Thank you so much to every for your support and enthusiasm. And it is so heartwarming to hear from so many of my old QB friends - I've missed you so much! Hubby and I are really looking forward to the new house and, although they don't know it yet, so are the pups who will have a back yard again! We are truly blessed. Now fingers crossed that the mortgage goes through without a hitch!
There are two humidifiers in the basement. One is attached to a hose that drains out of the house. That one seems to run all the time. The other one isn't hooked up. The owner told me that if you run it, you have to empty it by hand. Who knows? I've never used one.
Kuntryquilter, I don't know about putting son and DIL in the basement, but DIL has special talents for button pushing and crustiness, which she already displayed at the inspection -- much to my dismay. So if she doesn't shape up, I've told them that they will not be coming at all. We shall see. But ... there is a large dark room down there. We were going to give them the second floor which has a nice bedroom, a second room that can be a sitting room, a full bathroom, track lighting and skylights that open. There is also storage galore. Built in bookcases swing out to reveal even more storage. It is a spectacular space so they had better behave.
NJ Quilter, we are actually going to upgrade the electrical service so I have a dedicated line for my computers and machines. It's pretty warm down there because of the boiler which is in a room around the corner, so I think I'll be fine. In the next room there is the washer and dryer and -- bonus! -- a double sink with cabinet below.
JoyJoyMarie - I'm so glad that you are on the road to recovery, too. I don't know how much sewing I'll be doing on the New Home treadle, but I think it is so neat that it's there!
RedCardinal, I'm so sorry about your home. I know there are many of us out there and frankly, it is scandalous. Our home was so damaged that we would have to tear it down and rebuild. None of the programs that advertise themselves as dedicated to survivor repair has given a dime to anyone. As for the insurance, our attorney's group will be in federal court in the beginning of February for a conference. We haven't gotten much from the insurance company at all. We finally decided, for our own mental health, to sell the house for the land at a huge loss. Before the storm it was valued at $427,000. We sold for $175,000 and after the fees and paying off the mortgage, we walked away with $103,000. I don't read any news stories on Sandy and try not to think about it. What's done is done and now we will move on as best we can.
Geri B - I hadn't thought about radon, but WHEW! after checking a map we are in an extremely low % area.
Barri1 and Sewdamncute (yes, I change the needle regularly!
) we will be staying in New York for now. The new home is in Baldwin which is a town that I rather like. And the elevation is quite high so unless there is a tsunami, we're good. We actually looked at another home that we liked -- the jacuzzi bathtubs and pool out back lured us -- but it was too close to the harbor for comfort -- so if you come to visit we won't be lounging at poolside, but we can run through the sprinklers!
I am also looking forward to having a garden again. Oh, how I miss my garden ... but I will enjoy the new one!
Again, thank you all for your advice and encouragement. It means so much.