Is it just me, or is EVERYONE else an incompetent boob?!
(Well, not my LJ friends, of course!)
Here's the thing...the house purchase was coming along...got our contract ratified, loan paperwork all ready, etc, etc. Now we just need to do our inspection. However, to do the inspection, by law, we need to have all the utilities turned on and that is the responsibility of the seller. The listing agent who is handling all this just can't seem to get it together!
We were supposed to have our inspection this past Monday, but she wasn't able to get the utilities on by then, so we pushed it to Tuesday. But then she couldn't figure out which utility companies covered the property. So it was to get pushed to today. But as of yesterday, while she'd managed to get the other utilities on, she still couldn't figure out which gas company was being used. Thankfully, during one of my drives through the neighborhood, I saw a truck for Columbia Gas, so my agent told her that and the listing agent called them. To get the gas turned on in her name, they wanted a $960 deposit! So she freaked out (even though the selling bank would reimburse her for it) and suggested that WE open the account even though we have no legal claim to the house! I said no way in hell...too many liability issues, plus if we backed out of the deal based on the inspection, we'd be out that money. So our agent calls the gas company and explains that it's just to do an inspection so the gas company says that they just require 1/3 of it up front and that it would be refunded when the account was closed. So my agent had to do the other agent's job for her! Crazy! Oh, and by the way, *I* called the gas company later to find out why the huge deposit and they said it was a credit thing. If we have good credit, it won't require any deposit and even if it does, we can get rid of it by getting a letter of recommendation from our previous utility companies. So we should have no problem! Makes me wonder even more about this listing agent!
So now, the soonest the gas company can come out to turn it on is on Monday the 9th. So we can't do the inspection until Tuesday the 10th...well over a week after we were supposed to have done it originally! The biggest problem with this is that, according to our contract, we're supposed to have the inspection completed within 10 days of the ratification date, which was May 22nd. So as of June 2nd, we have been in breach of contract. (It's days, not business days!) But it's not our fault no one on their end seems to know what the heck is going on! So frustrating!
We're supposed to close on June 23rd. And if it goes later than that, we get charged $100 per day! I think that applies even if it's not our fault. At least all of our ducks are in a row and the loan, which is usually what holds things up, seems to be advancing in a timely manner. Now if we can just get through the inspection and negotiation of fixing any problems before the closing date approaches, we'll be good. I'm going to call our loan dude today to make sure that part is covered at least.
The thing that kills me about this whole process is that you pay these people to be professional, assume they know what they're doing, yet you still have to check up on every single step and push them along. This has happened with every single person I've dealt with during this whole thing. From our agent, to the original loan guy, to their agent, etc, etc. It never ends. Seriously, this has been more than a full-time job for me. I can't wait until we've gotten through closing and can change the locks on the new house and take a deep breath! I know, in the end, it will have been worth it because we'll have a wonderful house at a fantastic bargain that will only increase in value, but the road to get there has been LONG and really bumpy! We looked at the first property last June and got really serious about buying in early November. I think that's long enough! I sincerely hope this deal goes through as planned. Not only do we love this house, I'm just plain worn out from the hunt - both physically and emotionally! Wish us luck!
Here's the thing...the house purchase was coming along...got our contract ratified, loan paperwork all ready, etc, etc. Now we just need to do our inspection. However, to do the inspection, by law, we need to have all the utilities turned on and that is the responsibility of the seller. The listing agent who is handling all this just can't seem to get it together!
We were supposed to have our inspection this past Monday, but she wasn't able to get the utilities on by then, so we pushed it to Tuesday. But then she couldn't figure out which utility companies covered the property. So it was to get pushed to today. But as of yesterday, while she'd managed to get the other utilities on, she still couldn't figure out which gas company was being used. Thankfully, during one of my drives through the neighborhood, I saw a truck for Columbia Gas, so my agent told her that and the listing agent called them. To get the gas turned on in her name, they wanted a $960 deposit! So she freaked out (even though the selling bank would reimburse her for it) and suggested that WE open the account even though we have no legal claim to the house! I said no way in hell...too many liability issues, plus if we backed out of the deal based on the inspection, we'd be out that money. So our agent calls the gas company and explains that it's just to do an inspection so the gas company says that they just require 1/3 of it up front and that it would be refunded when the account was closed. So my agent had to do the other agent's job for her! Crazy! Oh, and by the way, *I* called the gas company later to find out why the huge deposit and they said it was a credit thing. If we have good credit, it won't require any deposit and even if it does, we can get rid of it by getting a letter of recommendation from our previous utility companies. So we should have no problem! Makes me wonder even more about this listing agent!
So now, the soonest the gas company can come out to turn it on is on Monday the 9th. So we can't do the inspection until Tuesday the 10th...well over a week after we were supposed to have done it originally! The biggest problem with this is that, according to our contract, we're supposed to have the inspection completed within 10 days of the ratification date, which was May 22nd. So as of June 2nd, we have been in breach of contract. (It's days, not business days!) But it's not our fault no one on their end seems to know what the heck is going on! So frustrating!
We're supposed to close on June 23rd. And if it goes later than that, we get charged $100 per day! I think that applies even if it's not our fault. At least all of our ducks are in a row and the loan, which is usually what holds things up, seems to be advancing in a timely manner. Now if we can just get through the inspection and negotiation of fixing any problems before the closing date approaches, we'll be good. I'm going to call our loan dude today to make sure that part is covered at least.
The thing that kills me about this whole process is that you pay these people to be professional, assume they know what they're doing, yet you still have to check up on every single step and push them along. This has happened with every single person I've dealt with during this whole thing. From our agent, to the original loan guy, to their agent, etc, etc. It never ends. Seriously, this has been more than a full-time job for me. I can't wait until we've gotten through closing and can change the locks on the new house and take a deep breath! I know, in the end, it will have been worth it because we'll have a wonderful house at a fantastic bargain that will only increase in value, but the road to get there has been LONG and really bumpy! We looked at the first property last June and got really serious about buying in early November. I think that's long enough! I sincerely hope this deal goes through as planned. Not only do we love this house, I'm just plain worn out from the hunt - both physically and emotionally! Wish us luck!