How do people do it?

Buying my first house has certainly been an experience. The fun part only lasted for about two days. I love to look at houses. It is fun to go and see the different layouts, how people have set them up, decide what you like and what you don't. Overall, I really like to look at houses. After that came the phone calls, the emails, the faxing, and the fedexing. That doesn't include the photocopying and trips to the bank! (Of course the loan pre-approval stuff had already happened too.)Let's see if I can remember it all:

1. Sign the agreement and fax it (along with a copy of the $500 check) to the agent. This took probably 3 phone calls.

2. Fedex the agreement and the check. (One more phone call to confirm it was sent.)

3. Get the agreement back by fax.

4. Call mortgage broker to make sure the pre-approval happened.

5. Collect my bank statements, pay stubs, retirement info, tax returns, etc

6. Deliver the financial info to the mortgage broker.

7. Send letter Pre-Approval letter to realtor.

7.5. Change the contribution to the retirement plan at work.

8. Phone call to tell me to set up the inspection.

9. Email to give me the names of inspectors.

10. Another phone call to tell me to call the inspectors soon.

11. Set up inspection.

12. Meet with mortgage broker to sign a bunch of papers.

13. Call to confirm that realtor can make it to the inspection.

14. Email everyone that inspection is happening.

15. Drive to Cape and be there for the inspection.

16. Call from inspector about the findings.

17. Call from realtor about inspection.

18. Inspection emailed to me.

19. Inspection fedexed to me.

20. Receive the "good faith estimate".

21. Call mortgage broker to make sure I understand what is happening.

22. Sign Estimate and mail back.

23. Call the termite inspectors and call the lead paint inspector.

24. Call to confirm everyone can make the time for the two inspections.

25. Call from realtor about inspections.

26. Call from the lead paint guy.

27. Call from the termite guy.

28. Call the realtor to ask for work to be done based on the inspections.

29. Call from the realtor to say that we asked for the work to be done.

30. Disagree with realtor about how to negotiate.

31. Call from realtor to confirm what work we will ask to done.

32. Receive the inspections by mail.

33. Receive the Purchase and Sales agreement.

34. Call from the realtor to get a lawyer to look at agreement.

35. Call from realtor that the seller would like to have his own pest inspection.

36. Call from realtor to urge me to get a lawyer.

37. Call from realtor to tell me the work that they will agree to do.

38. Call to realtor to agree to the work.

*Note the next calls are all on the same day*

39. Call from realtor to tell me to call my mortgage broker.

40. Call to broker.

41. Fax the P and S agreement.

42. Call to realtor that I contacted broker.

43. Decide to do a side agreement (better for the lenders for the work to be done to the house).

44. Get an email about the side agreement.

45. Told to call lawyer.

46. Call broker back to see if she talked to lawyer.

47. Called the lawyer.

48. Faxed the P and S to the lawyer.

49. Called the realtor to tell her all was in progress.

50. Lawyer calls with minor changes.

51. Call realtor to tell her what the lawyer said.

52. Made changes on agreement.

53. Sign side agreement.

54. Realtor calls other realtor who calls seller. They discuss, then call my realtor back who then calls me back.

55. Make the changes.

56. Go to bank for next check.

57. Photocopy check and both agreements.

58. FAX check and agreements.

59. Fedex the FOUR copies of P and S agreeement, side agreement, and actual check.

*new day*

60. Got another "Good Faith Estimate" and "Truth-in-lending" report.

61. Called to get insurance.

62. Mortgage broker called to ask if she could organize the appraisal.

63. Told to call another agent to check a new company.

64. Go to bank to deposit a check.

65. Fax an updated bank statement.

66. Mortgage Broker emailed to ask some more questions.

67. Mortgage broker emailed to give me the appraisal.

68. Lawyer calls to ask a bunch of questions I don't know the answer too.

69. Faxed new retirement statement to mortgage broker.

70. Mortgage broker emailed to say i was approved by two lenders.

71. Called again about insurance.

72. Back to the bank to deposit a check I found.

Now we still haven't set the closing date. I still don't have insurance.

I am not sure how all that works just yet but I am sure that I will figure it all out.

What is amazing to me is that there has been all of this stuff to do (and I am sure more that I can't remember). I really don't know how it would all work if I didn't:

1. have a a cell phone

2. have access to a photocopier

3. have access to a fax

4. have a business address that will send fedex for me

5. have a job that allows me the flexibility to work and do all this

As I have said before on this blog, I am lucky to have the type of job and life that I do. I know that. It is really just an unbelievable process. The problem is that it is hard to predict what I will need to do next so it is hard to be prepared. If I had known (or perhaps understood better) the time crunches, I might have been able to be more prepared, although i don't really think so. People are pretty demanding in this process.

So I am supposed to close within the next two weeks. I still have to nail down homeowners insurance, transfer the utilities, get back some reports to send to the lawyer, deal with the lawyers questions (which i don't remember and didn't know the answers to). I am sure that there is a list of other things to do as well. Shame.