It's almost anti-climactic, but I may still cry when we get the keys today...

Since the owners breached the contract when their lawyer never sent the abstract of title and paperwork required 10 days before closing, we still have not closed, but had a little leverage to move things along, finally. Night before last when we realized the contract was definitely breached Joe drafted a letter to our lawyer with parts to send on to the owners lawyer, pretty much demanding that he courier the paperwork to the title company lawyer by the end of the day, to reassure us this house is really for sale, and give us the early occupancy we've asked for repeatedly over the last 5 or 6 weeks. Basically, we're losing faith, and you breached the contract... so make it right.

Yesterday Joe got the paperwork and signed for 7 days early occupancy. (our lease ends Sunday and new tenants get the keys to this house Sunday, so we needed to get in NOW.) Today the owner signed, and around noon their realtor will drop off the keys with Joe at his job. (Where I will steal them and unload the Escalade full of boxes as soon as Amelia naps.)

While I do not think anything about getting the keys will really be anti-climactic, it won't be the scene Joe envisioned carrying me over the thresh-hold after we got keys at a signing. It won't be OUR house until next week. But then again, our lawyer says this could very much work in our favor. There are things we knew were wrong with the house that were obvious, and part of lowering the price earlier on, like half the attic floor being destroyed, the knob and tube wiring, possible lead, a gas line from the basement to the stove that isn't up to code according to the home inspector. a water leak into the electrical box that the bank inspector made them fix already. But now he said we get to make a really detailed list without guessing as to what repairs are needed that will lower the price.

AND because we requested early occupancy to fix the blocked off fireplace, get grounded wiring, level the porch, etc, the owner (selling their deceased parents house and mostly claiming not to know anything about the condition of the house) can't claim not to know about the problems needing work. He knew for over a month, and didn't let us get in to fix anything before move-in. Soour lawyer thinks we should be able to get more money knocked off the closing price. (Like "hey, when your dad ripped up the attic floor and put pink insulation down over the knob and tube wiring, that wasn't too cool...")

but it's going to be a frustrating week, because we can't change anything. And the more we unpack and settle in the more of a pain it will be to move stuff and rip out carpet/paint/etc. And with no grounded outlets we can't plug in TV's and computers. Well, one old box tv currently in the attic, and the dvr is a cable company rental. Might risk their health...

Surely they won't care if I rip out the weeds?!?! I swear I'll leave the rotting astroturf carpet on the porch just to celebrate the closing by ripping it off next week. And ARGH, we want to donate the wheelchair ramp, but will have to live with that for a week too. Heck when it's gone I want to put the concrete steps on craigs list for free and hope someone will carry them away. I don't think Restore will pick them up from an hour away:(

Ooh, and we went to Restore for the 1st time the other day. They gave us free bread donated by Panera. mmm. If I don't use my curb finds I will definitely get a door or two from them for our headboard. And cabinets for the craft room for sure. Very excited about the price of cabinets and countertops there, because for a craft room they'll be great. Someday prolly for a laundry room too...

So another week of unpacking, and continuing to refinish furniture. I got a new DeWALT sander the other day and have finally been working on some of our curb furniture we've accumulated in the two years since we got here from Louisiana. I stained our dresser red mahogany to go with the darker wood in our room, so now it doesn't look like curb furniture next to the antique trunk and the new bedside tables. Maybe tomorrow I can take pictures of it all IN OUR ROOM!!

We seriously spend a few hours a week driving around Utica and it's 'burbs either gawking at houses or on specific neighborhood trash nights. It's down to a science. And I have a collection of curb windows I want to use to decorate walls in the new house that I may get to work with this week too!

There will be plenty to do while we can't do anything to the house. It figures we'd be waiting to sign on a holiday weekend too... Hopefully it stops raining this evening for moving. Then where will I charge my computer???? Come to think of it, I don't know when the cable/internet gets turned on, I forgot what Joe said.

House keys in 20 minutes!?!?!?!?!

We still have not closed on the house. Turns out our lawyer was in the hospital for about 3 weeks. I have no idea why someone couldn't let us know this until about a week ago. We went with a lawyer Joe's dad recommended, or I thought we did. Turns out his lawyer friend he recommended has a lawyer brother, and we got the brother. During the last week or so the non-incapacitated brother was supposed to be getting stuff done, but nothing happened on our end.

We were trying to get an early occupancy agreement. The owners were supposedly fine with it and just needed their lawyers okay in case we burned down the house or something. Noone worked on this closing while our lawyer was hospitalized, as far as I can tell.

I am so frustrated. The closing date is Monday. We wanted to get grounded wiring and overhead lights put in and rip out the (fugly) carpet before moving in. Now The lawyer is supposed to call today and let Joe know if we can move in Sunday. That's like the day before the closing date. I wasn't even fully awake when Joe told me this, so I don't know if we are just dropping things off there or if we're actually moving?

About a month ago the only problem was the title search hadn't been done. As far as I know it still isn't... Last week Joe said their lawyer needed to send title paperwork to our lawyer and it would take 2 days from then to get the title search finished. We have gone in circles with Joe sending everyone everything they need, but none of them send necessary paperwork to each other. We pay them, but they don't DO anything. Now I know why people stay in the same house forever, they probably tried to move and no one ever did their job in the closing process...

At least it's a foursquare, and when we need to block off a room to work on it we can still access the rest of the house and get in and out. I'm imagining the worst will be removing the paint from the stairs and banister etc. since the only bathroom is upstairs. The baby is in diapers, so if we all stayed downstairs, she'd be fine. And we could set up some unmentionable emergency bucket in the basement if necessary, I'm envisioning lead paint in the removal process and actually having to seal off the stairs... But other than that most of the rooms can be accessed even if one is closed off for work. If we'd gotten a crazy-mazey Victorian it might not have been that simple...

As if it will be simple...

I need to find houseblog friends doing DIY with a toddler living in the house, for inspiration. We just got Amelia her first lead test last week (at 1 and 1/2) and she's all good. So we know if anything happens it's the new house, or us that caused it.

Since writing that when I woke up I have talked to Joe a bit more. He called our lawyer and it turns out THEIR lawyer STILL has not sent the abstract of title to our lawyer. It's been what, at least 6 weeks? The other day our neighbor made a comment to the effect that he thought there was a problem with one of the kids about selling. Our house is being sold by the 5 kids of the deceased owners. There was no will. I am now wanting to ask the neighbor what he heard or over-heard. (at the time he made the comment I didn't know there was any problem other than our hospitalized lawyer, and didn't think it was relevant....)

Our lawyer has been calling their lawyer for weeks now, about the title. He has never gotten a response. Part of the time their lawyer was supposed to be on vacation. We found the house pretty much immediately, within a few weeks of the owners death. Within the first week of the ad being online. The realtor had said they wanted to sell asap because they don't want to pay to heat it in winter etc., but I really wonder now what the heck is going on. I think all 5 sons were there the day we met them when they were moving their parents stuff out and we were having the house inspected. Supposedly they're all on board. But I really wonder why we can't even acquire the title info, if they want to sell so badly. With a motivated seller, why would they let their lawyer stall forever unless there's some problem!?!?!

Why put it on the market and then not do your part in the process of selling? We could close 48 hours after their lawyer sends it. This makes no sense to me...