Be It Ever So Humble

Or, from the Big House to the Outhouse.
You may remember, back in 2008 I bought this bitchin cool house at a steep repo discount:

I wasn't over-extending myself. I don't play that way. It was affordable (at the time) and offered a few benefits (like plenty of rooms for visiting family) that made it a sensible choice at the time.

Yeah, well then Bushobamageddon happened... All the world went to shit... And my world went with it.
(This is not a tale of personal woe. It's happened to lot's of private sector worker people, not just me.)

As time went, and half of my income with it, I made a few wrong decisions. The worst of them being of the mind that sooner rather than later things at the plant would turn around. I just needed to 'hang in there.
So I did.
And spent a sizable savings account dry while making up the shortage for the monthly mortgage.
All dried up, I made my last payment in April, a year ago.
I applied for a modification (which are veeerrry slow coming) and received a foreclosure notice in the meantime.
Last December I decided that there was no way in hell this was going to be able to work for me and applied for a Short Sale.

Finally, the mortgage company got back to me (after they had posted an auction date for April 30th).
Basically, their offer was for me get a buyer before a certain date, or they would grant a Deed In Lieu Of Foreclosure.
This means that if I just hand them the keys and leave, and they won't foreclose.
This supposedly saves my credit report from having a foreclosure on it, allowing me to purchase again in as short as three year's time.
'Deed In Lieu...' is used when a mortgage holder's income is too small to allow even a modification to take place. It's part of the new rules, I think.

Good news, I found a buyer (who also got laid-off from his job and had to withdraw), and then with the clock ticking down I found another. The approved sale price is 70k less than what I paid, and 260k less than what the previous owner paid in 2007 for a brand new house.

More positive news:
I found another home that I will be renting with an option to buy.
It's a sweet deal for me. Rent is lower by a few hundred a month than would be normal for this place in this area, and a portion of my rent is applied to the sales price should I choose to excercise my option. In three years, I plan on it.
It's good to have a good friend in a position to offer to help a buddy out.
Actually, it's sweet for both for us. A win-win.
I wouldn't accept the offer any other way.
I get cheaper rent with option...
He gets a bigger return than he would get from a bank, with a lot less hassle and bullshit from a tenant whose character he's known for twenty years and who won't fuck him.
That, and I got to pick out the place for him to purchase.

This is my new pad.

It's a permanent foundation double-wide, two bedroom, two bath, exceptionally well cared for with one original owner since 1976. It also has a stick-built addition running along one side, providing a step-down den, step-down office room attached to the master, and a fully enclosed front porch.
The two-car garage also includes another tandem garage structure that was used/wired for a work shop.
The grounds are well landscaped in a clean-looking low maintenance plan with drip irrigation, several fruit trees, flowers and roses, patio slab, and lots of potential for easy cost-efficient modification. Two large trees at east and west provide cover from the direct sun (and heat) lowering utility costs.
It's geographical location within the hills provides plenty of breezes. I like that.
It's located in a development known as The Farm. Lots of citrus groves inhabit the commons and green belts (my property backs onto a green belt. Yeah!) When the breeze blows, you can smell the sweet scent of citrus trees wafting through the house.

It should be a nice, adequate and simple home for the Wife and I, fitting well with our lifestyle together for years to come.
Sorry, out-of-towners. No room here. Wish it could be different, but it ain't.
It also offers me plenty of opportunity to do some of things that turn me on: home improvement. I got plans, yes I do.
The place is nearly forty years old, and nothing has been upgraded since it was built. This will change.
Sure, it needs a lot of work, cosmetic wise. But the home is sound and move-in ready.
First to go is all that crazy wall paper.

I may have fallen far by some people's standards, but the landing looks to be soft.
I know one thing: It sure beats a tent on the pasture in Henry County, Georgia where I thought I would be heading.