OMG buying a first house is so damn complicated!

We have spent the past two weeks trying to work out the process. Here is a little explanation of the Christchurch Earthquake merry-go-round.....

We won at auction, which mean't our offer had to be unconditional. The earthquake damage occured before the settlement date (date of exchange of title) so the vendors are responsible for the cost of the repairs and damage. The vendors have therefore lodged a claim with the Earthquake Commision (EQC) and their insurers. We must now wait for the EQC assessor (who typically has no building or quantity surveying background) to visit the property to then decide the dollar payout to fix the damages. However building prices are escalating and the loss adjuster is not a Quantity Surveyor or a Builder so is just guessing. We in the meantime are going out to the market to try to get fixed price builders quotes to give some certainty to the cost of the repairs to then use as leverage in case the loss adjuster comes through and values the repairs at less than market value. We are then organising a structural engineer to inspect and write a report on the structural condition of the house. To complicate it further the settlement date is in 6days time. We can't settle because we need a mortgage. The bank won't lend the money unless you have home insurance. The insurance companies (those little weak men who make lots of money) have implemented a policy of not insuring ANY damaged homes. Therefore ALL house buyers looking to borrow money from a bank to settle on a house with some earthquake damage can not settle until a.) the insurance companies change their policy or b.)the buyers save up enough money to buy the property without the need for a mortgage!!!....We meanwhile are trying to delay the settlement date by 4 weeks as this should give us enough extra time to save the extra 100k we need to avoid a mortgage! NOT.....

And this is without entering the discussion about the definition of the term 'untenentable' and the absence of case law that surrounds this term. Unfortunately this is the only way we can get out of the contract we signed but could turn nasty if we end up being the first bit of case law for New Zealand courts!

Wow, who thought buying a house could be so much fun.

So some new pics below. We lost a wall in aftershock number 142 of about 300 so far ;(

Quake!!

Well its certainly been an exciting few weeks.

This morning at 4.30am we woke to a 7.1 magnitude earthquake that shook the house for several minutes. Pictures were rearranged on the walls, our computer desk fell over and glasses and ornaments fell of the shelves.

After taking stock we then rode through town on our bikes to see the huge fissures that had opened up. Lots of road junctions were covered in silty sand which had shook itself up through the cracks a process known as liquifaction- seriously cool

Unfortunately Albert took a beating. The chimney fell off and brickwork will need replacing at the corners where 2cm cracks have sheared straight through the summerhill stone cladding. Luckily we have not taken settlement yet so the responsibility for fixing the house lies with the Vendor.

Not even the adult entertainment stores were spared!