Progress! No, really :)

Well, what a torturous few weeks it has been here at Golem HQ. To say we've been on the edge of our seats, biting our nails to the quick whilst somehow also hanging on tenterhooks would be to use a string of cliches which actually described reality quite well. Tense times.

But now, at last, and after no small amount of emailing and phoning back and forth between us and our building society, we have our formal mortgage offer. Golems rejoice!

This is a big thing, and it's been a long time coming. Originally, when our offer was accepted, we were guessing that we would be in the house in mid-April. Hmm. Looking at the date of this blogpost, it's clear that that didn't happen. And yet, all through the long-winded and downright annoying months between the offer being accepted and now, everyone involved has assured us that the length of time this is taking is quite normal. If that's true, it's no wonder that buying a house is one of the most stressful things you can do. All that waiting, calling, waiting, emailing, waiting, signing, waiting, paying for things, waiting and finally waiting some more, is all a precursor to an incredible, exhausting flurry of activity when it comes to actually moving your stuff. Couldn't it be the other way around?

Anyway, ranting aside, we have a lot to do. Now that the Offer of Loan, as it is properly called, is in, we need to open a loanstock window for our lovely loanstockers, work out a completion date with our solicitor, and actually figure out what all that stuff in the understairs cupboard is, and whether it's coming with us or not. Scary stuff, but so, so exciting.

Once all the legal and financial stuff is sorted out, I am hoping that this blog will take on a new role,  documenting the practicalities, successes, and failures of co-op living. There will probably be lots of eco-renovation stuff, permaculture (if I get my way) and DIY creeping in, as well. I know that lots of people enjoyed the house-hunting stage of things (what is it that's so exciting about spying inside other peoples' houses?) but I'm hoping you'll enjoy the next stage too.

And we'll finally have somewhere to invite you around to for a cup of tea :)

- Hannah

The (Geeky) Haps

It has been too long! Rest assured, no news is currently good news.

Some hiccups include the solicitors seeming to not know whether we're a housing co-op, a business or a housing association, and the house still being on the market.

Some progress includes the survey and valuation coming back, and not being too terrifying. Also, we've emailed the loanstock folk to tell them what we're up to. We're waiting to hear back about some mortgagey things, but bank holidays all over the shop are slowing things up a bit.

Also, and this is the most exciting bit for me (Lotte/Cassian), no one strongly objected to me being in charge of the Front Door. (There were some looks of dubiosity, but I consider those to be stand-asides.) OH MY WORD am I going to paint it TARDIS blue and put a police box sign on it and also a silver door-knocker and change the number to 221b and put anti-demon wards in the doorframe? YES YES I AM.