Just a quick link...

We're still in real estate limbo. There was a hint that the criminal real estate agent may have been fired by the house's seller, but we need confirmation before we can move forward. We're too scared to work with that crook anymore, for obvious reasons.

So, in the absence of real news, I found a news article that amused me greatly. Who knew there were heavy metal monks?

Waahhhhh...

Picture courtesy of the fabulous comic strip Devil's Panties.

Why is Mr. Real Estate Agent so stupid? Lying, ok. Many people (unfortunately) choose to lie. But lying in a way that makes it possible for people to sue your tush off? Not so smart. That takes lying to a whole new realm of stupid.

[Some content temp. edited away]

Please, non-existent readers (it would probably help my hit count if I told people I know that I started this blog) cross your fingers for me and Mr. Sam. We really don't want to take this guy to court, no matter how justified we are in doing so.

Shellshocked Sam

Oh. My. Goodness.

The Great Real Estate Debacle of 2008 continues. 

To review: 

1. Seller's agent misrepresented the number of rooms in a house (I asked him repeatedly to confirm that one room was a bedroom; he confirmed that it was, which turned out to be untrue). Seller's agent also claimed (dishonestly, as it turns out) that Mr. Sam and I could not get a real estate agent of our own unless we paid out of pocket. According to our lawyer this is just not true.

2. Mr. Sam and I talked to a lawyer, who assured us that this meant we could terminate the contract. We followed the protocol as dictated in the contract for doing so.

New:

1. We receive email from Seller's agent, saying that they were fixing all the problems (riiiiight) with the house, and that, oh by the way, the contract was still in force.

2. Mr. Sam, who, bless his poor little heart, has been on the phone *all day* now, calls lawyer back. Lawyer explains that agent is full of fecal material.

3. Mr Sam calls agent, and tells him that the contract has been terminated, but we'd be willing to a) negotiate an addendum to the old contract, bringing it back into force, or b) negotiate a new contract. Agent refuses to acknowledge termination of old contract.

4. Suspicious little Sam I. Am feels that this is not good. Suggests that Mr. Sam ask lawyer to call agent.

And now all hell breaks loose...

5. Agent starts lying. Big time. First Mr. Agent says (take notes, kids, this is a good one) that the official MLS listing (which listed the house as a four bedroom house) is the result of a software glitch. Lawyer expresses disbelief. Agent then says that he and Seller knew that the room in question wasn't a bedroom, but decided to list it as a 4 bedroom house anyway for tax reasons. (Note that Agent had said to Mr. Sam earlier that the house was a 3 bedroom house for tax reasons). Agent then claims that Mr. Sam knew that the room wasn't a legal bedroom at the time the contract was signed. Now people, this is just straight out lying. I asked the agent repeatedly (needless to say in Mr. Sam's hearing) if the room was a legal bedroom. Agent repeatedly assured me that it was. 

So that's where things stand. I think I shall report Mr. Agent to the National Association of Realtors. I was perfectly happy to believe that the misrepresentation was totally accidental. These things happen. But when someone just starts straight out lying? Not so cool. What a nightmare...we just wanted to buy our first house. We didn't ask to get into a legal mess. We're also not sure where to go from here, except that we know we want to run far, far away. Unfortunately, Mr. Agent has $3000 of our money held in escrow, so we can't run yet. Mr. Sam and I feel physically sick over the whole thing. 

Waaaahhh....*sniff* waaahhhh

A point of clarification...or not.

Picture du post: Nifty looking ornamental peppers from the botanical gardens in Montreal. Must try growing some next year. (No, this has nothing to do with the post, I just like these peppers because, you know, they're black and stuff).

Mr. Sam suggested that I clarify the whole name thing. I am not Mr. Sam. Mr. Sam is my husband. I am Sam. Mr. Sam has a brother named Sam, but he is not the Sam who is the subject and/or author of this blog. No, I am merely Sam. Well, not really. My legal name is something else entirely, but I haven't used it for a decade or so, so it probably doesn't matter much. Also, while I realize this is Vermont and all, I should probably clarify that I am, in fact, a female Sam, rather than a male Sam (not that I have any problem with such marriages, I just don't happen to be in one).

If that clarified matters at all for you than you should seriously consider a career as a college textbook author.

Because finding an agent isn't hard enough...

So far this weekend the following fun and interesting things have occurred:

1. Real Estate deal fell through. No house for Sam and Mr. Sam. Well...not unless seller of house drops the price by ~$10,000, since it was misrepresented as a four bedroom house, when it has (follow me carefully here, this is difficult) three legal bedrooms. Three != Four, people.

2. One of Sam's friends and/or relations went crazy. Literally.

3. Not to be outdone by Sam's friends and relations, Mr. Sam's mother got sick(er)... in the beginnings-of-heart attack sort of way. I know in-laws are often competitive, but really...

4. Agent #1, who has Sam's partial, has not responded. Agent #1 says he tries to respond within six weeks *at most* of receiving partial. It has been over thirteen.

5. Agents #2-3, who have queries, have also not responded.

6. Sam has done diddly/squat work towards her PhD qualifying exam this weekend. Sam's work computer has decided that it is fun and interesting thing to crash two or three times a week. This makes working on a major document more than a little nerve-wracking. And people, this computer is only a year old. And it's a mac. Macs aren't supposed to suck.


On the other hand, Sam's environmentally friendly, organic, low carbon footprint and [insert your buzzword of choice here] is growing nicely. There are lots of tomatoes. There are peppers. There are baby courgettes (sorry folks, I can never spell zuchinininini, so I'll stick with the franco-british word from here on out). There are even ground cherries, which should be interesting. Miserably humid weather + rain = happy plants.