Monday, April 18, 2022

Real Estate buying and selling

 Waking up in my second new home felt good.


My New Room
My landlord's room was right next to mine. There's another room on the other side of mine; vacant. There are a few other closed doors on the upstairs floor. We also have a laundry room near my bathroom, so that was convenient. There are plenty of closed doors downstairs as well. the house is humongous! When I first arrived the previous day, I bumped into a stunning young lady at the main door. I was like 'Woah! you're gorgeous!' I mean, I was literally stunned. Turned out, she lives at the house as well. 

In other happy news, to think that my car managed to move me to the second destination as well was such a gift! I was assigned a parking spot in front of the garage. Not long, my landlord came knocking on my door to tell me there was a problem with my car. I had forgotten my car had a leak. Apparently, one of the tenants told the landlord about it. I wasn't sure how to feel about that. Like, did someone look under my car? What are we doing here? Either way, I was happy to move my car right away and not ruin people's driveways. I cleaned the drop right away and it disappeared, thank goodness. Landlord offered me boxed to put under the car, I was like, let's not. I'd rather park on the street, lest the situation leaks through the box and the tenants tells the landlord again. 

I later found out that the beautiful lady I bumped into is a girlfriend of another tenant. They live in two of the downstairs room. I wasn't sure what the deal was there; whether they are neighbors who met in the house or what exactly. I got to meet and have a nice chat with the boyfriend. They're both good looking. I was like, you guys must be killing it on Instagram! The boyfriend told me that he had lived in the house for about a year and a half. If I needed anything, to let him know. That was a nice offer I had zero intention of taking him up on. Not my style.

The landlord's wife was out of town when I moved in but she came back few days thereafter. She and, we'll call landlord, Tom, seem to be good cooks who aren't lazy to cook. The house always smells like food. They even offered me some food once or twice, which I gladly accepted cos new things! Not great for someone like me who loves to eat. Cos I get, dare I say it; TRIGGERED! Tom speaks some English but the wife either isn't interested or doesn't. Unlike Tom, she had her mask on at all times. Wife and myself are the only two people wearing masks in the house. Which, come to think of it, it probably why the couple downstairs seems extra gorgeous! I was seeing their full faces after a year of only seeing mask covered faces! 

Mixed grain soup and meat in small bowl. Courtesy of new Landlord

I got my last paycheck from the guys who kicked me to the curb. It was fat, thank you stars! Someone suggested I apply for unemployment fund. I had never done that in all my years before. So, I did. Albeit reluctant. Reluctant because I had done some Googling and saw that if you're fired, depending on the reason, you may not qualified. I also did wonder if they were going to contact the three witches from my job to ask about my situation. That would be a sure way to get an automatic disqualification. 

Lots of forms were being filled out from job applications to this, that and the other. I also was looking at homes for sale as that was my reason for getting into the dreaded trucking industry to begin with. I wanted to see if, with the funds I had, I could afford a house. I didn't feel like going to the bank, trying to apply for a mortgage and possibly have to lie about my employment status. Cos who wants to give a loan to someone who just applied for unemployment? There were potentials further across the United States. Property prices are insane in California. All of California! The South as well as Midwest had potentials. I did send emails to couple realtors for more pictures of properties that had just the picture of the outside. They told me that I would have to make an offer if I wanted to be able to view the homes in person. I didn't mind that, even though I didn't know how it worked. I just wanted to have a clue of what the houses looked like inside. When I did background acting, I met a couple. Nice guys, friendly and people's people. We have remained in touch. They were in the process of fixing up a property they had just bought in the Midwest. I looked up that area and the houses I mentioned above were from down the street from theirs. That was partly exciting. Alas, I have yet to get photos requested from the realtors. Needless to say, those properties have since been sold. My friends had even offered to let me stay with them if I wanted to visit the area. That was a sweet deal.

I also had lots of emotions regarding investing in property so far away from California. The thing is, I wasn't too keen on renting a room and sharing a house with other people. So, do I really want to buy a whole house; rent it out to someone else while I tiptoe in someone else's home? Something to ponder. Speaking of buying and selling homes, I had made up my mind to sell my property in South Africa. I found a real estate agent and we exchanged a few messages. It was a GO! I had sent messages in the beginning of pandemic but people weren't in the office then nor were they trying to reply to messages. also, this is South Africa we're talking about. Very laissez faire! The guy went to my place, took pictures and listed it right away. I saw the pictures and wasn't excited. I want to feel good about things. I wasn't getting an excited feeling about this venture. The house was super dusty. It had been unoccupied for a while. Partly because I wasn't going to take on a new tenant in the midst of a pandemic and end up being stuck with people who couldn't pay rent, who I wouldn't be allowed to kick out. I wasn't going to deal with that situation. I had enough going on on my plate. 

I signed on with a temp agent that was recommended to me by a pilot / trucker / uber driver friend I used to bump into in the laundry room of the guys who fired me. After fulfilling all the requirements and drug tests and whatnots, I was able to start taking on jobs, so I did. The pilot had told me so much about how the company worked, that I already knew Mail delivery jobs pay the most. I picked one of them. It was a one day gig. The manager for the trucking company I was going to be helping out called me. He has what sounds like a West African name, but I never asked. He explained everything to me and what time I should've arrived at the first of many locations in order to make time. 

To hear more about that sht show of my first job since being fired, check out my next blog. Thanks for reading, I'm @BabalwaBrook on all social media platforms. 

youtube.com/babalwabrook

5 comments:

  1. Hi Babalwa,

    Good to hear that you have somewhere comfortable to stay while you are sorting yourself out.
    I really dislike filling in forms, so I feel for you, I hope you are able to receive what you need, especially if those temporary jobs are not cutting it for you.

    It's strange (yet interesting) to hear about life through the plandemic, from a mask wearers perspective.
    I have been totally the opposite, I had to wear a mask in the opticians to get my glasses sorted.
    I respectfully wore a mask to visit my elderly mother-in-law who is ill and my wife's elderly God father (who lived next door to my in laws) but sadly has died, from non-covid related illness.
    Every other time I've argued and refused to wear one at the stores etc.
    The only other time I put a mask on was right after my food poisoning episode, when I was recovering and too tired to argue with security and when I got on the plane to come to mother Africa from the UK.
    I know people who have contracted the Rona and come out the other end, one of my sisters being one but she refused to talk to me about it.

    I had an interest in America, I would like to visit California, Atlanta and Texas.
    If there wasn't this jab and mask rule I would still visit.
    Cali had the vibe that suits me, health, food and exercise but Texas appeals due to their seeming resistance to the plandemic and all the recent rules.

    A friend of mine from school moved from the UK to South Africa back in 2015/16 and was encouraging me to come out and live there.
    He is a dark brown mixed-ethnicity guy (White mum & Black dad) and said it was way better than living in the UK.
    I was tempted and still may visit, if I can get around the jab and mask situation.

    I would like to chat with you about your reasons for choosing the USA, especially when so many European Americans want to see an end to the immigration of non-European (White) people.
    I suppose what you've seen in SA is much more serious than your experience in the USA but still interested to hear your thoughts.

    OK, I've written a Blog post response, I'm sorry for the length, just wanted to share.
    Bye for now.

    ReplyDelete
  2. What up, Mr G? Thanks for the well wishes. Sorry to hear about your Family friend.
    * Was it mandatory to wear a mask where you live?
    * Why did your sister refuse to discuss her Rona with you? I'm happy she recovered. My fried is in the process of recovering as we speak. She tested +ve last week. She's vaccinated.
    * At some point, all these restrictions are going to have to be lifted. When that happens, I look forward to hearing all bout your visit to The US. Texas is quite large, hopefully you will allow a decent amount of time to spend there and California has a lot of interesting places. Atlanta borders Florida, so you might also consider checking one or two cities out in Fl while in Georgia. Orlando Florida, etc.
    * Where in South Africa did your friend move to? I'm happy to hear he likes it there.
    * Just did a quick Googling, looks like you don't need to be vaccinated to enter South Africa, only a 3 day covid -ve test within 72 hours of travel.
    * As someone who watched a lot of American Reality TV back in the day, I grew interested in life here. I was pursuing acting in South Africa, and what better platform for an actor than The US? That was my thinking process and inspiration. What other people's concerns are about immigration was the furthest thing on my mind and I have heard and continue to hear some things. It's not been without it's highs and lows. But isn't that life in general?
    Thank you for reading and most of all, for this comment. I live for a wordy message, you made my day!
    Chat soon!
    Brook

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi Babalwa,
    I'll try to keep this short.🙂
    Thanks for replying.
    Yeah my wife's God father was a senior man, over 85 and fell ill while on a trip to Italy before returning to England.☹️

    I admire your single-minded attitude and determination, especially in choosing to follow your dreams to the US.
    You're right it really doesn't matter what others have to say about our decisions.
    Red tape is a female dog, but all countries have it and we have to find our best ways to deal with it, especially for us here in TZ.
    You know, I think my old school friend moved to Jo'berg.
    I lost touch with many, when I left Facebook in 2018, many of them are so stuck in their ways and didn't want to keep in touch outside of that SMP.
    We did consider leaving the UK for SA but changed our minds for a few reasons.

    As for the restrictions to travel, I'm not a betting man and as optimistic as I am, I believe they will become worse.
    No jabs, no air travel...we'll see who is right on that.😉

    Many of the people I know offline have had a hard time with me choosing to write the books I'm writing and sharing my experiences so honestly and openly on my Blog.
    Because of that, I hardly hear from most of my relatives barring one sister.
    The sister who contracted the Rona got it from her husband at the ending of 2020/start of 2021 and went to hospital for it.
    I tried contacting her (after our mum told me) but no response.

    I'm glad we connected, I'm writing at the moment but will watch your latest video etc. when I get some quality time to do so.

    OK, that's me done, I know, not short, but hey, nothing about me is short, I'm a social creature who loves to talk. lol!

    Be good. xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Haha! Few puns in the last comment. I dig it!
      At least FIL had a lived some (at least, hopefully).
      Thank you. I tend to be tunnel visioned when I have a goal in mind. Which is mainly a good thing but is not without its downsides.
      I hope I’m the right one, regarding restrictions being lifted. Fingers crossed. Cool! Joburg’s good for hustlers and bustlers. I lived there for several years. Ask him if he’s been to Pretoria and what his experience was. Pretoria is just outside Johannesburg and last I checked was still thick with apartheid.
      It’s good to have family ties, but it can also be overrated. Sometimes the best family one can have is one they create themselves along the journey of life. I consider myself lucky for the great bond I have with my siblings. Pity you didn’t hear back from your sister but for all you know, the fact that she knows you reached out may have mean something.
      Thanks for touching base. I will check your blog sometime as well.
      Have a great weekend!
      🥂

      Delete
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    ReplyDelete