$10,000 shy

[owlsfriend]

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/903-S ... =pinterest

So, hubs and I have 10 acres of wilderness in the middle of nowhere, on the last gravel road in Lawrence Co. Indiana...it's paid off and I go camping there frequently. We'd like to retire there some day, build a house and put a quail sanctuary in the steep sided woods, not to mention bees and other low maintenance livestock. (we are debating whether or not rabbits count as low maintenance.)

Then last summer this house went up for sale as it has several times in the last five years. The cost has just been reduced to what the previous owner paid. How do I know this? It's my next door neighbor. We share a boundary and the two properties would make a 24 acre rectangle, no weird "L" shaped bumps or blips....so we should get it even though we won't be retiring for another 10 years. We contacted our lender. Because this would not be a primary residence, we would have to pay a bigger down payment. It's so close to possible I could cry.

I offered a friend of mine the use of the house for 10 years, while she buys the available 56 acres next door, if she'd be a caretaker of the property. Haven't heard back from her yet. (Her elderly father lives not too far away--but you can't blame someone who lives in Hawaii for not wanting to move.)

 

[Miss M]

Full basement? I'll take it! :razz:

I hope you're able to work something out so you can buy it. Our next-door neighbors have talked about moving ( ), and we just hope that if they do (they're good neighbors, and we'd rather they didn't), they wait long enough so we can buy their property.

 

[tm_bunnyloft]

I know the feeling. Its been quite challenging financially since buying this house. Though we are very happy that we did.
I sure hope it works out for you to get the place. It sounds great.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

What a cute house! I love the stone exterior.

I hope you can work something out and find that extra ten grand somewhere! Do you have any relatives that would be willing to loan you the money at a fair interest rate?

 

[owlsfriend]

I've got a retirement fund that would cover it, but that means tax penalty and who knows what else...we're trying to find a better way.

 

[ladysown]

do you get along with them?
do you think you could work out something with them? one never knows if one doesn't ask.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

I've got a retirement fund that would cover it, but that means tax penalty

You might want to look into it. The penalty isn't as high as you think.

 

[trinityoaks]

I've got a retirement fund that would cover it, but that means tax penalty and who knows what else...we're trying to find a better way.

Can you borrow from your retirement fund? That would be better than liquidating it, and you wouldn't have to deal with the penalty. You would have to pay it back into your retirement fund, of course, but interest rates are usually quite low.

 

[owlsfriend]

Discovered an unpaid doctor bill lurking in my past, so hubs will have to finance the new house by himself, even though I can go on the deed. In this case, I will have to "gift" him my PERF such that it does not look as though it is a loan (getting a loan to cover down-payment is frowned on, deeply frowned on.) As any family member could "gift" us a monetary sum....but not a loan--repaid under the table, only.

We are going for a second walk-through tomorrow and put down an offer after that. Then we'll see.

 

[tm_bunnyloft]

I sure hope it goes well. Buying houses and property can be so stressful.

 

[Dragongreg]

MSD is correct on borrowing from your retirement fund or perhaps 401k. Typically, the repayment is taken from your weekly or bi-weekly compensation which makes it look and feel more manageable and the interest is basically re-payed to yourself.

Over the years my wife and I have used this process many times for everything from home improvements, gaps on college tuition or even vehicles. We have gotten two boys through college and my daughter will graduate next December and about five years ago we started hitting the 401 contributions to max the company matching.

We can finally see the light at the end of the tuition / education tunnel and we frequently joke about the "raise" we will get after the kids are off the "payroll".

Hmmm, vacations, more sheep, extra goats or lots more bunny's!! Glory to those who manage there kids out of the nest and into being adults

Good luck to sorting something creative out and happy holidays!

 

[AnnClaire]

Yes, your 401K can finance you a loan and you don't have to "qualify" for the loan, then you make the downpayment on the house, which gets your "partnership" in the property nailed down and undisputable in a court of law. Basically, you are making a self-secured loan to yourself, you don't "break" the 401K, and you DON'T have to "gift" it to someone who would then have to declare it on their income taxes. Then, on your own taxes, you get the credit for the interest payments to yourself As always, talk to a certified professional in this field before making any lasting financial decisions.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

As always, talk to a certified professional in this field before making any lasting financial decisions.

Lol. Love the disclaimer, AnnClaire! :lol:

 

[owlsfriend]

I will credit the most recent development to the Good Lord testing my patience and his/her infinite sense of humour. It seems that the sellers will not be allowed to sell the house (purchased at the height of the economic bubble) because the Bank WANTS to foreclose. So, in the long run, we may get the property for a vastly reduced sum.....I will never understand high finance, even with someone as obviously educated as AnnClaire tutoring me.

 

[tm_bunnyloft]

I would contact the bank and voice your interest in the property if thats possible. ASAP. I have no patience so I can imagine how this most recent development would make you feel.

 

[Miss M]

It seems that the sellers will not be allowed to sell the house (purchased at the height of the economic bubble) because the Bank WANTS to foreclose. So, in the long run, we may get the property for a vastly reduced sum.....

That is total weirdness. :shock: A shame for the owners, too. Could give you time to get your ducks in a row, though. I agree with TM... let the bank know you are interested.

 

[AnnClaire]

Thanks, Owlsfriend for the compliment, but I learned it the "hard way" ... after the fact when the bank had my loan in their hands. Ah, well. I paid that loan off early (reducing the bank's interest fiat) and then closed my accounts