House in the country, TN 2009-10

Early in our marriage, Mike and I lived on my parents' farm in Harvest AL. My dad bought the farm when he was president of Athens College, and they had never lived there. It had 20 acres and a small, old house. We lived there for 3 years before Mike was transferred to Nashville and we bought our first house. Mike, especially, fell in love with living in the country. He had grown up in Nashville, whereas I had always lived either in the country or in small towns.

As Mike climbed the corporate ladder with Roadway, we moved from Alabama to Tennessee, back to Alabama, to Atlanta and Valdosta GA, then finally back to Tennessee, settling in Rutherford County, where we had bought that first house more than 20 years before. Every time we moved with Roadway, we looked for a house that we could resell, so country life was not in the picture.

In the meantime, my dad retired and he and my mom moved to the farm in Harvest. They renovated and increased the size of the house by adding an even older house that was moved from another property. Our children would go for a week of "Camp Madstone" every summer, and grew to love the farm, horses, dogs, and the appeal of country life.

After Mike retired from Roadway and we knew we wouldn't be transferred again, he started looking for hunting property. Last summer, he saw a property advertised in the paper that looked interesting. We drove out to look at it, and fell in love. We went to an open house, then made an appointment and went back a few times. The house is rustic, but spacious. The property is hilly, and the views are incredible! We saw deer and other wildlife every time we went. We took as many of the children as we could to look at it, and they loved it too. We felt it suited us perfectly, and would be a great place for children and grandchildren to come and visit. Ultimately, we made an offer on the property. The owner countered, and we accepted the counter offer. That's when the trouble began.

We learned very quickly that the homeowner was in bankruptcy, and the counter offer that he made to us would result in a short sale of the property, which he had not had approved by his bank. Not only did the bank not accept the offer, but they decided to put the property back on the market and raise the price! Two months later, no one had made an offer. In November, the realtor contacted us, saying that the homeowner's bankruptcy lawyer had a proposal. He suggested that we offer a certain price, which was lower than the original offer, but didn't include certain things like the two tractors, refrigerator, and porch furniture. He thought he could convince the bank to accept that offer, and the sale of those items would give the homeowner some cash. We did everything he suggested, and simply asked that the bank let us know if they were going to accept our offer by January 15. Once we got the bank's approval, we would put our house on the market.

Throughout the holidays, we waited anxiously, hoping to hear something. We wanted to show all the children (who were here for the holidays) and my parents the house. They had all seen the outside of it, and the location and views, but most haven't seen inside the house. Not a word. January 15 came and went. The following week, Mike contacted the realtor who told him she hasn't heard a thing. So much for the January 15 deadline. We still want the house ...

I'll keep you posted.