Septic & antiseptic

At last! James and I have cut up and dragged off the two trees that were atop what we believe to be the septic tank.

Also, my first blood was drawn. I was Mister Safety with my new chainsaw, but popped myself in the head with the branch I was tossing in a ditch. At least it was only a minor scrape. James made his first bloody contribution last weekend when he accidentally smashed his pinkie finger with a rock while playing in the creek.

Inspections

First major inspection day!

James and I took a day from our offices to meet a slew of inspectors and contractors to get an idea of what we're in for with this renovation. In a blur of an afternoon, we met with our general contractor and assistance, solar expert, electricians, water well expert, pest inspector, roofer and general carpenter, and real estate agent. In total, eleven individuals. Our first party!!!

So far it's been the expected mixture of good and bad news:

• Good news: the foundation is in great shape, as is the copper plumbing under the house.
• Good/bad news: as expected, the roof needs work; however, only minor sections need repair, and the attic space is dry and sound. We want to replace the shingles with metal, but it will be a matter of what's leftover in our budget.
• Bad/good news: The indoor electrical boxes are outdated, and are classified as hazardous. However, the outdoor boxes are in good shape, and will support an external generator and solar-power system.
• Bad news: the hardwood floors we liked downstairs needs to be replaced because they buckled in a few places, and a little warped in a few others.
• Bad news: Those evil beetles that you don't want to hear about from the pest inspector are chewing on a few sections.
• Bad news: The preexisting water well was damaged during a major earthquake, and provides too low of a flow, so a new well needs to be dug.
• Bad news: The patio on one side of the house is too rotten to save.
• Good news: The water tank is in acceptable condition, but we may need to add a second tank at some point.
• No news: Once the water well is pumping, we learn about the septic system.
• Bad news: Most of the windows will need to be replaced due to moisture between their dual panes.
• Good news: The rusted Volvo that's hanging on the side of the hill over the creek, and the two massive metal tank chunks in the creek can be retrieved and salvaged at no cost to us.
• Good news: The general shape and condition of the house is pretty much no worse than expected.
• Good news: We should be closing escrow this week!!!
• Next steps: Applying for the renovation loan...

Mapped

Zayante Creek

James and I ventured through our new creek!

Contractions

Sixty-six pages. At times, it's two-columns, in 6pt type. This is gonna take caffeine! Next up: the inspections, estimations, calculations, and other exciting actions next Tuesday!

Escrow's A Go-Go

Escrow commenced today with a 24-hour deadline to wire the earnest money deposit (EMD). Dratted east coast time means we won't know if the transfer completes until tomorrow morning.

Forgot to add:

When James and I arrived onsite for our first cleaning project, we were greeted by half a dozen wild turkeys. James is hoping we can fatten them up by Thanksgiving (joking)!

First projects

Our first duty was to clear the driveway so that it was accessible again. The house was listed for nearly 300 days, and may have been empty much longer.

Our woolly driveway, looking up from Lower Ellen Rd

Clip, clip, clip.

James has mastered another tool!

Cleared!

However, we didn't manage to find the septic tank lids... again. Time to call in the pros!

Digging for the septic tank

Mapped

Love the zoom out from Google maps: [click here]

A little local history from Wikipedia (Zayante is a now-extinct Native American tribe): [click here]

Floorplans

Discovered the original blueprints in the house. Here's a marked up version:

First floor

Second floor

First photos

Front door

Living room

Kitchen

Family room with view of dining room

Family room wet bar with views of the kitchen and entry

Master bathroom

Upstairs bathroom

Patio outside living room

Back corner

Yes! YES! YES!!!

It's semi-official! James and I received word from our realtor last night that the seller will accept our offer!

Before I launch into the details, I would like to take a moment to summarize our efforts to this point.

After years of dreaming and researching, we contacted our first realtor on June 15th, 2010. Red flags were quickly popping up with this character. He was dismissed within three months; it was a happy day for me. However, James and I shelved actively hunting for our place until May of this year.

I had emailed James a few listings. Of course, when he responds, his picks were brilliant. I was especially excited about a house that bordered Castle Rock state park. Ultimately, it was our current realtor, who was referred by a friend and coworker, that suggested in her first day the property we are claiming.

If you are open to Felton, there is a huge home on 26 acres that you may be interested in...it is a bank owned home and the asking price is $499000, however I would have to check to see if they have offers yet. The address is 13800 E Upper Zayante Rd. There is supposed to be a well on the property, however this is a bank owned home and the typically have little to no information on the property and are only obligated to provide minimal disclosures.

On May 31, 2011, at 1:15 PM, Kyle Miller <kylemiller@yahoo.com> wrote:

When would you like to meet with Janeen? This weekend?
I'll try to get started with the pre-approval today. Work is crazy, as expected, but I'll squeeze it in.
Also, what do you think of the Felton place she suggested?
LOVE YOU!

On May 31, 2011, at 2:24 PM, Jenwei Mei <jenweimei@yahoo.com> wrote:

This weekend sounds good.:-) Or if you like you can meet her first.She sounds much better than Tom.The one in Felton she mentioned is the one we went to check several months ago, would love to check inside the house.Great job done!! :-*

It was pouring rain on June 4th when James and I first toured the place. By June 13th, we made our first offer. Because the property was predestined for an auction, the offer was rejected. Never taking rejection well, we talked it over, and decided to race against the auctioneer's clock to purchase the place pre-auction. We managed to get everything we needed one day before the deadline of July 7th. Mercifully, the seller (aka bank) gave us the nod on July 15th.

Now the renovation adventure begin!