Non Electric Homestead McMinn County (Mason: attorneys, camper, deed)

[wannabehippie]

I just found your post recently. I'm so impressed by your dedication to your simple (simple in modern convenience not hard work I should add) lifestyle. I have been reading with great interest both your and Lisa's documentation on how you both have chosen to "go green". My husband and I are currently researching and building our information base hoping that next spring we too will b ready to build a home that we can be proud of, knowing that we are doing our little part to preserve the land around us (and lessen the burden of monthly bills on our pockets) I'll be very interested to follow your progress as you move into the winter months. I am from Alberta Canada. Our winters can be quite a harsh at times (last year we reached -30C for nearly a week) but thankfully we experience Chinooks fairly often so we do get breaks in the cooler temps. I figure I'll try to learn from you as you move into winter and then adapt as much as I can for my Northern home.

[optimusprime]

I finally got done reading this and young lisa's thread (where I found the link to this thread) and love what you guys are doing.

[patti3]

forrestbreath, know you are very busy, but sure would like at least a "hi". Missing all your post.

Love what you are doing and wish I had the nerve to do it.

[patti3]

Has this been moved somewhere else?

[Pam& Bill]

Originally Posted by patti3

forrestbreath, know you are very busy, but sure would like at least a "hi". Missing all your post.

Love what you are doing and wish I had the nerve to do it.

Patti3,

I think ForestBreath updates us from work. She may be too busy lately to have done any updates.
Although I'm still wondering if her Bee's came back? Also with the chilly weather, I'm curious if the house is snug and warm?
Hopefully she updates us all soon!
Pam

[Forest Breath]

I regret that I have not been able to update in awhile. I am not sure how often I will be able to update, due to the way we live and also the horrible situation that has developed with us living our dream. I am not looking for any sympathy in this post and certainly do not need the lectures on what I should have done. I just simply want to update everyone on the situation as my posts may change a bit from our day to day life to the horrible situation we are now facing with the home.

Jimmy and Hazel came to me in March and proposed a deal for me to obtain their farm. Basically I was to pay an agreed upon amount per month, build my home there, take care of them, share our lives together, never put them in a nursing home. Upon the death of both of them, the land would become mine at that time, along with their house and the 2 acres it sits on, with no more payments required. Jimmy had an attorney getting the papers, deed, will, etc. together and assured me many times, as well as Hazel assuring me, that it was taken care of and he was getting me a copy of the papers just 3 days before he died. He saw his lawyer that week to “finalize it all”. I never wanted to push Hazel after Jimmy died, but a few weeks ago I told her she was going to have to make her way to the lawyer and get me a copy of those papers for my safety deposit box because if something happened to her I would have nothing to state what the agreement was.

So Jimmy and Hazel helped us build the home, made plans for the farm, we planted fruit trees in the field that was to be the orchard, we fixed culverts, planted various trees all over the farm, built a family picnic area by the branch, dug a spring, root cellar, and took care of them, mowing, cleaning, cooking, nursing, taking to the Doc, getting meds, digging graves and even living with Hazel for weeks after Jimmy died.

A week ago on Monday night the 13th, Hazel was making plans to sell me a Buick she no longer wanted or needed. It is an old car, 1988, and my car tore up just a few weeks ago. The blue book value was 600 bucks. She said that her preacher said $1000 was fair and that is what she would sell it for. I thought that was strange and told her I would think about it.

This “preacher” married Jimmy and Hazel 7 years ago and they were members of his church, although they never attended a service there. They joined the church because Jimmy needed someone to preside over the graveside service and since he married them, he wanted him to do the service. The preacher said he could not unless they were members….which is UNTRUE…but whatever. So they joined the church. When Jimmy was literally on his death bed, the preacher, I will call him “Bob” started hanging out A LOT, he spent a lot of time comforting Hazel. He was shocked when Jimmy informed him they had sold the farm to us, because he wanted to buy the farm years ago and Jimmy would not sell it. Actually, he and Jimmy got into an argument about it. Jimmy said he MIGHT sell him an acre some day. So this man does not show up for 7 years and then he is at Hazel’s side as Jimmy died.

I have discovered now that right after he died, and we started staying at home and not with Hazel every night, Bob started visiting Hazel daily. Then Hazel informed us he had convinced her that the deal made with me and Chris was illegal (?) and not valid as Jimmy was incompetent. (Let me remind you the deal was made before ANYONE knew that Jimmy had cancer and he was very competent). So he convinced Hazel she needed to go to the lawyer and stop things, she can “sell” us the 5 acre field the house is on to “appease” us, she MUST make him executor of the estate legally, she will not be able to live on her social security, I may die before her, and they promised to sell him an acre of land. So Hazel, in her grief, confusion and vulnerability believed everything he said. She would sell us up to 5 acres for $6000 and acre and if we want more we have to pay $7500 and acre. Bob told Chris he was going to “make” Jimmy stick to his agreement of buying an acre and he wants the acre right next to Hazel’s house (which includes the first 300 feet of our driveway). We are going to have to build a new driveway on the backside of the field, through the woods, that is about 1200-1500 feet, cutting down hundreds of trees. He kept telling Chris Jimmy was incompetent and crap. He was looking for a water source for his horses he plans to put there. He told Chris he is going to lease the rest of the farm from Hazel for his horses, he wants the field beside out house where the spring and pond are, he does not want us to buy any of the woods. He even parked his horse trailer on top of the hill where my daughter had already started making plans to put her a trailer until her house was built in another field. Hazel switches back and forth from Jimmy signed the papers, to Jimmy did not sign, to the lawyer said he made Jimmy think it was OK but knew it was not so he never finished the plan, to Jimmy was sick and he could not do the papers for him…..which I know is a lie because Jimmy started those papers and paid that lawyer in April and he did not know he had cancer until the end of May.
So as it stands now, Hazel is being completed controlled by Bob, who she trusts as a man of God and he makes sure she is not around when he tells us what we can and cannot do with the land. We are helpless and have just fallen apart and cried now for a week straight. I find it hard to trust people and you just would never expect someone in their mid 80’s would hurt you so deeply.

I have receipts signed by Jimmy and Hazel where I paid a large amount of money to them each month for a “land payment” as it is written on the receipt. I have witnesses from the Master Mason at his lodge to his Doctor, neighbors, etc. that he told them he sold us the farm. I have invoices from Lowe’s and Hiwassee Builder Supply that Jimmy signed with the material for the home delivered to the property in my name. I have pictures of Jimmy and Hazel helping us build the house. And more and more and more. I have no clue what will be helpful and what won’t. We have starting accepting that the farm will not be ours, but we are desperately trying to save our home that we built by hand with Jimmy and the five acres it sits on. Bob will not let her go lower than $6000 an acre and if we have to pay that for the home we fell in love with, we will. I have already paid some of that in monthly payments to them.

Our lives has changed this week forever. I do not know that we will ever trust anyone again. This has hurt us more than anyone could ever imagine. We cannot sleep, we have both lost weight this week, we are prone to break down in tears at any given moment, we do not know whether to continue our plans and work on the house or just walk away and rent a house somewhere. It is just killing us. Hazel is blank and lets Bob do all of her thinking and talking right now. We have no money, we are in no way rich, coming up with almost $30,000 is just hard for us to imagine possible.

So I have an appointment with an attorney on Thursday. I have no clue how much it will cost or if there is a chance in hades we can save our home. I don’t know what is binding and what is not. It is a mess, a horrible mess that has come close to destroying us. We worked 16-18 hours a day on our dream, we had just finished getting the wood stove installed a few hours before Hazel sprung this on us. We thought no matter what happens, we have a secure home, wood and food and we are ready for winter, we cold relax even if just a little bit. Now our life, home, dream has been turned upside down and virtually destroyed, while Bob makes plans for his horses and strokes Hazel’s ego to keep his plan in action. It is sad, devastating and I have no clue what our future holds now.

As for the house and such. We have the wood stove installed and it works well. I got an Ashley wood heater from Freecycle. We have about 4 cords of wood chopped. We have plenty of water. We are hoping to finish the root cellar if we can mentally get ourselves together to do it. I have found 2 persimmon trees and a half dozen black walnut trees on the 5 acres. I have about 10 gallons of walnuts in the hull and a gallon of persimmons waiting to be canned. I have some meat to dry into jerky as well.

This entire thing has been an experience and now we face the toughest struggle of all. I am continuing to keep my end of the promise to Jimmy and when Bob is not at Hazel’s home, I go down and take care of Hazel, but sadly the love is no longer there. We are hurt, deeply hurt to the point of falling apart. Monday night I ended up at the emergency room because of this. We won’t be getting over it anytime soon. If we have to walk away and pick up the pieces, I just don’t know what it will do to us.

So there is the update, sad as it is. A warning to all, I don’t care if it is a family member that you love dearly and think will never hurt you….get agreements in writing as soon as they are made. Death and greed can turn angels into demons.

But for the record....we love the lifestyle. We have no regrets with that choice. Everything about it is amazing and we love it so deeply and plan to continue as long as we are allowed to.

[Bones]

Forest Breath, so sorry to hear of your past events. That is so scary after all your hard efforts. Yes I'm sorry to say money is the root of all evils, look at our economy today.....
Sending good karma your way, and let us all here on CD know how you make out with the attorney....

[Pam& Bill]

Forest Breath,
I know it isn't any consolation for you at this point, but it sounds as if "Bob" is a good scam man that takes advantage of vulnerable old ladies. Not even men of the cloth are automatically trustworthy. Anyone can take a course online or pay a fee and call themselves a minister.But they can still be greedy and convince people that things are to be done this way.
Is there anyway you and Chris can stay on your place and wait out Bob? After all people with the character of Bob will be gone once they get what they want.
I know of the deep hurt you are feeling right now and I'm sorry for that.But don't let this destroy your faith in mankind, that would only let someone like Bob win.I am curious, what has Hazel said to all of this?
I send [[[[[[[[Hugs]]]]]]] your way from Knoxville to McMinn County!
Pam

[vacation bound]

Forest Breath, I am so sorry to hear what is happening to you. I hope the lawyer can help you in some way. My thoughts are with you, good luck and as far as "Bob" is concerned. I belive what goes around comes around. And he calls himself a man of god. He will get his in the end, God works in mysterious ways.

[younglisa7]

I am so so sorry to hear about your troubles. Keep your spirits up and keep trying to talk to Hazel. When you go to the lawyers ask him/her about "intent". Jimmy and Hazel(still) accepted money from you. What was their intent? Maybe that can help.

I really wish you the best and hope things work out for you. We'll keep our fingers crossed for you.

Lisa and Mike