All Signs Point Towards Simplify
Now that I've been in the states for 6 months I've decided I'm staying here for at least another little while and that now is a good time to sell my Edmonton Condo. Fortunately, Edmonton's real estate is over-the-top booming right now; it sold in under 24 hours for more than I had anticipated.
Unfortunately, that's where the good news went on vacation. I'm not exactly sure who dropped the ball following the sale, but I have had every problem imaginable since.
First my lawyers didn't receive my new contact info from my realtor and couldn't get a hold of me. When they finally did, like 3 days before possession they alerted me that I needed to come into the office to sign something that very day otherwise they couldn't legally sell my condo. Which wouldn't be a problem at all if I were living in Edmonton, but alas, I'm 2400 km away. Fortunately, the lawyers found some extra documentation by total fluke that allowed everything to be done by fax, so that all worked out.
Possession day comes and goes, and I can't get a hold of anyone to find out if all went well. That night, I get a call saying the realtor is wondering where the keys are and the new tenant can't move in because I didn't drop off the keys. Which obviously isn't the case, of course I had the keys dropped off. But, nevertheless, no one contacted me to tell me everything had went well. A case of poor communication, and a restless worry filled night for Lucas, thinking the whole deal has fallen apart.
Turns out the realtor was mistaken - the new tenant moved in no problem at all. So now everything should go smoothly now that that hurdle is out of the way.
But, alas, seeing as I don't live in Canada anymore, there are a bunch more tax related bites that got me and held the process up for over a month, and the whole time I'm getting mixed information from people - some saying the gov will take 25% of my profit, some saying they'll pay that back, some saying other worrisome tales. Fortunately, my accountant came through and literally saved the day.
By this point, a month after possession, I'm a little anxious for my money. The lawyers assure me I will be paid within 2 business days.
5 business days come and go and, to no big surprise to me (I'm pretty cynical by this point) there are still no deposits in my account. Turns out the bank holding my mortgage was refusing to release my mortgage disclosure statement for some reason that I entirely do not understand. Fortunately, their customer service was super helpful after I explained my situation and how I can't get a hold of anyone at the branch for over 2 days. So they send off the paperwork to the lawyers, who are anxious to receive this last piece of documentation before they can pay and be done with me. Monday is payday I was promised.
By Wednesday, I'm starting to get a little disheartened. I call the lawyers and, as my luck would have it, the person looking after the final details of my case quit but said that she had taken care of all her open cases, thereby leaving my case orphaned. The lawyers were very apologetic about this and apologized profusely and also gave me a huge price slash on their costs. Which I have to give them huge kudos for - a lot of people *ahem realtor, bank* offered no apology or accountability for screwing up. People make mistakes, that's fine, but I have little patience for people who can't admit they screwed up and try to cover it up or ignore it. Seriously a little 'Hey, sorry Lucas, I kinda messed up here' goes a long way in my books.
And then, finally, after 6 long weeks of promises, I was finally paid yesterday. Hallelujah what a good feeling that was.
It'll be a long loooooong time before I buy another property. I'm very pleased to give my rent check every month and call it good, even if I don't own a thing. It's just so much less hassle.
And now, without further adieu, it's time to go shopping! I need some pretty things.
Now that I've been in the states for 6 months I've decided I'm staying here for at least another little while and that now is a good time to sell my Edmonton Condo. Fortunately, Edmonton's real estate is over-the-top booming right now; it sold in under 24 hours for more than I had anticipated.
Unfortunately, that's where the good news went on vacation. I'm not exactly sure who dropped the ball following the sale, but I have had every problem imaginable since.
First my lawyers didn't receive my new contact info from my realtor and couldn't get a hold of me. When they finally did, like 3 days before possession they alerted me that I needed to come into the office to sign something that very day otherwise they couldn't legally sell my condo. Which wouldn't be a problem at all if I were living in Edmonton, but alas, I'm 2400 km away. Fortunately, the lawyers found some extra documentation by total fluke that allowed everything to be done by fax, so that all worked out.
Possession day comes and goes, and I can't get a hold of anyone to find out if all went well. That night, I get a call saying the realtor is wondering where the keys are and the new tenant can't move in because I didn't drop off the keys. Which obviously isn't the case, of course I had the keys dropped off. But, nevertheless, no one contacted me to tell me everything had went well. A case of poor communication, and a restless worry filled night for Lucas, thinking the whole deal has fallen apart.
Turns out the realtor was mistaken - the new tenant moved in no problem at all. So now everything should go smoothly now that that hurdle is out of the way.
But, alas, seeing as I don't live in Canada anymore, there are a bunch more tax related bites that got me and held the process up for over a month, and the whole time I'm getting mixed information from people - some saying the gov will take 25% of my profit, some saying they'll pay that back, some saying other worrisome tales. Fortunately, my accountant came through and literally saved the day.
By this point, a month after possession, I'm a little anxious for my money. The lawyers assure me I will be paid within 2 business days.
5 business days come and go and, to no big surprise to me (I'm pretty cynical by this point) there are still no deposits in my account. Turns out the bank holding my mortgage was refusing to release my mortgage disclosure statement for some reason that I entirely do not understand. Fortunately, their customer service was super helpful after I explained my situation and how I can't get a hold of anyone at the branch for over 2 days. So they send off the paperwork to the lawyers, who are anxious to receive this last piece of documentation before they can pay and be done with me. Monday is payday I was promised.
By Wednesday, I'm starting to get a little disheartened. I call the lawyers and, as my luck would have it, the person looking after the final details of my case quit but said that she had taken care of all her open cases, thereby leaving my case orphaned. The lawyers were very apologetic about this and apologized profusely and also gave me a huge price slash on their costs. Which I have to give them huge kudos for - a lot of people *ahem realtor, bank* offered no apology or accountability for screwing up. People make mistakes, that's fine, but I have little patience for people who can't admit they screwed up and try to cover it up or ignore it. Seriously a little 'Hey, sorry Lucas, I kinda messed up here' goes a long way in my books.
And then, finally, after 6 long weeks of promises, I was finally paid yesterday. Hallelujah what a good feeling that was.
It'll be a long loooooong time before I buy another property. I'm very pleased to give my rent check every month and call it good, even if I don't own a thing. It's just so much less hassle.
And now, without further adieu, it's time to go shopping! I need some pretty things.
aspasia:
Tell me all the awesome things about Portland!