So, with all the buildup, all the excitement, I ended up in a panic attack throughout most of yesterday, leading up to appointment time.
I was able to confirm that Dave had gotten the Certified Check for $4,200.00 we needed for the closing costs. I drove out to the Title office, and waited for him to arrive. Our realtor arrived first, and we talked for a few minutes and headed indoors. It was cold and windy.
Dave arrived, and we began the paperwork. The first thing we were shown was what the cash we needed for closing was. It was MUCH less than we had expected, which resulted in sighs of relief from Dave and myself.
Halfway through the paperwork, we received a call from Laura, our loan processor. She wanted to call and let us know the amount we’d need for closing. A little late, lady, we already know we’re getting a check for ~$2,600.00 back from the Title company from overpayment!
We finished the paperwork, received our keys, and headed out to the house. We spent a bit of time there, talking about where we might put our furniture. Then we went out for a celebration meal at Rudy’s.
All the stress, the frustration, the accumulation of fears and doubts, to find out we had MORE than enough money! MUCH more! How could that lady at USAA do that to us, make us feel like it was going to soak up all our money? Why couldn’t she tell us that part of our closing costs were getting rolled into our loan? WHY would she make us think that we needed over $4,000 at closing to have the house? That’s not just a *slight* overestimation! It’s downright ridiculous! All the times we couldn’t even reach Laura, her consistent failure to contact us, return calls or emails, had us at wits end by the time yesterday arrived.
I will NEVER EVER in my life go through USAA for Mortgage Services again. It was absolutely ridiculous for them to put us through such a nightmare as first time home buyers.
Our house is amazing. We love it so much already! We fell in love with it at first sight, actually, and our love for it is growing. There are things we want to do, to make it our own, but that’s expected. There are a few minor repairs needed, but we love the house too much to worry about those. We can handle that, especially now that we know we have enough money to take care of all those little things.
Dave tested the dishwasher, and it was leaking onto the floor. We suspect it’s from not being used in some time, and there are seals that may have dried up. We’ll have someone come and take a look at it.
The settling in the add-on in the basement seems to have gotten worse, so that’s an expense we’re going to incur rather soon. We want to get the walls stabilized and sealed to prevent water from coming in, and there will be many options for that room once we give it time to ensure it’s stable again. If it stays dry and the settling subsides, we could even turn it into another bedroom, and a large one at that.
I’ve already picked out my office, and can’t wait to move in a small desk to have everything set up and ready to go.
We’re going to turn the smaller bedroom on the main level into a huge walk-in closet, since the master bedroom is smaller than we’re used to and our dresser and armoire are quite large. That will also be nice for us, since we get up for work at different times sometimes, with that room as a dressing room, we won’t wake each other up in the mornings.
The kitchen is just wonderful, and I can’t wait to cook a meal in it. I’m going to find a recipe for Chicken Cacciatore. It just sounds like something I’d like to make.
The appliances are slightly outdated, some older than others. We’re going to make do with them for a while, so we can save up money and get a whole new matching set.
The living room on the main level won’t have a TV. We’re going to put our TV in the basement family room because that’s where we see ourselves spending most of our time. Our sofa will probably go in the living room, and we’ll probably purchase another recliner similar to the one we have, put them both in the family room. We’ll definitely have to save up some money for a hi-def flat screen for down there, and then maybe put the huge tube in the living room.
The dryer is ancient, and it’s a gas hook-up, so we’ll either have an electrician come out to set it up for our electric, or just purchase a gas dryer.
The other upstairs room will become a guest room, with the built-in dresser drawers adding to its amenities. It’s large enough for a double or queen bed, so we may put our bed up there when we buy a new one for ourselves.
There’s tons of closets and storage space, so there’s no worries that we won’t find places to put all our “stuff.”
The bathroom needs a total make-over. It could be much nicer than it already is. We’ll have to get estimates on a whole new bath/shower combo to replace the outdated tub and makeshift shower currently there. The half bath in the basement could be made nicer as well, so we’ll have to look into that at some point.
The garage is a large two-car, which is good for us. One car will always have to be parked outside, since we have a Corvette and don’t want to subject it to weather. We’ll want to finish off the garage with insulation, but that can wait a while.
There will be many projects, but it’s OUR house now, and anything we do to update it will increase its value.
I am so excited, and simply cannot wait to move in!
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