We've been working on getting totally out of debt (who isn't?), and ultimately decided to try to buy a fixer on acreage, hoping to buy cheaply and pay it off in just a few years. We actually found a few decent properties under 100k in southern California, most of them south of Hemet and east of Temecula. They are still listed, by the way, for those of you interested in cheaper digs. We made a few trips to Aguanga and Anza, but decided that it was just too far to commute.
Two properties with Lake Elsinore addresses caught our eye. One was a small block house with one bedroom and one bath (extra bedrooms in separate buildings) on 5 acres fairly close to the 15 freeway. They were asking 99k; we really saw some potential there. We made an offer of 85k, and NEVER got an up or down to our offer. There's a longer story there, but at the end, we had to move on.
The other Lake Elsinore property was listed for $50,900 and we had quite an adventure with Doug Newkirk, our realtor, in just finding the property. Doug absolutely loved the property (he's a bit quixotic), and so did Shelley. I liked the price and the idea of owning someplace free and clear. There's really cool rocks for climbing, too. Ok, so I'm not a kid anymore; I still like to scramble around boulders. We made an offer of 39k cash, but found there was another offer. We were instructed to make our best offer, and told the bank that this was our highest; the offer was rejected. We scrounged, and figured we could make a new offer of 44k, and the bank (REO) accepted our new offer. Elated, we made all the money transfers to our accounts to make the purchase. Weird thing though, the bank-prepared paperwork stated the price was 39k (our original offer.) Our agents called, and were told the price is correct. Hmm. (5 second pause) Woohoo! We really need the extra 5k for repairs.
We closed escrow, and now the real fun begins. Pray for us, wish us luck, and bring batteries.
Steve
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