It was on auction.
It was a nail biting auction.
One where Becky had all the confidence of a mobster, strolling in, pointing at a house and saying "that one."
I on the other hand was sweating and had some nervous twitches going on.
I mean, come on, this is a huge change for us... We spent 2013 and 2014 shedding most everything we owned. Especially the stuff to support home ownership.
And now, here we are again, homeowners.
Which means we have to re-acquire stuff to support home ownership, like tools, bedding supplies, kitchen stuff.
We were crazy to sell everything last year. We're crazier to try and buy a bunch of it back this year.
But the auctioneer was so smooth.
Each time we were outbid they'd simply inform us and then wait for our move.
There were a couple minutes where the bidding was happening so fast I was having difficulty keeping up. The auctioneer was working the adrenaline system well.
It came down to the wire, but when the proverbial gavel fell we had the last bid and the final bid was $100 under our agreed upon max price we were willing to pay for this home.
There are a lot of details for us to work through. Paperwork and taking possession should happen this week. But taking possession will be a story in and of it self since it's across state lines.
But we know that until our lease is up in our Belding house (July 8) we'll have two places to live.
That's a far cry from 2014 when we had none.
There's one voice that keeps coming to mind. It's from a comedian named Jeff Foxworthy and it goes something like "You might be a redneck if... your house is on wheels, but the 3 cars in your driveway are not"
Yup we bought a home that is mobile.
A house on wheels.
A house with TWO motors in it.
A motorhome!
Meet our 1998 Fleetwood Pacearrow. It's 37 feet long, runs on gas and has 8 wheels to support the weight of all our earthly possessions.
We bought it on eBay.
Last night.
It's in Madera California (near Fresno).
We're trying to work out the details but it looks like we might be able to fly all 6 of us out to CA for around $40 total.
And then begins the long trek to Michigan (36 driving hours). We're bringing it back to Michigan so we can remodel it, outfit it and get our belongings moved into it. All of this before July 8 when we join the throngs of Americans whose permanent (earthly) home has a motor in it.
We're researching spending some time in Yosemite on Saturday. We'll be bringing you live updates from the air and the road as we finalize the deal on our new home. This truly is a Home - Along the Way. As Becky's dad put it, "That's intense, but, it's just another day for the Kortmans!"
Soon to look like this!
Image Source
Paul Kortman
Dad of 4, husband, blogger, digital marketer, follower of Jesus. I podcast at nomadtogether.com and own connexdigitalmarketing.com We're on this crazy journey to travel the world as a lifestyle. Looking for help in how to live as a digital nomad family? Join this Facebook Group!
Follow Me:
Congrats! Um. How are you all flying to CA for around $40 total?? Did you negotiate that in the purchase? Need your tips if you have a different way of getting great airfare!
We use Abroaders to help us manage our travel hacking. It’s quite impressive when you look at it how quickly you can earn an almost free flight. We’re simply paying fees of $5.60 a ticket but the tickets are bought using points earned by living. Just doing what we do. Only difference is we use different credit cards instead of cash to buy stuff and bank the points for occasions such as this. 17,500 points earns a free one-way ticket on Delta, so for all of us it’s 105,000 points. Typical sign up bonuses for Credit Cards are 40,000-50,000 so two of my signup bonuses went to this trip. But it saves me around $500/ticket or $3,000 for this one trip. Totally worth it!
Hi Paul,
Your cuz’ins Phil & Tricia DeVries here in Spring Lake MI,
You will have a riot!
We tried the motorhome life last summer, but only for 3 weeks. As you already know, you can plan your trip, but its the unplanned things that always seem the most memorable! Here are some highlight pics to give you a small glimpse into what you can look forward to on your trip back to MI: https://plus.google.com/photos/113968147115469550955/albums/6028351736955889953
Thanks Phil! We’ll look through those tonight!