We got tenants! We got teeeeen-aaaaaants!

We got a couple more applications this week and accepted one from a couple that we love. They are crazy about the house (so are we) and I think they’re a perfect fit! What a relief and so exciting. Within one hour of receiving the earnest money, I had all the listings removed. I’m so thankful to be done with this process for the time being, even though I learned a ton.

This week was filled with lots of errands. I tend to go through phases where I’m super into Craigslist or ebay, and phases where I’m not. I’m currently going through a Craigslist phase. I found a miter saw for $45! I have been in the market for one and am so pumped. Also, picked up a solid pine shelf that matches the rest of our solid pine furniture and some other odds and ends.

I spent one day with my realtor having showings at two separate properties. I love them and want them both. More to follow on that.

Have I mentioned that we got our property tax bills in the mail and that the one for The Maple House was almost $9,000 higher than it should have been. We are being charged all the fees from the Department of Neighborhood Services that the seller was supposed to pay at closing. I spent a lot of time this week on the phone trying to sort it out, but have more work still to do. Opening that bill was heart-stopping.

So, this week, I have been working on my final project at The 1885 House. The kitchen sprayer doesn’t work, so I’d planned to replace it. While poking around, because I’m curious and nosey, I realized that the kitchen sink baskets had been sealed with caulking instead of plumber’s putty. I want to say this isn’t normal, but I wouldn’t be speaking from experience. Since I’m a glutton for punishment and can’t stand things done incorrectly, I took both the baskets out (I replaced them since they were nasty and the strainers/plugs were missing). When I was screwing them in, I accidently knocked the p-trap off with my chin. It is just the worst being under a sink. I can’t even imagine trying to get under a bathtub. While redoing the plumbing, I found that for one of the joints, they had made a “rubber washer” out of silicone caulk. Why? The rubber washer is about 40¢. Needless to say, I got the new baskets in, but didn’t finish plumbing, because I can’t get one of the damn joints to stop leaking.

On Friday, the company doing the siding for The Maple House called to say they can start siding on Monday. It’s about damn time. I should be way more excited than I am, but I’m heavily annoyed at having been blown off for nearly six months. So much for our timeline.. They start between 08:00-10:00 am. I’m cleared my schedule to monitor the progress.

Wade and I also went and picked up some salvaged toilets for The Maple House. They’re actually super nice and one is a Kohler with the “power flush.” We priced that and it’s a $400 toilet. We got them for 40 bucks each. Not too shabby.

I bought a piece of glass to insert into our boarded up window in one of the stairwells. It’s an eyesore and I don’t have time restore it right now, so I’ll just get the glass in so it looks nice now that the siding is about to start. I got to the store about 10 minutes before closing and triumphantly walked out with my glass in hand. I got home and promptly broke it, right at the time the store closed. Of couse. That is exactly how my week is going.

But all that doesn’t matter, because we got TENANTS!