housing update

we definitely didn't get that blocker house. the list price has since come down to $348k, still well over our offer. we just weren't willing to spend more on a house that didn't have a garage or even a family room.

shortly after the those negotiations broke down, we found another house we liked. it's fifty blocks farther north, practically on the county line. it's more suburban than I had intended to look, but we like the house. while it's smaller than the previous one, it feels bigger, with a better layout. it's three bedrooms but only 1.5 baths, a smaller kitchen but a bonus room and a two car garage. the backyard is big enough that we could eventually knock out a wall in the main bedroom and add a full bath there. it's also a few blocks from a transit centre, so while the commute wouldn't be ideal, it's possible to bus to and from work fairly easily.

the downside is we found out it was a short sale when we offered. it was originally listed at $388k, and dropped to $348k. we knew the sellers were motivated, but were caught off guard by the short sale status. we offered two weeks ago, and it was accepted, but we're waiting on the bank. this can take weeks. the house was appraised by the bank currently holding the paper on the house, and they need to make a decision soon. they'll write off whatever the difference is between what's currently owed on the house and what we're offering ($315k), but it will still be less of a hit than if it goes into foreclosure.

currently there's an auction for the house set for feb 8, but we're trying to get that canceled. if it goes to auction, we're definitely screwed. we couldn't front the cash for it, even tho it'd sell for $100k less than we're currently offering, because we don't have everything up front.

the waiting has been really annoying. we're going out looking at other houses tomorrow night, on the off chance we find something else we like that isn't a short sale. at this point, I'd rather pay a bit more to get that certainty, these past couple weeks have just been brutal.