It sounds like the new place will be a better fit for you! You certainly don't want to be dealing with water issues!
If I lived closer I would absolutely come help you get stuff packed up :)

Oh, mold is a scary thing. My dad just figured out he has mold in his house and I have really been on him to get it TAKEN CARE OF! Worrying me!

I'm sorry that the condo might not work out. Take it from someone who lives "right across the street" from family - a little distance is good! I don't mean to offend because I'm actually glad I lived next to my in-laws for a while and got to know them better, but after 5 or 6 years I was ready for a little more privacy. Maybe long-term it's not best for some people to live next to family, but I suppose it depends on the family!

We lost out on buying a house I had fallen head-over-heals for. Now we are going to bid on a different house. The new house isn't as great on the inside as the last one, but the outside of the home is amazing! Also, all of the work is already done on this home, whereas the other house had an unfinished basment. Anyway, I hope this new house is a better fit for you!

We are kind of stressing about what to do with all of our stuff between closing on the house we are selling and the house we are buying too but we will find a way. We're thinking of renting an enclosed trailer for most of the heavy stuff so that way we only have to load and unload heavy stuff one time. I guess it will all have to work out in the end for us and for you. Good luck and I'm glad you are moving closer to your loved ones!

I agree, at first it is nice to live real close to relatives, but later it can be not so nice. A little distance is good, and gives all a bit more freedom.

Oh I am so excited and nervous about going to see the house on Saturday!...it just has to work!!!...no other place in that whole town for sale that isn't two story etc. If I like it, and if it is well constucted, I will sign a contract on the spot to buy it the day after I close on this one.

I have to give possession April 12 and be completely out by May 1st!...and the days are quickly clicking away. Right now I am trying to take the emotion out of pitching, getting ready for a huge garage/furniture sale, and not knowing how much room I will have is hard. I need to have it soon....'cause I keep walking by and picking up stuff and putting it back in the "save" piles~~

"Oh I am so excited and nervous about going to see the house on Saturday!...it just has to work!!!...no other place in that whole town for sale that isn't two story etc. If I like it, and if it is well constucted, I will sign a contract on the spot to buy it the day after I close on this one."

Rarely if ever is any house the only one in the universe that is acceptable. When you go into a negotiation with that mindset, you're giving away all your bargaining power before you even get to the table. If the place has flaws you may be so determined you must have it (because it's the only one you can possibly accept) that you will make a hasty decision that will cost you money as well as peace of mind in the future.

Then too, just because there may not be another house on the market today that fits your needs, it doesn't mean one won't come on the market tomorrow that does--and perhaps even better than what's available now.

Please try to keep your perspective and remember that like buses, if for any reason you don't take this house another one another WILL come along in time :).

Further to what runninginplace said, in one of your posts you mentioned that you will be "homeless" if you don't find something right away. This is also not a good way to think, phoggie. It will be inconvenient if you have to rent for a few months, but that is in no way the same as being "homeless". It's hard, I know, but try to take a more positive outlook and things will go easier for you. Things will work out as they are meant to work out.

Hi Friends~
Just to bring you up-to-date on my saga.

Well, I did go to what I thought could perhaps be "the one"...and it was built in 2003, right price, right size, loved the lay-out, but I did bring along my deceased DH's son, who has been a contractor for a long time. He walked into the street, looked at the house and there was a "sway" in the roof line~~he crawled under the house, there was no blocking, the back door wouldn't open because the house had settled so much.....so he said, "No" to that one.

We went back to the condo (which I thought had possible water problems) and no one was at home, so we took the liberty to walk around where the water was standing outside of the crawl space door....he opened the door, it was damp, but no standing water, no musty smell, and no visible mold....but there was a rusty, old sump pump standing on the patio and beside it was a brand new one....so I guess I at least got the owner to do some checking. Son said that if the new sump pump was installed, there should be no water problem.

The condo owner has continued to show it (although she said she would give me 30 days), so I don't know where I stand with her anymore....I might have ticked her off so badly when I brought up the possible mold situation, that she has written me off because she has not returned my phone calls.

Most of you just do not understand this little town....there are NO places to rent, unless I would qualify for low income, which I will have too many assets when I sell this house....and in a town of only 3,000 people, there are not that many houses for sale and if there are, they are usually sold before they even hit the market, or they have too many steps etc.

Therefore I came back home very distressed......BUT God is good! I got a call from a former classmate of mine from over 50 years ago....she has also recently lost her second husband due to health issues...and before her DH passed away, they brought a house in that little town...and we were consoling each other and then she said, "I am thinking about selling my house and moving back with my son and wife because I am so terribly lonesome...would you like to come live with me until you find something suitable?"...oh my gosh, I could not believe what I was hearing...because by April 12, I had no other place to live...this was truly a God send...and I said that I would be willing to pay rent or whatever we could decide on and she said, "Your company will be payment enough". (of course, I'll pay utilities, groceries or something)........so friends, this is how my life is right at this minute~~~

If the condo owner wants to sell me the condo and it is dry, fine....it is in the best location in town...right on the lake I wanted to live on and near my son and wife, so they could check on me if need be. But if she decides to sell it to someone else, it won't be the end of my world...I do have a place to live in the meantime and when God closes a door, He opens a window and I am at peace and do not feel that terrible panic that I had before.

Thanks for caring and thinking about me.

That's awesome... I always say that good things happen to good people.
Don't worry about the condo seller's feelings. Just submit an offer today, and see where it goes. Either you get into negotiations or you do not. At least you know one more variable of your life.

Hi Phoggie -

It looks like things are looking up & that doors are literally opening up for you. I am so happy that some of the stress is lifted.

Have you considered buying your friend's house? That way, both of you get what you want & need: you, a place by your people & your old friend, the ability to move closer to her people. Sounds like a win-win if her house could work for you.

Best of luck to you on the sale of your house & the purchase of your next one.

I just got a facebook message from my classmate and she said not to worry about over-staying my welcome...it might be a great "permanent solution" for both of us. Her son lives in the same county....so not far from her. She feels lonesome there since she and her late husband bought this house and intended on moving there, but he died before they got moved.

My kids think that since both DH and I loved that lake so much to keep the lot, and make plans to build a modest home there....one even said that perhaps she and her husband would like to move there when he retires, after I am done with it.

So several options running through my head....but by the time I bought the condo, fixed it up (and then still I wouldn't have room to have my family come and eat with me), I could almost build.....so we'll see how this hand of cards plays out. I am trying to play with what I have been delt~~

Thanks friends~~