Under Contract!

8 days on the market. 3 showings. 1 offer (from 2nd showing). 1 counteroffer. As of Saturday evening, we are...

UNDER CONTRACT!

What a whirlwind. And much quicker than I anticipated. The initial offer was pretty strong. We countered back to our original asking price (because we are paying closing costs) and they accepted. We also tightened up the time frames so that we can be sure this deal will go through and not lose too much time on the market should it not. If all goes well, the buyer will complete all due diligence by March 4th. This includes inspection, which is a bit of an unknown. Hopefully we will not have to re-negotiate after that, because we are only liable for $500 of repairs. If the inspection shows much more than that, the buyer can either walk away from the deal or we can re-negotiate the contract. If all goes smoothly there, the next big date will be Appraisal and Financing to be complete by March 31st. A hitch there might be appraisal, but we have some pretty good comparables in the area so I think it will appraise...but you never know, appraisers are a funny bunch :) The last big date will be closing, on April 15th. That will give us good peace of mind, knowing that the sale is final. The buyers have agreed to let us rent back until the end of May. So we got it all like we hoped for with a reasonable buyer...our asking price & the moving date.

We are taking it step by step though, and I would say cautiously optimistic. Next step is to wait to see the inspection results. We should know something on that later this week or next, considering they have to meet the deadline of March 4th.

In other news, the bathroom renovation is progressing nicely. I think James sees a light at the end of the tunnel. Plus, now that we have a buyer we do not have to worry about doing anything to the shower (with ugly gold trim). The vanity, mirror and light fixture are all complete. The toilet area is done. It's nice to have our bathroom functional again. The tub is in the garage ready to be installed and then the surround and tub deck need to be tiled. Most of the money has been spent, and the work left is minimal compared to what has already been accomplished. I say this as the observer, not the contractor. James is tired of it, but he is trying to get done by March 1st. We realized we don't have any 'before' pictures (oops!) but we'll most definitely take some 'after' pictures. Trust me, it's a major improvement. I love the way it's turning out, and it's a shame we will only get to enjoy it for 3 months.