Roller Coaster Ride

I suppose my dear readers are wondering what has happened with the buying of the house. The whole affair has been an emotional roller coaster. We made the first bid on the property the first week of May. My husband Phillip went to Traditions Bank and decided to apply for an FHA loan so that he only had to put 3% down. One would think that, with his excellent credit and considerable equity, he would have no trouble getting a loan. The bank, or should I say the bank's underwriter, Synovus, was... difficult, to put it gracefully. Synovus made ridiculous demands about the condition of the house we are purchasing- even though we have no power to make those improvements since the house is not yet ours! For example, the first time we tried to close, the bank didn't let it go through because they wanted an attic inspection- on a house with a vaulted ceiling! I mean, good grief! Do they have rocks for brains?? I think that they still don't understand what a vaulted ceiling is. Phillip was granted an extension on the contract for the second time. Our real estate agent, Kay Whaley, (who I love- she's the best ever!) warned us that the seller may not allow us to extend the contract a third time if we did not close by July 23. One thing after another led us to believe that it was never going to happen. I prayed for God's Will, even though I wanted the house badly. I finally resigned myself to the fact that we were not going to get the house, and told myself that God was protecting us from something horrible- faulty wiring, or foundation problems, etc. Then, Kay called Friday afternoon (the day the contract expired) and said to be at the lawyer's office at 3:00- we were going to close! So, I dragged my three ruffians out and met Phillip at the lawyer's office. The lawyer sat us down and explained that Synovus had another hangup regarding the driveway. The driveway is shared by our intended home and the neighbor, and it is actually mostly on the neighbor's property. I didn't exactly understand what it was Synovus wanted, all I knew was there was not a scrap of paper on the table for us to sign. As the lawyer spoke, understanding dawned on me, and I saw red. I blurted out, "So, what you're saying is, we showed up here for nothing?" Phillip thought I was going to come unglued. He later told me that, at that moment, he feared I was going to jump across the table and strangle the lawyer. He quickly reminded me that it wasn't the lawyer's fault, and I shouldn't take it out on him. I had to fight tears, I was so angry. Phillip left the lawyer's office and went to Traditions Bank to "jerk a knot in someone's a**". He asked to see the bank's president, Tim Compton. Phillip told him about our troubles, and his opinion that the issue needed to be escalated to higher-up people. Phillip said Mr. Compton was very nice, and not at all condescending. Mr. Compton told Phillip that if the FHA loan didn't go through again, he would personally go look at the property himself, and if it made sense to him, he would make sure we got the loan! Phillip explained that he was frustrated that he had left work early to go to a closing that didn't happen, and as a result, lost money. Mr. Compton walked out of the room, and returned with $300 that he gave to Phillip. He said, "This should make up for it. If you make more than that in an afternoon, you have an excellent job." He explained that Traditions is trying to win more checking accounts, and he wanted to win us back. I believe he is well on his way. The seller did allow us to extend the contract for a third time, and we finally closed today! The house is now ours! I feel like I need to pop open a bottle of champagne and celebrate! (Actually, I will, since I have to make a champagne cake for a customer!) As a result of our ordeal, I think we will really appreciate and enjoy our new home. Now, the work begins!