We had another Open House today. The last, thank God. With five offers on the condo, we still had an Open House. I said yes to it because if we had skipped it, everything would have fallen through and I'd be back at square one. Or at least that's what the pessimist in me says. We had two more people come through today who were going to submit offers.
About an hour after the Open House was over, I went down to Realtor Jan's office and signed the papers accepting an offer. Escrow opens tomorrow.
Originally, there were four offers on the house last Thursday: $375,000 (2), $380,000, $385,000. Jan sent back a multiple counteroffer for $385,000. The responses to that came back at $387,000 (2), $390,000 and $395,000. And then another offer came in on Saturday that beat out all the counteroffers. That's the paperwork that I signed off on today.
While I was at Jan's office, she contacted the original four bidders, asking them if they would like to be back-up contingent offers for the property at $1,000 over the bid we signed on. But the buyers' financials and offer are impeccable, so I'm thinking that won't happen.
Last Thursday, Jan came over at 9:30 a.m. for the Realtors' caravan Open House. It lasted from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. I was getting ready to leave that morning when she buzzed at the gate. Coming in with her were two guys, obviously a middle-aged gay couple. We made eye contact as they were coming in and I was going out. Curious, I asked Jan about them, but she didn't know anything.
On Friday we had the counteroffers back, with the second round of prices. On Saturday afternoon, Jan called to let me know another, a fifth offer had been submitted. "You know those two guys you asked me about on Thursday?" she queried. "They sent in an offer. You might want to sit down. It has a four in it." I was floored: $405,000. Jan was dubious that we'd do much better than $390,000, even in a multiple-bid situation.
This is lovely: $30,000 over asking price, and from seasoned buyers.
Turns out these guys took one look at the place and fell in love with it. I'm glad I left out the "gay" picture of Steve and me sharing a feather boa at an Oscars party. The Ken cake pan (from Ken and Barbie fame) hanging on the kitchen wall was another campy gay giveaway. The best part, they are buying this for their new home (they have several income properties in the Silver Lake district in L.A., so this could have been just another investment property to rent).
I was floored at the news. I was overjoyed. I had to stop and cry a little, thinking how pleased Steve would be that the new owners would be another "middle-aged" gay couple, and that they saw the potential for love and joy here. Somehow, that eases the pain of selling what was our home together, and provides a kind of special continuity for the house.
Now is the beginning of the end. With a 35-day escrow opening tomorrow and a five-day move-out period tacked on after its close, the timeline is fairly tight. If all goes well, escrow will close on April 13 and my last day in legal residence will be April 18.
This means I will be hitting the road April 19 (the beginning of the next era) and arriving in La Crosse on the 22nd. (Well, arriving in Winona, Minn., as I'm staying with my niece, Amanda, and that's where she lives. It's just 30 minutes to La Crosse from there.) Staying with Amanda—and Natalie, of course—is a boon, since house hunting can begin right away, rather than having to look for a rental first. I figure even if I take a couple weeks, I could be in a new home by Independence Day.
For tomorrow ("T" [travel] minus 40 days):
1) Make an appointment to get cat checked up and microchipped;
2) Make an appointment with the movers;
3) Finish taxes;
4) Start packing in earnest;
5) Make an appointment to get the car checked out;
6) Start training the cat to her carrier and transferring to and from the tube/enclosure she will be occupying on the cross-country trek.
It is ending. It is beginning. An old life is going dormant while a new mindframe is emerging from what will be the rest of my life.
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