Getting a bit back on track with the day to day duties after nearly a solid week of closings, I spent some time getting caught up on correspondence as well as follow-up phone calls. One of the hardest phone calls I have to make is when informing a particular buyer that the home they wanted just sold. I can’t stress enough the need for buyers to get themselves pre-approved for a loan before they ever start viewing homes. It’s such a let-down when someone has looked at a home and find that it fits all their needs, and even get to the point of visually placing their own furniture in it.
I do hope these buyers can get their finances squared away and be able to purchase something in the near future. I’m a bit sad because they’re such a nice young couple who are working hard to make a life for themselves in a home of which they can call their own.
I had a light conversation with a lady downtown today who is looking for a home for her son and mentioned how thin the pickings are of reasonably priced homes. I said, “It’s because the investors are out in full force picking up properties to rent to people who can’t find something to purchase in a reasonable price range. It’s really too bad our housing market is coming to this. I believe the State or Federal Governments should create more affordable housing programs for these buyers that are ready, willing and able, but can’t seem to get anything purchased before the ever-watching investors snap them up. Weak pyramids are being built by the leveraging of current homes to purchase more and more. Sooner or later these types of the building up of portfolios of real estate holdings turn into properties most people don’t even want to drive past. Instead of fixing up what they have with the residual income from the rents, they continue to buy more and leave their existing to fall all the more in dis-repair. I continue to hope for the best.
I had a late visitor at the office this afternoon whom I haven’t seen in a very long time and in our conversation I was reminded of a story that was told me that took place a number of years ago. Today’s visitor had a grandson who at the time would come and spend summers with him during his college years. According to his story of which I believe to be true, the grandson arrived at his home after dark one moonlit evening while he was out getting groceries. Since the grandson didn’t have a key, he thought he would just wait a bit for his grandfather to come home. When the grandfather arrived, he found his grandson sitting on his porch waiting, but terribly distraught. He said, “What’s wrong?” Teary-eyed, he told him he’d seen a ghost some minutes before. The grandfather in a calm manner said, “Tell me what happened.” The grandson still shaking said, “I was standing by my car and heard a noise like someone was dragging his feet on gravel, so I turned to look and there was an older man stooped over and shuffling along from the entrance of your tool shed and right past me and like magic, disappearing right into the side wall of your garage!” He went on, “I know you think me crazy, but I not only saw him, but I heard him on the gravel. How did he just disappeared right before my eyes?” The grandfather escorted him into his home and proceeded to reveal a secret he’d kept from his grandson. It just so happened the grandfather had seen this man far more than once himself to where he wasn’t afraid of him anymore. He just considered him to be his resident spirit. He apologized to the grandson for not warning him of a possible sighting simply because he didn’t want to frighten him. The grandfather and I didn’t speak of these things today, but just seeing him at the office created a sort of “instant re-call” of that very long ago and scary story he told me about the experiences he had with his resident entity many years ago.
