Hire lawyer to write up contract, collect deposit, get your lending buddy to close in 3 weeks. I recommend a mail-in closing.

Start right now to find an apartment or something to rent while you figure out your next move and start packing.

This happened to my husband in reverse. We were visiting an acquaintance's home for the first time early this year and she mentioned she needed to sell the house in a few months. I told her it was lovely but undoubtedly beyond our price range. Two days later, she called me up and said "let's make a deal." My husband and I had no intention of moving--we were finalizing our cabinet order for our kitchen remodel on the day she called, in fact--but we just loved this house. I spent a day or two freaking about it, then took a deep breath and plunged ahead. It couldn't have been a better decision.

I would say give yourself a couple days to mull this over and come to decision.

If you do want to move ahead, here's what our next steps were:

Talked with a real estate agent we had used in the past; she sent us some relevant comps and tax info. (We offered to compensate her for her time but she declined.)

Hired a real estate attorney to draw up a contract.

Seller hired an appraiser to gather comps and retained her own attorney.

Hired a home inspector to look over the place.

Within a week, we had hammered out a price, contract and closing date and put a sizable chunk of cash in escrow (5% of sale price). We closed about three months later.

So it can work out. Although three weeks at this time of year--sheesh! That would be a toughie. Where will you go once you move out? Store your stuff?

Quirky took the words right out of my mouth! Sell your house and start packing! In this market, you are being blessed!

kec01 - do you know for sure that utahman's market is a slow market? My area is a seller's market right now so just because some of the coasts are having a slow down, doesn't mean all has. Some may be booming and some may just have no change and be the same as before.

Utahman, if you both were serious about moving and think you'll be able to find something else and the price they give you is what you'd want then it sounds like a real good thing. I'd start finding an apartment to lease on a month to month basis and a storage place and start packing.

No, I don't know anything about utahman's real estate market. However, one doesn't have to read too much of this website to know that selling a home is just a bit stressful. Also, by reading a few newspapers pretty much daily, I know that ON AVERAGE the market nationally isn't so hot. So, if it was me and a buyer like this showed up unannounced AND we could agree on a price, I'd opt for eliminating the stress of selling and deal with the stress of getting out fast and into temp housing until we found a new place.

Had a strange thing happen this week. Someone knocked on my door and said they heard I may be interested in selling my home (DW and I have been considering a move, but nothing certain and we only told a few people). At any rate, this couple would like to buy my home. They would like a quick close (3 weeks) as their home is sold. We haven't even begun looking at anything. Would you do something this spur of the moment?

Wow and I thought I had gossipy neighbors/friends. :)

Do you really want to move? That's the main (and only) question you really need to answer. If no, then the discussion ends. If yes, well, do you want to move NOW?

FWIW, that's pretty close to how we bought our first house. We were looking at houses when we heard that this elderly woman wanted to sell her townhouse. We asked to see it informally (she hadn't done anything to "put the house in order"). We looked at the house twice and decided that we liked it and wanted to buy it. No sign or advertising. Even the neighbors didn't know she was selling until she moved out and we moved in.

It's also how the BUYERS of our townhouse sold their townhouse. They were were approached by a couple who wanted to move into their neighborhood and like you, had heard our buyers were thinking of selling. Our buyers had not yet looked at new places but when they found our place, they were pretty confident they could sell quickly. They sold the first day their townhouse hit the market - to the couple who had approached them.

That happened to a friend of mine.

Someone knocked on her door and said they liked her house and what would it take for them to move out.

She and her husband were planning on building in the not-too-distant future and had a rough estimate in mind of what that house would cost.

She blurted out the cost of the new house, and the people said SOLD!

They moved into a rental until the new house was built.

Happened to my parents, too --
Some neighborhoods are like that.

Your house was petitioned to foreclose, and that's public record. We have been to dozens of houses in the past couple of months pre-foreclosure with the intentions of making an offer only to discover through County records the paper was more than the house was worth. Unless you are looking at the Bay like I am, people don't offer up to buy your house unless there is a specific reason, and there is no paper on my house (grin).

Oh Utahman, you are so lucky! Your home must have some special curb appeal. As former realtor, I keep abreast of the market, and believe me, it is'nt good right now.
In this SE WI area, here is what is selling: starter homes. Anything under 200m is hot. Also, a few really high-end homes are selling. All properties in the +200 to +450 are languishing.
Must stress that some states are really hot right now. Utah is one of them.
You should get an appraiser to look at your home before selling. I would trust a realtor to give you an accurate estimate before some lawyer. Don't sell yourself short.
Pondy

bushleague wrote: Your house was petitioned to foreclose, and that's public record.

What a RUDE post. You have nothing on which to base that statement.

This forum has gotten progressively nastier over the past few weeks.
The Grinch must have stolen everyone's Holiday Spirit.

I'd take the deal (considering the price is right for you). The same thing happened to me several years ago. We purchased an historic home in-town and the inside was simply beautiful with wonderful wood work, floors etc. plus the previous owners had remodeled the kitchen and bathrooms to current standards. It was a great mix of old charm and modern necessities. The outside of the home needed some work. We had the exterior of the home painted in historic colors with 5 color trim, etc. I relandscaped the yard and added a few touches.

We lived in the home only 3 years. One evening I discovered a letter in our mailbox indicating this couple loved our home and wanted to buy it if/when we wanted to sell. The letter indicated their friends lived down the street and heard we may be thinking of moving. While we weren't serious considering or looking at other properties, we were thinking of starting a family and my wife wanted a home in a suburban development surrounded by other young families.

I called the lady (she was an attorney) and told her our pie-in-the-sky price. She said she would discuss it with her husband and let me know. The next morning they called and bought the house at our asking price. They had only two conditions, they wanted the side porch swing and a water fountain in the rear yard. Done Deal! We closed in 45 days, no realtor fees, no showings to nosey neighbors and lookie-loo's.

What is it with this Laura chick running around and deciding whose post is nice and whose post is naughty?

And you can't really be from Texas, bigtexan99 -- because everyone I've met that IS from down here is much nicer than you are...

Unless Bushleague knows something that wasn't posted, the post was rude and insulting. Heck, even if it was accurate, it was rude anyway.

bigtexan- isn't this your thread? "This forum is 80% fluff"

Are you sticking around to bother other people or would you care to contribute some "actual useful information"?

I think bigtexan and bushleague are one in the same ;)

If they are the same person they were clever enough to not only switch internet providers but also fly hundred of miles away to make that reply.

quirkyquercus: If they are the same person they were clever enough to not only switch internet providers but also fly hundred of miles away to make that reply.

How are you getting people's ips?

Look in the source code.