Buying That First Home: The Finish Line

So my agent followed up with the selling bank regarding the proposed deal. He called me back to inform me that the bank accepted the arrangement! So it's only a matter of time now; closing is scheduled for August 28th. For the record, here's what my deal entails:

• Original asking price was $227,000. I initially offered $230,000 with a $1,000 earnest money deposit and a $12,000 concession, for a net asking of $228,000.
• The bank counter offered at a $235,000 asking price with a $2,350 earnest money deposit and a $8,000 concession, for a net asking of $229,350.
• We accepted the counter offer and I put the earnest money into escrow.
• My broker got conditional approval on financing, contingent upon all of my credit cards being paid of (~$3,000 owed).
• My agent submitted an amendment asking for an additional $3,000 in closing (no offer price increase, which made me a little nervous)
• The bank had to follow up with the investor (don't understand that piece) for the response - approved!

So when I close, my credit cards (which are the bulk of my separate accounts) will be paid off, leaving only my car and mortgage to pay, and I'll own my first house.

Before folks start cheering, I still have to get the appraisal results. The property might have depreciated so severely as to not make it worth while, or there might be bums during the walkthrough or anything else imaginable. I'll have to sit on my hands and wait and see.

Jury Duty...

NOTE: This is a migrated entry.

So I got summoned back in February to go to Jury Duty. I was asked to postpone until August. So I went today.

Before, when I was paid hourly, I could easily get out with a letter from HR stating that they would not pay jury pay. Unfortunately, that doesn't fly now that I'm salaried, as part of it is paid by my company. However, I still managed to make do. Before I reveal the magic, I just had some observations.

First off, I think the current process for JD is unnecessarily bureaucratic. They send you a notice in the mail to show up on a certain day at a certain time to wait to possibly be called to serve on a jury. Why not just send a notice telling you that you've been explicitly selected for a trial, and must show up to court by a certain date unless you have a viable excuse? Get rid of the interstitial waiting period, it's a waste of people's time and not worth it. $15/day? For potentially 8 hours x 20 days worth of serving? Seems as though it hasn't caught up with the economy.

There is one good thing about JD: there is always at least 3 sexy females up there waiting right along with you. It's a prime place to get phone numbers - if you're into that sort of thing. Me, I like looking at them, not necessarily talking to them (because they're always stuck up anyway).

Anyway, how I got out of it: generally trials are quoted at 3-7 days long. That's business days, of course. That means, if your company pays less than 7 business days, you're in a good spot. Using mine as an example, they pay "a week" - which equates to 5 business days. The possibility that the trial could go 7 business days is the catch. That means two business days your company is not paying. That's money not going to bills/expenses. That's your hardship, and even if they require you show up at the waiting room, you won't get assigned to a trial.

Now, your company may pay 10 days or even unlimited in some cases. You're screwed. Accept it and get ready for trial. But if your company pays little to no days for jury service, you have an out.

DISCLAIMER: The above presentation does not apply to Federal jury service which does not acknowledge financial hardship as an eligible excuse reason. Only County jury service allows for financial hardship.