Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Not so deep roots

Just when I allowed myself to mentally stay put and decorate the house we are in now the owner sent me a message asking if we want to buy the place in a year. The problem is his price was way off of what we feel like we should pay based on a lot of things, especially the current market. I'm not sure where he came up with the number but now I'm back to being torn. Do we do some hard core negotiating or find a place listed for much less and look from some of the things that have been on our wish list for a while (like decent square footage on one level)?

I'm torn again between looking for a one-level ranch/rambler fixer or staying here in this Cape Cod style fixer. It's so tempting to not move again. But if we can spend tens of thousands less on a different house, that's tempting too.

5 comments:

Sara @ Russet Street Reno said...

I would never pay a price I didn't like just to stay put. Once he's sure you are going to leave, maybe he'll lower it?

Stacie@hometownperch said...

I agree Sara. We're keeping open minds.

René said...

Good luck to you - this sounds like a tough decision. Follow your heart and everything will work.

-Rene

KellyMellyBoBellyBananaFanna said...

It might not hurt to ask him how he's coming up with that number? He may have loans that are so high that he can't get out of it for any less. In that situation maybe you could negotiate a lease purchase that works for both of you?

Otherwise, it might prevent you from wasting your time if you know the property isn't going to work, you know?

Kelly

Stacie@hometownperch said...

That's exactly what is going on Kelly. He bought it just before we moved in as renters 18 months ago. He was the listing agent and it had sat on the market for a long time. So he decided he would buy it as an investment (rental) and maybe make it his family home down the road. Well that plan has changed. He was honest with us and said that the rent we pay doesn't cover his mortgage, which is a private contract held by the original sellers and that he needs to sell. I know what he paid for the place and I know what he owes on the contract. He just isn't going to get what he needs out of it right now. I think it's best that we find something for less and free up this place so that he can fix it up and try to rent it for a higher price.