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Posted: 7/26/2021 5:26:54 PM EDT
[#1]
Pinson has some iffy areas.
I’d look around: Trussville or Argo but not towards Centerpoint or Clay. Moody/Leeds are built up and have a lot of good areas, but are a little further from Birmingham but you’ll have quick access to 119. |
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Posted: 7/26/2021 6:13:35 PM EDT
[#2]
Look up Nottingham
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Posted: 7/26/2021 7:00:05 PM EDT
[#3]
I'd cross Pinson off the list. I lived there for a few years. Things changed and not for the better.
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Posted: 7/26/2021 7:10:28 PM EDT
[#4]
Leeds and Moody are meth-laden areas. Some areas of Bessemer are ok but that's going to be the ones closer out near McCalla and 459.
Hoover, Vestavia, Mountain Brook, and Homewood are your more affluent areas and have the best school systems in the state. Helena is nice also but it is a traffic nightmare. Gardendale, Fultondale, Chelsea, Pelham, Alabaster, Trussville, Springville, and McCalla are all decent areas not too terribly far away from downtown but you'll have more rush-hour related traffic issues going south than the other directions. Birmingham doesn't have all the stuff you want to see and do concentrated downtown. It's spread across the entire region of the state so you'll find stuff pretty well anywhere you land. I'd take a look at that part of Hoover, Chelsea, and Pelham primarily since your family is in the 119/Inverness area. That's going to be the closest. The really nice neighborhoods in that area are Brook Highland, Greystone, Highland Lakes, Eagle Point, and Mt. Laurel / Shoal Creek. The nice thing about those areas is that there will be homes in your price range but they will also scale up to to seven or eight figures so you should be able to find something to your liking. The tail of that dragon is property taxes. You'll pay to live in those areas and have those nice/new/fancy schools. Over the mountain is where you'll get into Chelsea and homes are more affordable. |
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Posted: 7/26/2021 7:41:46 PM EDT
[#5]
I would say stay out of Jefferson county entirely even if it has a house in a city that you like. I would look at Hoover and south and east.
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Posted: 7/26/2021 7:42:19 PM EDT
[#6]
OP here - Thanks for the quick replies.
We lived in Pelham from 1992 to 1996. Might have stayed longer, but FIL died while we lived up there, and MIL almost died about a year later. Plus our kids were young (pre-school ge), and we had no family in the area either. Living where we have for the last 25 years hasn't been terrible, but crime from Monthuggery is slowly creeping north, as well as blue locusts moving out of Monthuggery. Also, most of our family isn't close by anymore. What about the Sylvan Springs area I mentioned? The house I found online has a lot of garage space, which would even please my wife, so I could get all of my tools and stuff in one place. |
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Posted: 7/26/2021 8:15:43 PM EDT
[#7]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Look up Nottingham Thanks for the suggestion, but a prime example of "zipper" neighborhood. |
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Posted: 7/27/2021 2:46:44 PM EDT
[#8]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Thanks for the suggestion, but a prime example of "zipper" neighborhood. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Look up Nottingham Thanks for the suggestion, but a prime example of "zipper" neighborhood. I guess that depends on what your definition of "close" happens to be. The houses aren't close as you'd find in a mono-builder subdivision of garden homes. Most sit on .5 to an acre of land. You might check out toward Oneonta.. but it's likely outside of your 40 mile range.  Regardless, I wish you luck in your search. |
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Posted: 7/27/2021 3:09:35 PM EDT
[#9]
doubletap
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Posted: 7/27/2021 4:08:19 PM EDT
[#10]
OP here - My current house sits on a 1 acre lot - 1/2 acre wide x 2 acres deep. Distance between my house and neighbors is about 30 feet on either side, but we don't disturb each other, and vehicles can be easily driven between the houses to access the back yards. A lot of the "zipper" neighborhoods are houses placed closer together and no vehicle access in between. The reason I mention that is that we are "car poor" ha ha; we have eight (8) vehicles currently, that would be pared down to five (5) by the time we move.
Possible job opportunities in the general area that I might have (at this time and near future) would be in Irondale or Anniston, so I have to account for that as well. |
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Posted: 7/27/2021 4:54:13 PM EDT
[#11]
If you shop in Irondale be very careful, it’s bad on crime and wouldn’t be my first choice.
Have you considered the Grants Mill area? It’s not far from 459 and 20, and may have the lot sizes you are aiming for. I lived in Mtn Brook and Indian Springs for years.. with Moody being the site of my first house just out of college. All three are great communities, with different perks. |
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Posted: 7/27/2021 7:31:02 PM EDT
[#12]
Quoted: Planning to retire within the next 10 years, if not sooner. Oldest son and family live off Hwy 119 near Inverness, so we obviously want to be closer. Despite current housing market, we are starting to look at areas. Prefer a house with a decent yard, not what I call a "zipper" neighborhood with really close houses (neighborhood looks like a zipper in an aerial photo, hence my name for it). Not looking at $300K+ homes; I have good equity in my current home (almost paid for), but don't want a large mortgage. Rural / suburbs are preferred over "in town" living. (Even though I would try to be as discreet as possible, I don't want to scare neighbors with "icky guns", LOL). However, I prefer not to live 40 miles out. We want to start driving up and looking at places soon. School districts are secondary, and would only be applicable for resale at this time. So, what are the good, bad, and ugly areas to look at and / or avoid, aside from the obvious B'ham inner, Bessemer, Midfield, etc.? I've seen a decent home in Sylvan Springs, and one in Pinson. thoughts on those areas as examples? Thanks in advance. Kids in Inverness? Chelsea, Sterrett, Columbiana, Alabaster, Calera, etc. I would look south of them to have slightly less traffic. Emphasis on slightly. Maybe to the northeast in St. Clair or Blount counties but traffic to Inverness would be insane during the week. |
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Posted: 7/28/2021 8:58:44 AM EDT
[#13]
Shelby county is what you seek.
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Posted: 7/28/2021 9:53:23 AM EDT
[#14]
Bama shooter nails it!!
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Posted: 7/28/2021 11:47:46 AM EDT
[#15]
I've been highly discouraging anyone that asks (except family/friends) from moving to the North JeffCo (Morris, Kimberly, etc.) area.
We don't have the OTM/Shelby Co. traffic, and we'd like to keep it that way.  I live near MJHS, work in Homewood and drive in rush hour traffic...I'm at work in less than 35 minutes. |
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Posted: 7/28/2021 12:34:00 PM EDT
[#16]
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Posted: 7/28/2021 2:39:10 PM EDT
[#17]
If they live in Inverness/119 area any of that mid to lower Shelby county area will work or go down Hwy 280 if you want even more rural.
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Posted: 7/28/2021 5:41:48 PM EDT
[#18]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Shelby county is what you seek. The only box it doesn't check is being super close. It's going to be much easier checking the rest if you consider Shelby, however. Anywhere you go the commute will be a factor. Unfortunately. |
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Posted: 7/28/2021 7:30:49 PM EDT
[#19]
OP here. Thanks for the additional replies.
As far as commuting goes, from my previous residence in Pelham in the 90's, I lived 17 miles from work, close to the airport. If I drove up US 31, then US 11 to go to work, at least 1 hr 15 min commute for that 17 miles. If I went I65, then I459, then I59/20 to the airport exit, 27 miles and 45 minutes commute. It was worth the extra 100 miles per week. So I have thought of that. Hopefully I can work a 7 to 4 shift to avoid the heaviest traffic, wherever I get a job. We may drive up this weekend and explore areas off Hwy 280, barring other things that seem to pop up. |
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Posted: 7/30/2021 6:59:06 AM EDT
[#20]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I guess that depends on what your definition of "close" happens to be. The houses aren't close as you'd find in a mono-builder subdivision of garden homes. Most sit on .5 to an acre of land. You might check out toward Oneonta.. but it's likely outside of your 40 mile range. Regardless, I wish you luck in your search. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Quoted: Look up Nottingham Thanks for the suggestion, but a prime example of "zipper" neighborhood. I guess that depends on what your definition of "close" happens to be. The houses aren't close as you'd find in a mono-builder subdivision of garden homes. Most sit on .5 to an acre of land. You might check out toward Oneonta.. but it's likely outside of your 40 mile range. Regardless, I wish you luck in your search. I have a separate thread about it, but I just took a job in metro B-ham and bought a place outside Oneanta. I check the commute during rush hour periodically and it looks to stay right around 45-55 minutes. I think the fact that most of the commute being on state routes (75/79) helps the commute. I'll let you know how it works out when I move down in a couple weeks. |
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Posted: 8/6/2021 3:20:29 PM EDT
[#21]
My vote goes to Blount County- Warrior/ Hayden area. Firearm friendly, conservative, quiet and friendly place and around 20 minutes from Cullman and Birmingham (I recommend shopping in Cullman for the lower tax rate).
Been there a little over 2 years and have been very happy so far. |
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Posted: 8/6/2021 3:29:33 PM EDT
[#22]
I'd go NW of B'ham metro. I lived in the Remlap, Oneonta, Springville area. It is close enough for convenience but quiet (or it used to be).
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Posted: 8/6/2021 4:01:23 PM EDT
[#23]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I'd go NW of B'ham metro. I lived in the Remlap, Oneonta, Springville area. It is close enough for convenience but quiet (or it used to be). We looked everywhere within an hour of B'ham and ended up choosing that area. My wife is down there now checking it out and fell in love with the area. |
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Posted: 8/6/2021 4:14:57 PM EDT
[#24]
Quote HistoryQuoted: We looked everywhere within an hour of B'ham and ended up choosing that area. My wife is down there now checking it out and fell in love with the area. Blount or St. Clair County? Make sure you check out the range in Talladega and the CMP store there. It's a great area really, I enjoyed my time up there. |
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Posted: 8/6/2021 4:50:24 PM EDT
[#25]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Blount or St. Clair County? Make sure you check out the range in Talladega and the CMP store there. It's a great area really, I enjoyed my time up there. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: We looked everywhere within an hour of B'ham and ended up choosing that area. My wife is down there now checking it out and fell in love with the area. Blount or St. Clair County? Make sure you check out the range in Talladega and the CMP store there. It's a great area really, I enjoyed my time up there. Blount. Just outside Oneanta. Thanks for the tip. Will do! |
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Posted: 8/6/2021 4:53:10 PM EDT
[#26]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Blount. Just outside Oneanta. Thanks for the tip. Will do! Good deal! Check out the covered bridges in the area for good/short day hikes. Enjoy the state! |
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Posted: 11/12/2021 4:06:47 PM EDT
[#27]
OP here.
Update - I got an open-ended job offer in the Irondale area. No timetable yet; it depends more on me moving up there. So now we can start looking more seriously. We looked at some houses yesterday (windshield tour). Chelsea, Leeds, Moody, Argo / Margaret, and Trussville. Made a list after looking online to help with the trip, but also wanted to check out neighborhoods. Case in point - a house in Leeds, and a house in Moody, looked good online, but when driving to them, the surrounding neighborhoods were dumps and sort of sketchy. Son and his family may eventually move to Trussville or nearby, so that factors in as well. However, Trussville didn't have much to offer for this trip. We might look at between Pell City and Leeds / Moody. Reasonable access to I-20 would be good. |
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Posted: 12/14/2021 10:32:26 AM EDT
[#28]
Another update.
We just made an offer on a house in Vestavia Hills, in a quiet neighborhood just a stone's throw from Mountain Brook. It has easy access to I459, but is not on a busy road. The house was built in the late 1970's and needs interior updates, but is solid and well laid-out, with little wasted space. The lot is just under a 1/2 acre. Just going through the negotiation process right now. |
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Posted: 12/15/2021 5:49:07 PM EDT
[#29]
Best of luck.
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Posted: 12/16/2021 6:44:55 PM EDT
[#30]
Several of us are within spittin distance. We’ll try to have a breakfast/lunch meet up soon.
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Posted: 12/17/2021 12:54:37 AM EDT
[#31]
OP here - Well, our offer wasn't accepted. Found out after 9 PM tonight.
 This house ended up being an estate sale by the heirs, and had a large reverse mortgage assessed / attached, so they were looking for fast cash money to pay that off, and didn't want to wait 30-45 days to close, because it was about to go into foreclosure. They were also very intimidated by a VA appraisal and a home inspection. Aside from kitchen updates, the only needed repairs I noted were some boards on a back deck that were rotten, but easily replaceable. I suspect they ended up going with one of those house flipper companies that send out postcards and advertise on TV constantly, no repairs, no closing costs, no commissions, etc. Their loss, because those companies typically offer 30-40% less than asking price. We offered 6% less than their asking price, subject to change based on inspection results. It was reasonable, given the house location and comparable house sales in the surrounding neighborhoods. Our realtor wasn't happy, not because he didn't get a sale, but more sore that he brought a pre-qualified buyer to them and their realtor, and they jerked him and us around by not answering texts / calls / messages in a timely fashion, and wasting about a week of our time. Oh well, back to the search. 
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Posted: 12/27/2021 11:38:01 PM EDT
[#32]
I’m in the Gardendale/mount Olive area. 15 minutes from downtown, less traffic than Shelby County.
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Posted: 1/31/2022 11:43:07 AM EDT
[#33]
OP here - Still looking. Real estate market up there is crazy. We've set up viewings on a few houses, only to have them cancelled because the houses were already under contract. Hope that still applies when we get ready to sell our current house.
Otherwise, I have tried to nail down specific areas. My son told us this past weekend that they were staying put for a few years; Trussville was off the table for now. So, simply put, we are looking south and east of B'ham proper, probably Shelby County or St. Clair County. Generally outside the I-459 loop, but not exclusively. Lots of homes for sale in Pinson, Bessemer, Oak Grove, McCalla, Roebuck, but some of these areas look to be in flux / transition. Even a few Hoover areas are starting to look sketchy. Hopefully our successful selection will be in an area that will remain stable for a long time. |
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Posted: 1/31/2022 1:04:29 PM EDT
[#34]
Quote HistoryQuoted: OP here - Still looking. Real estate market up there is crazy. We've set up viewings on a few houses, only to have them cancelled because the houses were already under contract. Hope that still applies when we get ready to sell our current house. Otherwise, I have tried to nail down specific areas. My son told us this past weekend that they were staying put for a few years; Trussville was off the table for now. So, simply put, we are looking south and east of B'ham proper, probably Shelby County or St. Clair County. Generally outside the I-459 loop, but not exclusively. Lots of homes for sale in Pinson, Bessemer, Oak Grove, McCalla, Roebuck, but some of these areas look to be in flux / transition. Even a few Hoover areas are starting to look sketchy. Hopefully our successful selection will be in an area that will remain stable for a long time. That would be a hard no from me. I don't want anything with a Jefferson County address. Homes are flipping fast in the good areas. Might want to look at Chilton County or southern Shelby county. Or out Childersburg way. |
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Posted: 2/1/2022 10:47:57 PM EDT
[#35]
McCalla outside the 459 loop is not too bad. There's even a small community called greenwood inside the City limits of Bessemer that I would live in.
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Posted: 7/19/2022 2:04:11 PM EDT
[#36]
OP here - an update.
Well, the last few months have been a roller coaster of sorts. In early February, my wife quit her job as Director at her work, mainly due to drama (all female office), and some other things that I'll not pile on about here. BTW, I supported her resignation. So, with the resulting loss in income, we put our home search on hold until we could adjust / figure things out. But in the meantime, I kept working on my open-ended job offer, to see if I could capitalize on that. Happily, I met with the owners, talked on the phone, emails, etc., and I have been approved to start whenever I can get up there, at a higher salary than my current job, plus a few other perks as well. So the house search is on again. My son would like us reasonably close to him, so my wife can babysit our grandson as needed. No argument there. We have determined that a crescent-shaped territory, roughly bordered by I-65 on the west, I-459 on the north, I-20 on the east, and Shelby County 11 on the south, is our preference, that will keep us convenient to my work and my son. The market is still volatile, but I have noticed home prices seem to be somewhat decreasing in a lot of areas. Interest rates don't bother me at the moment, as long as they don't get above 10%. Anyway, here we go. |
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Posted: 7/21/2022 1:40:51 AM EDT
[#37]
We moved from Atlanta to Blount County 8 years ago and have never regretted it. I work downtown well not since Covid and traffic is nothing compared to that of Atlanta. I would avoid Jefferson County personally.
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Posted: 7/21/2022 10:00:34 PM EDT
[#38]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Kids in Inverness? Chelsea, Sterrett, Columbiana, Alabaster, Calera, etc. I would look south of them to have slightly less traffic. Emphasis on slightly. Maybe to the northeast in St. Clair or Blount counties but traffic to Inverness would be insane during the week. This |
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Posted: 7/29/2022 4:34:42 PM EDT
[#39]
UPDATE:
OP here. Finally got a contract on a house. Hwy 119 area, Shelby County, between 280 and I-65. Only a few minutes from my son and DIL, so super convenient for babysitting grandson. Not too terrible for work commute to Irondale. Several map routes average about 30-35 minutes apiece. Once we move up there, I'll leave home early and experiment to get the best route figured out. |
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Posted: 7/29/2022 5:19:27 PM EDT
[#40]
That's a pretty good area.
Traffic can be a pain during certain hours but there are a few different ways in and out, and access to both 280 and i-65 is nice. Learn the back roads/ shortcuts. 
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Posted: 7/29/2022 11:37:38 PM EDT
[#41]
Quote HistoryQuoted: UPDATE: OP here. Finally got a contract on a house. Hwy 119 area, Shelby County, between 280 and I-65. Only a few minutes from my son and DIL, so super convenient for babysitting grandson. Not too terrible for work commute to Irondale. Several map routes average about 30-35 minutes apiece. Once we move up there, I'll leave home early and experiment to get the best route figured out. Pro-tip: know all the possible routes. I've had to re-route MANY times to get around the Bham metro area to get home. |
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Posted: 8/2/2022 9:11:35 AM EDT
[#42]
Okay, we're now going through all the loan paperwork, inspections, etc.; fortunately the sellers already had an inspection done by a licensed team, which identified a few issues, that were corrected before the house was listed. I was given a copy of that inspection report and subsequent repairs.
However, I will need a septic system inspection. I was given the name of four (4) companies, and I am curious if anyone here has feedback / experience on any of these: Reliable Septic Services (Mount Olive) Meeks Environmental (Bessemer) Superior Plumbing (Alabaster) Pickle Septic Tank and Plumbing (Empire) Thanks very much. |
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Posted: 8/17/2022 10:33:05 PM EDT
[#43]
Any updates?
I'm guessing at this point you've got the septic figured out. Meeks and Pickle have been around forever. |
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Posted: 8/18/2022 12:19:18 AM EDT
[#44]
On a septic system. I had Superior Plumbing do the inspection; he used a camera and was very thorough, for a reasonable price. He asked if the septic tank had been pumped; I texted the realtor and they answered the sellers hadn't had it done in over 25 years.
 . I guess they took good care about what was flushed over the years.So now I have to have the tank pumped. I was given two recommendations: Arnett Environmental and Squirrel's. Any experience with either? Hoping to close in the next couple of weeks. We haven't bought a house in 30 years and the process is so much more involved with paperwork now. |
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Posted: 8/19/2022 11:43:37 PM EDT
[#45]
None here, I've used Meeks and Lightning Septic in the past to pump.
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Posted: 8/20/2022 3:35:37 PM EDT
[#46]
Quote HistoryQuoted: That would be a hard no from me. I don't want anything with a Jefferson County address. Homes are flipping fast in the good areas. Might want to look at Chilton County or southern Shelby county. Or out Childersburg way. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: OP here - Still looking. Real estate market up there is crazy. We've set up viewings on a few houses, only to have them cancelled because the houses were already under contract. Hope that still applies when we get ready to sell our current house. Otherwise, I have tried to nail down specific areas. My son told us this past weekend that they were staying put for a few years; Trussville was off the table for now. So, simply put, we are looking south and east of B'ham proper, probably Shelby County or St. Clair County. Generally outside the I-459 loop, but not exclusively. Lots of homes for sale in Pinson, Bessemer, Oak Grove, McCalla, Roebuck, but some of these areas look to be in flux / transition. Even a few Hoover areas are starting to look sketchy. Hopefully our successful selection will be in an area that will remain stable for a long time. That would be a hard no from me. I don't want anything with a Jefferson County address. Homes are flipping fast in the good areas. Might want to look at Chilton County or southern Shelby county. Or out Childersburg way. Would be crazy to voluntarily live in JeffCo |
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Posted: 8/24/2022 11:38:36 PM EDT
[#47]
NVM again.
VA screwed up my loan processing due to questions on eligibility and taking too much time. Found out about a week before closing that I don't have enough length of service to qualify for a VA loan, after separating from the ARNG due to total force military drawdown in the early 1990's. Apparently none of the VA drones knew about the drawdown, and unless my separation papers said RIF or the like, then a no-go. I guess "Honorable" isn't good enough. I supplied other supporting documents, like official Army publications, website links, unit history showing deactivation, etc., but no dice. I can appeal the decision, but that takes time, time I didn't have. Sellers got panicky about extended time for other funding options and ended the deal, even after I switched to a conventional loan, which could have been done in about 2 weeks. Shit, I had already spent about $2,000 for earnest money, appraisal, and inspections. I'll get the earnest money back, but have to eat the rest apparently. Tried to convince the sellers they are starting the clock over as far as closing dates, but so far no luck. I offered to still buy if they would reconsider, but I guess not. Saw the house re-listed tonight, with the comment "previous buyers financing fell through". Only partially true. Oh well. |
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Posted: 8/25/2022 5:41:52 PM EDT
[#48]
Hate to hear that. Thats a good area.
Off valleydale and South is all good. Acton and Rocky Ridge area is fine too, even though some of it lies in Jefferson County |
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Posted: 8/26/2022 8:53:48 AM EDT
[#49]
That sucks, I'm sorry that it didn't work out for you.
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Posted: 9/9/2022 11:42:19 PM EDT
[#50]
OP here. Well, hopefully the "Third Time Charm" will work.
We had to sit down and weigh out pros and cons. Since I committed to start the new job fairly soon (based on previous housing deal), we needed to find an "interim" residence for now, that would give us a foothold in the area, and then maybe find something else later. Apartment life wasn't an option that I was willing to try, so we still focused on houses. So, we have put a contract on a house in Trussville. I know, Jefferson County, but like I said, maybe just interim. The good thing is it's only about 20 minutes to work, and reasonably close to main roads. The listing realtor had no qualms with our financing source and Conventional Loan, and hopefully we close in the first week of October. BTW, Karma is working for me. The house that we previously had under contract and then fell through, is still for sale, with no offers close to the asking price. I want to troll that listing agent so bad, because she said the sellers wouldn't work a deal unless I used her finance company., which wasn't competitive at all, and more like a title pawn type deal IMHO. |
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