We Love AL (Huntsville, Madison: mortgage, loan, relocating)

[dramamama]

Well we unloaded the van last week and reunited our furniture with our house (which is lovely). We met our amazing neighbors who all made us feel welcome and treated us like family. So refreshing. We tried out two fabulous restaurants: Terranova (amazing Chicken Piccata) and Pauli's (yum yum) and can't wait to get back to them. When we went to Bed Bath & Beyond for the second time in 3 days, the sales clerk remembered us! Wow--that doesn't happen here unless you know them personally.

Any rate, we are almost 100% in the house. We're moving the last of our sticks down next week Monday and will arrive July 1. At that point, the family and the sticks and the house will all reside in the same state. WAHOO!

I'm glad we made the decision to move and I'm sure, regardless of who wins in November, that we made the right one. AL feels like home to us and that took at least 2 years to happen when we moved to VA. (only because it is near DC and everyone here is always busy busy busy).

So if you are the fence about coming south, I recommend jumping off and going for it. Sure it is smaller here, but there is something for everyone and it is all so accessible that you can actually afford to go and get there in under 10 minutes without dealing with horrendous traffic snarls.

Wahoo Wahoo.

[Southlander]

Welcome, welcome Cglover!! So glad you're finally here!

[Reactionary]

Welcome!

Any questions - you know where to ask

[bbfan]

Welcome to you and the family. Based on the restaurants you mentioned we must live in the same area. We also love Carraba's (farther away in SE Hsv) for the adults and kiddies. On grown up night we had a fantastic time at Kethup last week.

[boilrmkr]

Kids and I visited Madison a few weeks ago and signed a home sale contingency contract on a house. Came back to GA and found out our buyer couldn't produce paperwork for the loan. Long story short no one has been in the house for the last 6 weeks. If we don't sell in the next 3-4 weeks 5 of us will be in a 2 bed apartment. Pray for us! Our house is neutral and beautiful and the neighborhood looks like "Wisteria Lane" but there doesn't seem to be anyone out there. I can't wait for this to all be over and be in our new house in Madison. Let's hope it is sooner than later. The silence of the phone is deafaning.

[Mawoods]

boilrmaker :

where are you in GA? I am trying to sell a house in the Atlanta area and moving to the Huntsville area also. We aren't even looking over there until we sell here. We have lived in Madison, AL before and liked it and am so ready to go back. My husband is already working over there and coming back here on weekends. Very frustrating. We have never had any trouble selling houses and we are just sitting here and no one looking .very scary. Have you had much traffic? Good luck !

[boilrmkr]

We are currently living in Savannah. We have been here for 2 years. Before this we were in a suburb of Chicago. My husband is living in Madison and has been there since mid April. I had 5 showings in the first 4 weeks with one person really interested-they ended up buying new-and one offer-which fell through. The week my house was off the market my neighbor's house sold and before that another neighbor sold her house. All of my neighbors had a running bet that mine would sell first because it is the nicest. So much for that. Fortunately we have a large army base here and hopefully some of those people will be coming soon. I want to lower my price but my realtor doesn't think it necessary. I haven't had a single showing in almost 6 weeks. I think Monday I am going to lower the price. It isn't about walking away with lots of money it is about not having my life and my kids' lives turned upside down. School in Madison starts so early. If we have to move into an apartment they will go to Heritage elem. if we sell our house here after school starts and move into the house we want they will go to W. Madison and then my oldest will go to the middle school next year. I really just want to get them in the house, get settled and get them into one school. I will also probably have to get a job to pay the rent and being a stay at home mom for the last 11 years I have not worked in 11 years. Who's going to hire me? I am going to bury a St. Joseph statue in my yard tomorrow. I'm getting desperate!

[Charles]

Originally Posted by boilrmkr

If we have to move into an apartment they will go to Heritage elem. if we sell our house here after school starts and move into the house we want they will go to W. Madison and then my oldest will go to the middle school next year.

We're in the same boat. We're trying to sell our home in Colorado but the days on the market is between 6 and 12 months. We've had our home for sale for about a week.

We're moving to HSV August 4th and school starts on the 6th. We're doing the immunization stuff here to satisfy the blue card there and we're working with the elementary school principle and another HSV City School staff member to make this work even though we won't be living in the zone of the elementary school our kids will be attending. They do make exceptions if you are actively (and with documentation) searching for a home in that school zone.

We will be in corporate furnished apartments while our home in Colorado is marketed. Fortunately, we have a guaranteed buyout from the company but we won't know what it is for a couple more weeks - I'm sure we won't like the offer. So, we continue to market. Then, once the home sells or we accept the buyout, we can pull the trigger on one of a couple homes on our radar screen - if they are still available.

But yes, the schools start so early in Alabama, makes relocating a squeeze. Lately I've been aging at about two months per week.

[dramamama]

Originally Posted by boilrmkr

We are currently living in Savannah. We have been here for 2 years. Before this we were in a suburb of Chicago. My husband is living in Madison and has been there since mid April. I had 5 showings in the first 4 weeks with one person really interested-they ended up buying new-and one offer-which fell through. The week my house was off the market my neighbor's house sold and before that another neighbor sold her house. All of my neighbors had a running bet that mine would sell first because it is the nicest. So much for that. Fortunately we have a large army base here and hopefully some of those people will be coming soon. I want to lower my price but my realtor doesn't think it necessary. I haven't had a single showing in almost 6 weeks. I think Monday I am going to lower the price. It isn't about walking away with lots of money it is about not having my life and my kids' lives turned upside down. School in Madison starts so early. If we have to move into an apartment they will go to Heritage elem. if we sell our house here after school starts and move into the house we want they will go to W. Madison and then my oldest will go to the middle school next year. I really just want to get them in the house, get settled and get them into one school. I will also probably have to get a job to pay the rent and being a stay at home mom for the last 11 years I have not worked in 11 years. Who's going to hire me? I am going to bury a St. Joseph statue in my yard tomorrow. I'm getting desperate!

3 days after I buried St. Joseph next to my realty sign, we got an offer. Believe!

[dramamama]

Originally Posted by Charles

We're in the same boat. We're trying to sell our home in Colorado but the days on the market is between 6 and 12 months. We've had our home for sale for about a week.

We're moving to HSV August 4th and school starts on the 6th. We're doing the immunization stuff here to satisfy the blue card there and we're working with the elementary school principle and another HSV City School staff member to make this work even though we won't be living in the zone of the elementary school our kids will be attending. They do make exceptions if you are actively (and with documentation) searching for a home in that school zone.

We will be in corporate furnished apartments while our home in Colorado is marketed. Fortunately, we have a guaranteed buyout from the company but we won't know what it is for a couple more weeks - I'm sure we won't like the offer. So, we continue to market. Then, once the home sells or we accept the buyout, we can pull the trigger on one of a couple homes on our radar screen - if they are still available.

But yes, the schools start so early in Alabama, makes relocating a squeeze. Lately I've been aging at about two months per week.

Charles:

We bought our spec house because of the shorter summer. No time to wait to build one out with a rising 9th grader.

We have friends here who can't even rent their house, let alone sell. And they've been building in Hville for a year. They decided not to take their company buy out because they didn't think they'd get enough, but sitting on two mortgages is worse.

This is why whenever I see the builders pushing dirt in Hville/Madison, I am convinced it is a huge mistake. Houses are NOT selling fast. We were very very lucky to have an aggressive realtor, get in at the earliest time in spring, and have a decent location that had a good price point. If we had waited--I can't even go there mentally.

Get a St. Joseph Statue and bury him in your yard. I believe in him. He is sitting on my corporate housing mantle and give him a thank you kiss every day. When we move the last of our sticks into the house down south, I've got the perfect place of honor already set up for him.

Good luck and hang on.