Mister Taylor
Tuesday, June 11th, 2024 10:29 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
snoozefestaudio |
68F and sunny this morning.
It's garbage day, and Offer Heroes is calling to chat.
The final week of spring, on the card calendar, begins today.
The summer solstice will fall on the 3rd day of the Ace of Clubs week, next week, on June 20th.
It fell on June 21st... 2nd day of Ace Clubs, as recently as 2007.
But in 1975, it fell on the 22nd... 4th day of Ace Clubs, and it will do that again in 2203.
The moon will also be at 98% on the solstice this year, and full the next day.
Summer solstice full moons are relatively rare, happening every 18 to 20 years depending on where you are on the planet, and how you define, full.
Of course, I would say, if a full moon falls within the Ace of Clubs week, then it counts as a full moon summer solstice.
Garbage is out and bins are at the curbs.
Last night I discovered Dad's walker & bathrobe still hanging on the back of the music room door.
The walker went out to the parking last night and was just taken within the past hour.
The robe is in the bin with the rest of the trash.
Offer Heroes is gonna call in about three minutes.
I won't have time to update until I'm home from work tonight.
Alex from Offer Heroes was supposed to call at 11:45PM, but of course he was late.
But it didn't matter, because by the time he did call at 1:15PM, I was already clocked in at work and up in the vacant room 213, so I was free to talk.
He had access to Mr. Taylors notes, but he asked me a few more questions and then put me on hold to talk to the underwriters.
After a bit, Alex came back and asked if I was firm on 94K, or could I come down?
I told him I could come down, and after he pressed me for a minimum number, I said 76K, or... what's owed to BMO plus 3K for moving expenses.
He put me on hold again, but when he came back he asked me if I was prepared to sign today if offered 76K.
I said yes.
He immediately emailed me the contract.
And then Mr. Taylor called, and I merged him in, to the conversation.
We exchanged pleasantries, and then he went through the contract with me, quickly explaing the different sections, which I initialed as we went, and lastly I signed at the bottom, sent it back to them, and... now it's on to the next step!
They want me to send photos and a walk-through video in the morning.
Mr. Taylor said he understood that BMO's payoff amount might be more than the 73K estimated, and that if it was, he'd still do whatever he could to make sure I get 3K on top for moving expenses.
However he made it sound like there will be some pretty thorough inspections of the place, before the deal can close.
In his words, "We'll have a complete understanding of what it is we're buying."
But they're also willing to do whatever it takes to turn a profit... meaning if it makes more sense to sell it to a landlord as a rental, they'll budget for that, and do that, rather than trying in vain to turn it into a 21st century, single family home.
That was a big issue with the last asshole who came in here... he only knew how to flip for the upscale home buying demographic.
In my walkthrough video, I'm gonna argue that it makes far more sense to flip this house for use as an Air B&B that could host up to three parties simultaneously.
There's a demand for Air B&B in this area, and no supply.
And it's within walking distance of the train station (2 miles), which can take you all the way to O'Hare.
It's got off-street parking for up to four cars, but the driveway can easily host two cars without any hassle.
It's a double wide lot, with a lawn building on a concrete pad, a fire pit, and it's wide open with no fences so... perfect for a big gathering.
The upstairs, has it's own entrance and, if outfitted with a kitchenette, could comfortably host two people.
The back room also has it's own entrance, and could be separated from the kitchen with a barn style door, to make that a private apartment for one or two more people, with a half bath in what is now the laundry closet.
But residents of the back room would need access to the kitchen.
If done that way, the kitchen, and porch would be common areas, along with the new laundry room... which is currently the bathroom.
And then the music room would become a master bathroom, for the person or people in the starry room, who also enjoy the living room.
So... as an air B&B... three units.
- 1. UPSTAIRS STUDIO: This unit's private entrance is the front door, with a door separating it from the livingroom downstairs.
It has a bedroom, bathroom, and kitchenette, and a nice 360 view out the windows.
For these residents, the only common area would be the back yard. - 2. DOWNSTAIRS MASTER SUITE: This would be accessed by the side door, and include one bedroom, a livingroom, and a master bathroom, as well as access to the common kitchen, laundry room, side porch, and back yard.
- 2. DOWNSTAIRS STUDIO: This unit's entrance would be the back door, and include a bedroom and a half bath, but have access to the kitchen, laundry room, side porch, and back yard.
But the financial advantage to having the house be an air B&B, is that the vintage charm becomes the selling point.
Rather than doing a heavy renovation, you save money by simply refurbishing what's here, and preserving the 19th century feel of the place.
So, for example, rather than replacing all the windows, you simply put storm/scree combos on the outside, and refurbish the interior wooden sash windows, with all their quirks.
Rather than tearing out the plaster and lath, you simply patch the plaster with drywall of the same thickness, and screw it to the lath.
Rather than tearing up the floors and trying to level them, you just slap down some new underlayment, and go with sheet vinyl over that. Let them stay slanty... and slightly creaky... it's part of the charm.
Plus, I know the whole history of he place, so if that were needed for the marketing, as a historic place to stay... I could provide it, and it could be independantly corroborated.
Now, it IS entirely possible that Offer Heroes may determine the house is just not worth what's owed to the bank, and bail on me.
But I do get a way better vibe off Mr. Taylor than I did from Mr. King and the rando house-flip boy he blindly partnered with.
The house is more presentable, now that the dog's gone, and a lot of junk's been pitched.
And I think the vibe here is a lot more neutral here, now that all the belongings of all of the ghosts have been removed and put into storage... or thrown away.
It's no longer, zombie Mike & Barb's Catholic spook house!
It's just the old house, built by my 2G grandfather.
And I do think Mr. Taylor and his team will be able to appreciate the romantic potential of the place as an Air B&B.
They'll be able to determine what the demand really is for such a thing, here on the east side of Aurora... and thus, how much profit a buyer could make off it, over how much time.
This whole side of town is predominantly Mexican, which does mean large extended families with relatives visiting from Mexico, for big occasions year round.
And that's a demographic that I think would really vibe with an old house like this on a vacation.
But whatever.
If Offer Heroes doesn't bite, then I've got no choice but to let BMO auction the place... however long that takes.
We'll see how it plays out.
°¦}
