Don't let some Baptist tell you there is no such place as Purgatory, because right now, I am living smack dab in the middle of it. I'm not talking about Purgatory, Colorado, although that wouldn't be so bad, I suppose. I am living in the middle of Real Estate Purgatory. Yes, I will explain. I'm glad you asked.
One year ago, I decided to move out of the rented house we were living in and to look for a house with land in a city about 25 miles west, as the crow flies, from where I lived before. I had only been on the job for a little over a year, so I knew that if I wanted to go through FHA to buy the house, I'd need to stay longer on the job, which meant staying longer in the rented house, too. I was OK with that because I had a plan.
Then, as it does, my plans were upended! I found a house in the city I wanted, on land that I wanted, and I could afford it. It was more than I wanted to spend, but we were going to be allowed to have the horse farm we've always wanted, so the dreams were coming true. What made it even better was that because it had been on the market for more than a year, the sellers were willing to let us stay in it for 7 months until I had satisfied FHA's requirements for longevity on the job, and my credit score was boosted while we waited too! We moved here in November.
OK, so long story short, the house is on 14.1 acres of land, and close to 10 of those acres are virtually unloanable. We didn't know that going into it, neither the realtor nor the lender mentioned it. That is a HUGE red flag, and I need you all to understand that 99% of homeowners out there do not know this to be a fact: FHA will not loan on a home with oil fields or leased oil fields on the property. OK, easy solution: we ask the seller to cut that part off, and we just offer money for the house that was vacant for over a year, and maybe the 4.4 acres of land that is close to the house, eliminating the problem. Simple, right? No.
The closing date was pushed from May 29 to June 18 (today) because FHA needed me to be on the job one more month. OK, I met that criteria, but then we got hit 2 weeks ago with the FHA refusal to lend if the house and property included the oil land. That shot us back to August 3 for a closing date, and we were OK with it, but the sellers are not OK with cutting the oil land out. Here's the really funny thing -when they offered the house, it was actually for 7 acres, and the house, and the oil field property wasn't part of the deal - they didn't know they owned it. They had ZERO CLUE they had purchased the oil property, even after closing, because they never had a survey. WE had the survey, and that's when it was revealed to them that they owned the oil field land.
The man who owns the place is not that smart, but I do feel really bad for him because he got stuck with paying $240,000 for the house and 7 acres; then tried to sell us the place for $325,000 when he found out there were 7 more acres, but I can't use that other land - it is UNUSABLE - it's also unloanable and it's unsellable becuase I'm not buying it - cash or otherwise. It would have to be a cash sale, and NO ONE is going to do it. This place, if he chooses not to sell it to us, will sit on the market another 400+ days - he'll end up razing the house and just selling the land to a Taco Bell or something. He could probably do that - I don't know.
Anyway, today's closing day came and went. We got a denial from FHA, so we are 100% out of the contract, and I'm not worried. I can offer less for the place, and he can accept it, or he can decline and ask me to leave. I can also rent until he sells or I find a place, but we will have to decide that later. Right now, I'm leaning towards finding a 4-bedroom house with a good yard and a tornado shelter. I can get into it for less, and I'll be able to actually use my yard. The one I have now has so many holes I fall, so I can't even go 50 feet from the house - Laura can, but I can't.
We won't be able to keep the horses, and that's Laura's dream, not mine. She understands. She can keep her chickens. She can grow her garden, and she will get her own 2nd room for an office! That really is a better thing, and yes, I too, will have two rooms like I have now. The house I'm already looking at fits that bill and has a tornado shelter in the garage. I'm not saying that is the house we'll end up with, but it's a good starting point to begin the search. Then again, if he's smart, he'll let us stay and reduce the acreage to 4.4, so the loan will be approved by FHA.
There you have it - my life in a nutshell. Tipsy-turvy and swirling whirlwinds, but then again, God is great, and He has a plan. I can already see where He has had His hand in it the entire time. We've been able to live here at a good price and do what we need to do. I realized along the way that I didn't really need or want horses, and in the long run, whatever we do will be a win!
I don't mind living here, but it may not qualify or appraise for what they're asking. It certainly wouldn't appraise for $325K. It may or may not appraise for $220K. The house is only worth $155K tops. The average acreage near industrial land is only $5000-7500 an acre, so at the most, it would be $31,000.00, and that brings the price down to $186,000, and there's no way the old man that owns the place will agree to that. He'd rather let it sit and rot away - very, very prideful man.
God has it. I'm not going to worry about it. I'm just going to be ready no matter what gets thrown at me.
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