our sorrows in margaritas we grooved to Cypress Hill’s new Armada Latina. We’ve never been huge reggaeton fans, but with Marc Anthony’s crooning and the reiteration of Crosby, Still, Nash, this little ditty has become our new jam. Thanks to our new soundtrack (and a slight buzz) we were ready to go house hunting again!

Real estate heartbreak

Bad news. The seller -aka the bully bank- did not accept our last offer. However the bank did tell us that in a couple of months it may be willing to accept our (low ball) offer. WHAT THE HELL?!? Why doesn't the bank take our offer now? Why wait a couple of months when the bank can sell it now.....TO US....a couple that will love and take care of it.....a couple who will create precious memories in it......a couple who was planning on starting a family in it.....a couple who already picked out the perfect Viking range for the amazing kitchen that was going to host the most fabulous house warming party in all the history of house warming parties? Sigh. Oh no, instead the bank is pulling the oldest trick in the book - stringing us along until another, better, prettier, more vapid, but-couldn't-possibly-love-you-as-much version comes along. Well we have news for you, bully bank. We are already seeing other people houses.

Goodbye, lovely lavatory. Goodbye, super duper amazing kitchen. Goodbye, extra large master bedroom. Goodbye, $200 per square foot. Goodbye, $8,000 buyers’ credit. Ouch, that last one really hurt.

"¡Olé, Olé!

The seller countered our counter. So, we’ve decided to counter back with our last and final offer. This is it. The bull is going down.….

Farmers Market

I love the intoxicating scents at a farmers market. The sweet scent of the blood oranges mixed with the perfume of freshly cut flowers and salty popcorn is beyond yummy. It’s the perfect way to spend a Saturday morning.

"¡Olé!

So the seller countered our offer. The good news is that we are still in the game. I was almost positive that we had lost the house to another buyer because we had not heard from the seller in over a week. The bad news is that the counter is only $5K below the initial asking price. All that is left is to counter the counter. I feel like a matador confronting the bull(y) with muleta in hand.  This is my Faena!

The 'Bu

We spent the weekend with our nieces in Malibu.  The weather was absolutely gorgeous.  We spent the day on the beach, shopping, stalking Simon Cowell, and eating Crumbs cupcakes. The entire day (especially the cupcakes) was delicious.

Dear Dream House,

Despite your flaws we love you. Please love us back.
Sincerely,
The Dreamers

 
We decided to submit another offer on our Dream House.  Are we crazy (in love)?

Me muero

Thank you Unhappy Hispters - I really needed to laugh today! Check out this amazingly funny blog by Unhappy Hipsters.

Nutmeg sat stoically atop the cushions. Yet her internal dialogue was a cacophony of discordant thoughts, mostly centered on the absurdity of the double Nelson clocks.

 (Photo: Joao Canziani; Dwell via Unhappy Hipsters)

Abulia

I have a neurological disorder. -I can't make decisions- Ok, so maybe its not neurological, but its definitely a disorder. This all happened because we got some bad news last night. Our first offer (on our first dream house) was not accepted. The seller is not willing to negotiate the price. The Broker is certain that if we offer the full listing price we will get the home. Unfortunately, the listing price is WAY BEYOND our comfort range. Not only is the price high, but the house needs a bit of work. However this house is a great investment. The price is far below the comps in the area and the home is located in the best school district - translation: great re-sale value. Help! What do we do? Do we tightened our belts and take the plunge? Or do we make the conservative move and keep looking? Ronnie and I couldn’t even decide where to go to dinner last night. So making this decision is torturous! The really big question is: will we be able to find another master bath as dreamy as this one?

Butterflies

Yesterday was a great day! We found the most amazing house. As soon as we walked in the house I got that butterfly feeling in my stomach. I looked over at the hubs and his big smile told me he felt the same way. We spent the next thirty minutes running from room to room loving every square inch. After we decided where we were going to put the couch our Agent discovered that the listing price was actually WAY ABOVE what we thought. We had been looking at a different listing. Details, minor details. This is the face the hubs made when the Agent discovered our mistake:

We looked at 4 more houses yesterday, but couldn’t stop thinking about this house. We fell in love. So we made our first offer! But, just in case things don’t work out, we’re continuing our house hunting today. A person can fall in love with more than one house, right?

Hollywood connection

Yesterday the Agent took us to see a townhouse in a great neighborhood. The townhouse didn’t have a yard, but it had a spacious courtyard. It had everything we were looking for: 3 bedrooms, big master bath, room to entertain, 2 car garage and a famous neighbor. Ok, so that last one isn’t really on our list. But the rumor in the neighborhood is that someone famous lives next door, Bentley and all.

We were really excited to put in an offer last night. Our Agent called the seller’s broker to see if any other offers had been submitted. Turns out that the property was at the very beginning stages of the short sale process. Since short sales can last months to negotiate, we decided not to pursue it.

Cali Style

We drove by this house during one of our house hunting trips. I love the color. Its very Pasadena modern.

The kids

Goldilocks

On Wednesday we went on our second house hunting expedition with the Agent. We had blast. But towards the end we felt like Goldilocks trying to find the house that fit us just right. 

This one had a great view of a golf course but was too small..... 

This one had a pool but the location was too far....

This one was big but it was too expensive...

This one was nice but the masterbath was too small...

Is that poop in the toilet?

Day 1 of house hunting did not go so well.  Today I discovered that the homes in our price range are not only fixer-uppers, but they are complete gut jobs. We toured 4 REOs that were great in price but bad in...everything else.  One had a leaky roof, one had no windows, and the other had POOP IN THE TOILET! Don't let the above picture fool you. If you could smell it, you would run away too. The stench was unbearable. I don't mind getting my hands (metaphorically) dirty, but this is ridiculous! I would have to pay someone just to flush that toilet before I even step foot into the house again. Unfortunately (or luckily) none of the homes we saw will qualify for FHA financing. Interestingly, FHA is silent on the issue of left over poop. No worries.  We just have to move on to the next house...and the next price range. One good thing that came from this poop-filled adventure is that we're learning what our boundaries are. Yup, poop is definately on the no-fly list.

Mata Viboras

We found a buyer's agent! He's the Broker's husband so we didn't have to search very far.  When I spoke to the Agent on the phone, he came across as knowledgable and eager with a wicked sense of humor.  As soon as I saw him, I knew he was the right guy.  The Agent stepped out of his white Mercedes sporting sun-bleached tips, a pink button-up, faded Seven jeans,  and some killer cowboy boots (or as Ronnie likes to call them, Mata Viboras -snake killers-).  Ronnie has a serious penchant for python so our Agent's Mata Viboras was a good sign. As Ronnie and the Agent bonded over their love of shoelaceless footwear, I couldn't help but have a good chuckle. I thought to myself, "This is going to be a fun ride."

The Chicken or the Egg?

Ok, so I think I was a little rushed into thinking that we were ready to go house shopping.  I mean, we have to get pre-qualified first, right?  Or should we get pre-approved?  I still don't think that I understand the difference. If we don't find a house within the pre-approval timeframe will we need to get re-pre-approved? Should we find the house first to ensure that our pre-approval will still be valid? ??? I should mention, for those of you who don't know, that Ronnie and I never went through this with our first home.

When Ronnie and I bought our first home in Texas we didn't use a buyer's agent and we never got pre-qualifed. I think it was a simpler time and a simpler market. In Texas, we walked into an open house and fell in love at first sight. We weren't looking to purchase a house. So, needless to say we weren't pre-qualified, much less pre-approved. We just fell in love. As the builder and the real estate agent, the seller liked us (for some reason) and decided that he wanted us to have the home. Pretty sweet, huh? The next day we met with his broker and started the loan application process. In less than 15 days we were living in the home. No home inspection, no down payment, no closing costs. Maybe we were a bit naive. In the end it all worked out. Fast forward a few years. We still own the home and the seller is one of our good friends. But we're not in Texas anymore, Toto. Now that we are trying to buy a home in Cali, we have to do things a bit differently. Last weekend Ron and I met with a loan officer and started the process to get pre-approved. After meeting with the Broker, we have a pretty good idea for the amount we will be approved and what the monthly payments will be. Now that the paperwork is done, our next step is finding a buyer’s agent.

A little obsession

I'm obsessed with a website! Have you heard of Redfin? Its like window shopping for real estate....from the comfort of my laptop....in my pjs....without any makeup. Because of this damn website I find myself spending more and more time online. I log on every morning to search the socal MLS. At work I peruse the new lunch-time listings. When I get home, I'm back online wondering if that great little cottage in Encino is under contract or if that mid-century modern in Granda Hills has been chopped in price. I imagine myself cooking in that kitchen, wondering what wood floors would match this molding, and picking out a soaking tub for that outdated master bath. In my head I must have remodeled dozens of homes already. I'm an expert. In my head of course. From the comfort of our little 1 bedroom apartment, we waited wondering if the market would continue its landslide. How do you know when the time is right to buy? Is the market leveling out? Should we wait another year? What we do know is that we are tired of renting, we need more space for Hercules, Ozzy and our growing hobbies, and we want to start (thinking about) a family. So we have come to the decision that we are READY!  We are ready to jump in with both feet and find the perfect home for our growing family. Thanks to Redfin, I've compiled a list of over 200 homes. Its time to put on some makeup and head out into the real world to do some shopping. Wish us luck!