7: It's time to develop a plan ...
As we near the end of our first week in Dillsboro, IN, we are no more certain of what to do next than we were when we arrived.
What will the new New Orleans be like? How does the “re-population” of a great city unfold? What can we do to help?
In a sense we lost three houses. One was our primary residence, another a former residence which we now rent out; the third was a new house that we were building that was physically only the forms in which to pour the slab, but was thoroughly fleshed out in our minds.
Based on what we can tell from 700 miles away, we feel that little will be salvageable. Even though we had decided to sell the Lake Forest house, it was still our dream house for 15 years. We don’t know whether our long-term tenants, Sam and Darlene, will return. Are we going back to rebuild these houses, or are we liquidating our real estate holdings and starting all over?
We have not yet been able to contact the builder of our Lakeview house. We feel certain that he lost his Lakeview home, so he probably has his mind on other things.
We have a contract with a finish date that is impossible for him to meet. He owns the lot, so he may just refund our deposit and build a house for himself there. We suspect that building materials will be hard to get, and that what we can get will be expensive.
Neither Susan nor I have rented in the 20 years we have known each other, but the time may have come. She will be retiring in a few years, and we may stay “light on our feet” enough to consider a retirement location other than New Orleans.
So we have quite a few tough decisions to make, for which we need a little more information. We also have a tough decision as to when we leave Indiana, and where are we going to stay when we get "back home."
Despite all the uncertainty, we are still extremely lucky. All our loved ones are safe and sound, even though a bit scattered and facing similar choices. We were pretty well insured, and we have options.
Maybe facing a few decisions isn’t so bad after all.
What will the new New Orleans be like? How does the “re-population” of a great city unfold? What can we do to help?
In a sense we lost three houses. One was our primary residence, another a former residence which we now rent out; the third was a new house that we were building that was physically only the forms in which to pour the slab, but was thoroughly fleshed out in our minds.
Based on what we can tell from 700 miles away, we feel that little will be salvageable. Even though we had decided to sell the Lake Forest house, it was still our dream house for 15 years. We don’t know whether our long-term tenants, Sam and Darlene, will return. Are we going back to rebuild these houses, or are we liquidating our real estate holdings and starting all over?
We have not yet been able to contact the builder of our Lakeview house. We feel certain that he lost his Lakeview home, so he probably has his mind on other things.
We have a contract with a finish date that is impossible for him to meet. He owns the lot, so he may just refund our deposit and build a house for himself there. We suspect that building materials will be hard to get, and that what we can get will be expensive.
Neither Susan nor I have rented in the 20 years we have known each other, but the time may have come. She will be retiring in a few years, and we may stay “light on our feet” enough to consider a retirement location other than New Orleans.
So we have quite a few tough decisions to make, for which we need a little more information. We also have a tough decision as to when we leave Indiana, and where are we going to stay when we get "back home."
Despite all the uncertainty, we are still extremely lucky. All our loved ones are safe and sound, even though a bit scattered and facing similar choices. We were pretty well insured, and we have options.
Maybe facing a few decisions isn’t so bad after all.
posted by John V at 8:35 AM
2 Comments:
Not bad! I like your blog! :*)
I have one about website marketing if you want to drop by.
Keep up the great job! I'm bookmarking you!
What an unfortunate comment by anonymous.
Who reads "We lost three houses..." and replies with "Not bad!"? I'll be charitable and assume it was spam.
I'm sorry to hear about your losses, John. I can relate, though.
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