Lazypanda-crazymonkey.com

Flickr photos
31 July 2008 in Blog | Comments (0)

For updates on photos visit my flickr page. My Gallery

Here I upload more pics of things I shoot.

Not closed yet
2 July 2008 in Blog | Comments (0)

Still pending closing on the new place. We had to resubmit all the paperwork since they processed for the wrong type of loan. Should be another week or two before can close and get those keys. Also they have to make some changes to get the house to pass code. Wow great for us. BLAH.

Closing Time
24 June 2008 in Blog | Comments (0)

Well its right around the corner. Closing on the house is near. Go to this link HOUSE GALLERY to see the house we bought.

The loan was approved. Better interest rate. Includes the taxes for state and this is a fixed rate. Much better than our first house which while is remodeled the loan sucks and the house is now worth less than we bought it for. Hopefully in 2 years we can sell it off.

In the mean time we have started to pack slowly. Getting boxes and packing stuff we don’t use much. We will be slow to moving. No rush again. It is easier to do that than move everything on one day.

We have been going around looking at kitchens and I think we have found what we want. We are going for NEW cabinet solution. The sink will be a dual sink either of stainless steel or granite. Floor will stay the same right now. Appliances will stay the same until there is a big sale. LG and GE seem to get good reviews.

Auction block…buying a house
9 June 2008 in Blog | Comments (0)

Going to an auction is alot of fun. I recommend it if you have a day to just hang out. Take a lunch box and some drink and you will enjoy it. Last weekend I went downtown DC to the convention center for a giant auction. Since this is DC of course they had several things going on down there. So 14th st exit was closed off…..12th st exit closed off. OK fine I will take New York ave, hey guess what this is way faster than either of those exits. Parking for the event…20$!!! Good thing I went to the ATM this morning. I only had 10$ before that.

I get inside and the room is giant. There is about 100 people right now. But I showed up early 830. Auction begins at 930. I get a coffee, take a seat, put on my headphones and read a magazine I brought to pass the time. The room fills up but the auction does not start until 1015. This is an American style auction what ever that means. I think it means fast talking to bump the prices and to move as fast as possible. 250 homes are for auction today. The one we want is number 128. I came prepared. I have a pre-approval letter from the bank.

Houses for the most part were going for 50% of their value. It was hard to understand the auctioner at times but at the end he started to slow down to get some people to bite. When the house we were looking to get was up, I put my placard in my hand and waited. I was pre-approved for more than enough but at the auction you need to put 5% down in cash. That means I can go as high as 170k but i set a limit of 165k for myself for a buffer. I was gonna wait until the end of the auction for this item as no need to get in the beginning.

Starting bid is 39k for a 1300 sq ft town home. end unit with 2.5 baths and 3 bedrooms. Basically it looks like the house we used to rent a few years ago. First few seconds and the house goes up to 130k. Then 150k where it sits. Oh man I was thinking I am going to loose this. I was really hoping to get lucky and get it for around 120-130k like a few other people did. Right now at 150 and its winding down. 150…..150……150. I raise my placard. Could of went 155 but no. 160. Holding my breath. This is it. I will not go 170. It is now or never. Will I get counter bid……160……160…..160…..SOLD!!.

WE got it. In 25 seconds time it went from 39k to 160k and it is my winning bid. So fast. A helper comes by to escort me to the finiance part of the deal. I go wait in line. I am pre-approved so just need to sign the paper work and give them my check. Several hours later I get a flash drive with all my paper work. We close in 30 days.

It is really fun to go. Lots of great deals there too. I think in a few years we will do the same thing and get another place to rent out as an investor.

Baptism
2 June 2008 in Alexander | Comments (0)

Alexander had his baptism and party on Sunday. The ceremony was about 30 minutes with 15 minutes of post picture taking. Then off to the party. We rented the community center at our HOA. Lots of foods and good times. See the gallery for pictures in Alexander folder.