Financing the Home, Interior Design and TRYING TO SELL OUR HOME

This particular topic should be of interest to all people considering a new home. What my family is going through right now, I wouldn't wish upon anyone. We are so excited to get started with building our Estemerwalt Log Home, but we need to sell our house.

Our Current Home - For Sale: $228,000.00

Since this is a tell all blog, I am going to share all the financial information about the home. We are currently in a home that we originally paid $238,00.00 in Myerstown, Pennsylvania. We have lived in this home for less than 3 years and currently owe $224,000.00. We have spoken to several real estate companies and due to the standard 6% interest that the real estate companies expect, we have decided to try and sell the home ourselves. We know the odds are against us, that only about 5% of homes listed by owner are ever sold. The hope is that we can list the home at a price that someone will find very attractive. We have the home listed for $228,000.00, which is $10,000.00 less than we paid for it three years ago. Also, there is a development being built by the same contractor a mile down the road, where our exact home is selling for approximately $260,000.00. The main issue is getting the word out!

Front Porch View of Pond

While we are trying to sell the home we would like to keep the process rolling on our new Estemerwalt Log Home, so I have spoken to two different finance companies, and I am already approved to take an additional mortgage with a 5% interest rate on top of my current mortgage. With the current economic climate, I am not comfortable with this option.

Backyard

We have also looked into a bridge loan which may be an option, but also has some negative aspects. Since I have never had a bridge loan before, I now have a basic understanding of how they work. When you have a bridge loan, you obviously continue to pay your first mortgage and you also pay the interest on your bridge loan. You must make sure you are financially able to handle both payments for the long haul.

It is not all gloom and doom and we are optimistic that we will sell the house soon. We will list with a real estate company by mid-June, but we would really like to give a family out there a great deal on a beautiful home. At the bottom of this blog you can see more info and photos of the home, so if you or anyone you know is interested in a great home at a great price don't hesitate to contact me!

On a lighter note, we have had our first opportunity to sit down with our interior designer, Struxtures Architecture and Construction. This phase of the project looks to be much more enjoyable than selling the home. Currently I am working with my wife Liza and pulling together many of the ideas and concepts we have for the home. Like I said to the Stuxtures staff, my wife and I have very different tastes. I would say the combination that best describes us is rustic elegance. Obviously me being rustic and Liza being elegant. Stuxtures assures me that combining the two in a log home is a realistic goal. We will be meeting with Stuxtures again in early June, so I should have more information and photos regarding the interior of the home next month.

While Estemerwalt Log Home designed the home and put together all the floor plans, it has been very beneficial having Stuxtures, a local company where we are building the home review the plans and make suggestions. Some of the things we have already changed include mirroring the home so the master bedroom windows are against the woodline and pond side of the home. Stuxtures is also very helpful when it comes to getting quotes and estimates from local contractors. Having a local company like Stuxtures to help us through everything from the interior designing to engineering changes has been extremely helpful. I look forward to bringing you more information as the project progresses.

I hope my next blog includes some great news that we sold our home, so until next time, we will keep plugging along.

HOUSE FOR SALE

• Location: Myerstown, Pennsylvania
• Price: $228,000.00
• Size: 2400 sq feet
• 4 Bedrooms
• 2.5 baths
• Large Back Deck
• Pond off the front porch
• Stream beside the home
• Premium Lot with Walkout basement
• Extra Layer of Block in Basement for high ceilings
• Large Backyard

Back Deck and Yard

Streamside neighbors

Living Room

Living Room and Kitchen

Formal Living Room

Dining Room

Streamside in the backyard