2/28/19

So, it turns out we do not have final approval; the property does have a new address though! The city council approved the annexation of our Lot and Clubhouse into Phase Four of the development, pending the Civil Engineers approval of the drainage systems, as well as addressing the neighbors concerns. We have met and talked with several lending institutions to attempt to secure a Construction Perm Loan. It is truly a unique situation since usually a Construction/Perm Loan is for an existing lot without a structure on it. That along with the fact that we don’t have final approval on the Lot has put us in a holding position. We found out today that they will not allow any building of structures until the road leading to the new lots, and the Lot that runs in front of our property, is finished. Might be a blessing in disguise, we can at least get in to the property, work on the inside improvements, and then down the road do the garage and additional bedrooms. Meeting with another lender tomorrow.

3/27/19

Still somewhat in limbo, the Bank needs to see final approval from the county on the Lot before they will go forward with Loan specs. Our Realtors have had to extend Closing twice now and are anxious to get this wrapped up, us too! Phone conference tonight with our Realtor, not sure this is going to happen, can you say roller coaster of emotions!! Anyone who has ever purchased a home, knows this well! I just want to get to the fun parts; decorating, re-modeling (not sure that’s the fun part, but I love the end result!) re-arranging, and having friends and family over! I honestly can’t wait to see our little grandchildren riding their bikes and scooters on all the golf cart trails, in our backyard! Our Clubhouse sits next to “The Green”, I don’t speak Golf but I gather that is “an area of specially prepared grass around the hole, where putts are played”. We would eventually like to pay homage to the former Golf Course by having a little putting green out there, and maybe a small area for the grandkids to play mini-golf. So many ideas and dreams, a little afraid to dream at this point since we’re not sure what the future holds for our Clubhouse.

4/8/19

Soooo much back and forth, and honestly confusion. Our Lender had an Appraiser go out to the property, he passed on appraising it since there are no Comps in the area. Not sure how we can get a loan if we can’t get an appraisal?? We are discussing having it appraised as a Commercial property, a much more expensive appraisal fee. Meeting with another Lender soon.

5/9/19

It’s been about a month since I’ve updated ~ turns out after looking closer at our plans, info, specs, etc., the above lender passed on helping us. So, back to our original plan, with a few adjustments. We hired an architect to draw out plans for a garage with bedrooms above, and to also design a plan to turn the existing Clubhouse into a residence by adding a Master bedroom, with an egress window, and converting the locker rooms into a bathroom. It’s not considered a home without a working bathroom (shower or bath) or a bedroom without an Egress window. The bank will take the architects plans and use those as if we were building on an empty lot, like a true construction perm loan, where you base the appraisal on the land and the plans. We are now waiting for that number to come back, the sellers have once again agreed to extend Closing for a few weeks. It will be close. That’s pretty much it for now. Have had to practice patience, not my strength! Have also had to temper my excitement somewhat since this whole process seems to be up in the air at this point. I keep telling myself, “If its meant to be, it will be…” In the meantime, still pinning pins to my Dream Home Board like a maniac.

5/29/19

The Appraisal on the Plans and Lot came back better than expected, so…WE CLOSED!! Hiccups right to the very end, but it all came together! Right after Closing, and getting the key, we drove up to the clubhouse! Greg wasted no time taking a hammer to the wall ~ it needed to be removed in order to convert the office and locker room area to a Master Suite. We tested out the speaker system and PA system, they both worked great! Greg hammered and I danced to the music in the great room, it was bliss. For the first time I felt like I could really let down and imagine the space as ours. There is so very much work to be done, I can’t wait.

6/6/19

We have been up to the clubhouse every day/evening since we closed on the property. We both keep saying, “Can you believe we get to live here?” My heart, and eyes, are overflowing. I feel like my husband of 35 years has the energy of a young man. A partial list of what he has accomplished in less than two weeks; 1.) Taken apart the lockers, they were built into place, solidly, it took way longer than expected, and they may have almost fallen over on me, but Greg, along with the wall, stopped that from happening. 2.) Taken down the wall that separated that former office from the locker rooms. 3.) Patched the roof, it needs a new roof, we will replace it when the addition is finished so we can tie it in together. 4.) Limbed up trees, just the ones that were hanging over the roof. I may have a picture or two of that, scary! 5.) Installed the sanded and freshly painted Front doors, courtesy of yours truly! 6.) Built a temporary bridge to walk on during all the rains, until we have our driveway poured, probably late summer. Greg has been on a business trip so I have been working at the clubhouse by myself. Getting a lot accomplished; knocked down a bunch of cobwebs, cleaned the kitchen and utility room from top to bottom, organized boxes and tools, pulled out a bunch of screws from 2×4’s so we can reuse them, met with the Internet installer, yay, we have internet now! Time for dinner, we don’t have a fridge yet, so I pack a cooler full of food and drinks. I don’t ever seem to pack enough, or I’m a way bigger eater than I thought! More soon.

7/14/19

It’s been over a month since I’ve written, we’ve been busy! We are not officially moved in yet, we still need a place to sleep and a working bathroom! We do have a general contractor who is coordinating all the subs, but we are trying to do as much work as we can, on our own. And when I say we, I mean Greg. I am very proficient at clean up and Sonic runs though! We are in a big push to get things up and running, because in less than two weeks we have family coming for a work party! My Mom and sister will sleep in the spare bedroom at our apartment, and my brother will stay here at the Clubhouse. He is retired Army and can sleep anywhere and on anything! We might get an air mattress for him, if he plays his cards right. Just kidding, he’s my favorite brother, and my only brother. In between checking on Greg and the progress in the bathroom, I have unpacked boxes upon boxes, sprayed multiple times for bugs, swept and swept, and swept again. I did attempt to mow the grass around the house, not all three acres! The mower kept dying on me. According to Greg, it is operator error! We will have to hire that out for now. Overall, I am so thankful ~ on a recent Sonic run (I think we kept them in business the last few months!) I was praying and thanking The Lord for His goodness, and tears started rolling down my face. This project is at times overwhelming and exhausting, but for the most part I think we are up for the task, and we feel an amazing amount of gratitude. I think I’ve finally made a decision on the paint color for the main living area. After trying out several samples, I think eight, I finally decided on a clean yet warm-ish white. Alabaster from Sherwin Williams. I wanted it white enough to make the dark beams and woodwork pop, but not too stark as to contrast with the Limestone like floors. My goal is to keep the European feel of the clubhouse, while updating it at the same time. Visiting the Grands in Texas this week, I will miss fixing up the clubhouse, but excited to see The Grands. Greg will probably get more done without me there giving him my input.

8/9/19

Lots to update! My family all came for a visit/work party! We got so much accomplished; I made Lists for them. (I’m a list maker, I love crossing off my to-do’s!) My brother spent close to two days limbing up most of the oak trees, close to 40 trees! I thought the view was amazing before, it is truly a million dollar view now! We rewarded him by hooking up a temporary shower, with both hot and cold water! I asked Greg if he thought my brother would mind taking an outdoor shower. Greg answered, “It’s my dream”. I need not have worried, when I asked my brother how the shower was, he said, “best.shower.ever,” Also on my brother’s list was helping us move us and all our stuff out of the apartment. Mission accomplished! He also helped install drywall, burned the flower beds all around the house, I think he enjoyed that, maybe a bit too much, I mean, Fire! He also made countless trips to the hardware store for Greg. He went with me back and forth to the airport to pick up family, I should clarify. I went with him. If it was up to me we would still be driving. I’m just slightly challenged directionally. East, West? Nope. New York, Oregon Coast is more like it. My brother was basically Greg’s right hand man the whole time. My Mom and sister didn’t stop working for almost four days, except to sleep, and they slept in the same room, so there may have been late night talks happening. They went with me to the Tile/Flooring store to help to help finalize all the details in the Master Suite, as well as clean and organize the clubhouse, clean the apartment, and pick up tons, literally tons, at least it seemed like it, of limbs. See above for brother’s handiwork. They also gave great ideas for the addition, and what I am super thankful for; my sister took the time to walk me through, i.e., help me visualize the blueprints. Greg has tried many times to explain the blueprints to me, and I tried hard to “get it”, and not interject, but it just didn’t click. I interject, not interrupt! Sounds better. My sister, who thinks like me, and shares the same silly sense of humor, was able to physically walk me through the clubhouse defining where the new rooms would be, Holy cow. I got it. When I told Greg I wanted a large pantry and utility area, he absolutely delivered. We layed out the tape measure, its huge! The area is 25×15. I couldn’t get over it. Greg was watching us and amused at my excitement. He commented that he wondered why I didn’t seem that impressed when he was going over the blueprints with me. I love all things kitchen and pantry related, and have accumulated a few things after 35 years of marriage, to be able to have them where I can see them makes me happy. Next on the agenda, finishing the Master bedroom painting, and trimming the trees to make room for the garage. Carpet install is next week! Will try and attach some pics. More soon.