Under Contract

Wednesday we got locked in for our interest rate, and officially got under contract. So if everything goes according to plan we'll be closing at the end of May or beginning of June. And we'll get the tax credit, which is a great feeling, gotta say. I think our house inspection will be next Tuesday, and I think that's the last big hurdle before closing. It's kind of crazy to do all (or most) of this long distance, but somehow it's working out, and our realtor has been awesome. If you're moving to the Nashville area I would definitely recommend her.

So I'll tell you more of the house story. Back in March we put a bid on a house that was in foreclosure. It didn't have an agent at the time, and hadn't had one since last December. About a week after we made the bid they finally found an agent for the house, so we were asked to sign an agreement that we knew there were multiple offers on the house (more than ten!), and to make our best and highest offer. We raised our offer significantly and hoped for the best. A month later we still hadn't heard anything. I went back to Nashville specifically to see Leslie before she headed to Thailand, but managed a little house hunting without Michael while I was there. We'd been doing our homework and keeping track of our favorite houses online (try mlsfinder if you're a control freak like me). I told my agent which houses I wanted to see, and she set it all up. In the week before I went to Nashville three of our favorite houses were put under contract. This was really discouraging and enough to make me think this would never work out. The day of house hunting my dad went with me and we saw about seven houses. Which was exhausting. Only three of them seemed like viable options. I talked to Michael on the phone and we decided to put an offer on one that he liked a lot, but I felt really weird about. We offered $5,000 less than the asking price. Everyone said we would get it. Who won't come down $5,000? I was still feeling uncomfortable about it and prayed about it alot. He came back with a counteroffer, asking us to pay closing costs. We didn't feel comfortable giving up that much more cash, when we're already putting 20% down (and moving, probably buying a car, etc.) so we said no. He refused to come down! I felt huge relief. We immediately moved on to our next favorite house (and actually the one I preferred). We made an offer, then had to sign an acknowledgment that it had multiple offers on it. This felt eerily similar to the last time, and we were preparing ourselves not to get any house at all and to move in with my parents for a while. But last Thursday my realtor called and said they had accepted our offer. And since then it's just signing papers and getting interest rates locked in and setting up inspectors. I forgot to mention that I found a four leaf clover in the back yard of this house, and I also found a four leaf clover the day before I was offered the job. It just felt like a little promise from God. Of course, if all of this falls through, I'll have to rethink what kind of promise it was, but all the same, it's awesome to feel God moving in our lives and in our plans. So that's mostly the whole story of the house hunt. Or at least the highlights.

We're very busy. Four weeks until graduation weekend. I'm busy finalizing details of class trip. We're packing. There's a lot going on. My sleep patters tell me I'm stressed. You could probably have told me that just by reading this post. But God is good, and I'm trying to remember His promises to take care of me. Also, keep Michael in your prayers too, he hasn't found a job yet, but I know that God hasn't forgotten about him. It is frustrating though, because it seems like everything else has fallen into place, and being the planners that we are, we like to know what to expect. Still, it's feeling right, and being right with God is a very good place to be.