Okay, bear with me as I rant a little bit here . . . :) Some of you know that we bought and lived in our 1965 trailer for 2 1/2 years with the agreement that we would move it when we were done with it. Clarification: we only bought the trailer, NOT the land that it's sitting on. Anyway, we are now in the process of seeing if someone will buy it, and if not, then we will either 1) give it away, or 2) demolish it where it is and get rid of it that way. So, we have a "For Sale" sign in the window, and have run an ad in our local paper for the past 2 weeks. Both ads say very distinctly, "MUST BE MOVED." So far we've received 6 calls about it. Here's a brief synopsis of the conversations:
Caller #1: "I was wondering if it would be possible to buy the land with that?"
Caller #2: "Now is the land for sale, too, or just the trailer?" Me: "No, I'm sorry; we don't own the land, just the trailer. That's why it needs to be moved." Caller: "Oh, I see. Well, how about that old car that's sitting in the garage? Is that for sale?"
Caller #3: "Hi, I was calling about your trailer . . . " Me: "OK, now you do realize it needs to be moved, right?" Caller: "Oh . . . really? Well, do you know who I could get to move it for me?"
Caller #4: "Hello, I'm calling about . . . um . . . a trailer, I guess, that you have for sale over on _______ Rd?" Me: "Yes?" Caller: "I was wondering if you want to get rid of the garage there?"
Caller #5: (an old lady . . . at last someone that understands that it needs to be moved! Said she'd call back . . . never did.)
Caller #6: (a girl who sounds about 15-16) This one takes the cake . . . she's called 3 times tonight so far. She and her boyfriend need a place to live. They stopped and looked in the windows ("It looks like a brand new house inside!" he says. Makes me wonder how many brand-new houses he's ever been inside.) They are amazed that we will sell it to them for $500 . . . then he asks if they could make payments on it? I say no, that we would need all the money up front. I suggest that we could meet them over there so they can actually go inside and look it over. Well, he hems and haws about how he doesn't know when his next day off will be. (Where does this guy work?? By the way, he also sounds about 15-16.) I kindly tell him to call me back when he finds out and we will take it from there. I also make sure they know it needs to be moved before winter. Yep, they got it. Less than a minute later, the girlfriend calls back. (She is now calling her boyfriend "my fiance." I know they are calling me from a store because she told me this in the first call. So now I'm wondering if he got a plastic rhinestone ring out of one of those vending machines and suddenly proposed in the seconds between phone calls?) Anyway, she ecstatically says, "We've decided we'll take it!! My fiance says we can get the money to you in a week and we can definitely get it moved before winter!" Okay . . . remember, they still haven't even stepped foot in the place. I suggest that we can meet over there tonight or tomorrow so they can look it over. I also want to have time to talk to Jim and make sure he can be there when they do . . . So I tell her to call back after 6 pm, so she can talk to my husband. Okie dokie . . . She calls back after 6; Jim answers. She wants to know when he wants the money so they can move in? Uh-huh. He tells her they can't move into it where it is; that they have to move it first. "But your wife said we could!" WHAT? Jim told her in no uncertain terms, "NO, she didn't." He explained that we don't own the land, and the guy who owns the land doesn't want anyone living there. The trailer must be MOVED. Well, she's a little subdued now, but she still wants to meet and look at it tomorrow. A while later she calls back. "Well, can you see if the guy who owns the land would let us live there for like 2 weeks until we can move it? We'll pay him lot rent and everything." Apparently they are homeless, destitute, and one step away from a cardboard box . . . YIKES. We'll meet with her tomorrow as planned (IF she shows up) but I have a feeling this one is going nowhere, too. People, people, people . . . .
I think in the end it will be easier to demolish it where it sits, even though it will cost us $$ to do so. Oh well.
4 comments:
As Trixie Belden always used to say, "Oh, woe!" I hope Jim just simply told her that he KNEW the "guy who owns the land" would say no, in no uncertain terms. It sounds like they'd be hard to dislodge!
Jim told her he could ask him but he already knew what the answer would be, but we're not going to ask. It's pointless. If they're oh-so-desperate as she makes it sound, they can figure out a way to make it happen. I mean, it's not like it's that cold yet; they can live in a tent for a couple weeks or something! I can't believe that when I said it needed to be moved by winter, they assumed they could just live in it where it is until winter. Hello?
Carrie,
I'm sorry for your troubles, but the way you told the stories made me laugh:o) I hope you can find the right buyer soon!
Erin,
I tried to make it entertaining! Glad it made you laugh. :) Sometimes you just have to laugh; it's better than just getting frustrated. At long last, I think we may have found a buyer for the trailer. (None of the ones previously mentioned.) I'll try to blog more about that tomorrow. :)
By the way, I like how you've customized your blog! Very cool!!
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