We Found Our Cottage...now What!

We toured the cottage and tried to imagine what it would look like if it wasn't dirty, smelly from pet urine,and what it would look like without the loud loud colors that changed from room to room. We have always bought and renovated homes and usually homes that were distressed. So the condition actually wasn't as bad as some we had purchased in the past. Distressed houses with NO structual issues are relatively easy to renovate. We used to be able to tackle some structual issues and more serious renovations when Dad was alive to help us. He did teach me to look beyond the surface and to concentrate on the bones, structure, roof, floor plan and exterior style and condition. He used to say a bucket of hot water, spic and span, and lots of sweat and elbow grease can create miracles...many people just aren't interested in working that hard...and IT is hard work. He also taught me that paint is another miracle worker and can dramatically change the appearance of a house both inside and out. He always insisted on buying the best quality paint, brushes, etc. He said the labor was the expensive and time consuming part so cheap paint and tools provided very poor value and also just made it harder to do an excellent job. He never tackled anything without giving it his best. I guess you can tell I miss him everyday but carry his wisdom in my head and heart. He always thought I could do anything...which is an amazing thing for a parent to give to their child. Back to the cottage...It had it all...good bones, cute cute cottage style...but it was in great shape structurally which was very unusual for a Tybee Cottage. The floor plan was awesome and included french doors to close off two of the three bedrooms and the adjoining bath...how perfect for rentals...allowing two groups their complete privacy or a great way to put the kids to bed while the adults play. The best part...the owner had just added a three season porch. Tons of windows and french doors to a small deck in the back yard...with a giant live oak with spanish moss dripping down. I was in love. I quickly went outside and walked the property and then went next door and checked out the neighbors and was pleased to find plenty of privacy and that one was a full time resident...likely quieter than renters and the other cottage that was just as cute as ours was used as a rental office which was great since they would only even be there during business hours! We also had a very nice utility area as part of the house with a high ceiling and concrete floor a perfect storage area for Kayaks, bikes,outdoor gear, etc. and could later be converted to a nice small shop. We told Sandy we were in Like but needed some time to discuss and would call her. She provided lots of info on what taxes, flood insurance, etc. would cost...considerable costs since you are on and island. She mentioned lots of folks rented their cottages to offset the expenses and of course we couldn't be there all the time. We left with our heads spinning and retired back to Fiddler on the Creek to sit on the dock and start making lists of what we would need to spend to make the Cottage Tybee Cute! Stay tuned it gets interesting...a conservative banker who doesn't believe in having debt and had just paid her home off...is faced with a big decision...the coastal living cottage dream...how to pay of it and not freak out...could I possibly do it...Mike was right there with me and was in exactly the same place. Lots of discussion and hand wringing...more tomorrow!

Day Two of the Hunt...

Sandy was determined to find a cottage for us. We were feeling a bit down after our two best possibilities didn't pan out. We looked at a number of cottages that were really in such bad shape not to mention the smells that after a while I wouldn't even make it across the threshold before giving Sandy a thumbs down. She said she appreciated the fact that we did not mess around but said what we thought! Shooting straight saves a lot of time and hot air.We seriously considered a fairly large home on the lighthouse side of the island. The house was roomy with parking under but it really was just a house not a cottage. It also was a short sale. A short sale is when you have to deal with both the mortgage holder and the owner. The owners had bought the house at the top of the market and they owed more on the house than it was currently worth.  Somehow that just put a cloud over the deal...I felt like it was just bad ju ju to be part of taking someone's house out from under them...they were still living there and according to Sandy were very nice people in a bad spot. The house also did not have any view to speak of and again had lots of steps...so another disappointment. We were supposed to leave the next day so it looked like we were coming up empty on this trip. We went back to Fiddler on the Creek and sat out on the dock looking at the marsh and discussing that it was looking like this wasn't meant to be. We would go home tomorrow. Then we got two calls one from Diane Kaufman at Mermaid Cottages our rental company and later one from Sandy. Diane called to offer the cottage to us for an additional night at no charge...no one was coming in after us and we were welcome to stay and they would just delay cleaning by a day. How nice...we probably would go on back since we were striking out but what a generous offer. She said to just let her know if we changed our mind. About an hour later Sandy called and I could tell she was excited...she is always very animated but it was apparent something was up. She wanted to know if we could go look at just one more Cottage. We said sure but we had pretty much given up the hunt. She picked us up at Fiddler on the Creek which is on S. Campbell Ave...and we just went back down S. Campbell and stopped at a cottage we had passed driving to Fiddler. They were having an estate sale at the Cottage and I had noticed it the day before and teased Mike about letting me stop to shop the sale...no deal. We were shocked that this was the Cottage that Sandy wanted to show us. It only got stranger...the Cottage was not listed for Sale with any realtor. Sandy knew the lady who owned the Cottage and that she loved cats and dogs and she had recently passed away. Sandy had learned from the Cat Rescue Lady that the Cottage was going to be sold by the estranged husband to settle the estate. The gentleman did not like realtors. But Sandy being Sandy she just called him up and convinced him that it was ok for her to show us the Cottage...even though there was not a contract in place. More tomorrow...I will say we called and let Diane know we needed to stay one more night...we had things to do!

The Hunt for a Cottage begins...

We arrived on Tybee in November and stayed at the Mermaid Cottages rental Fiddler on the Creek on South Campbell. The Cottage was located on the marsh and was adorable! We raced around looking at all the special touches...my favorite the thrash can in the bathroom was a old white enamel chamber pot! The cottage had a small screened porch and two outdoor spaces directly on the marsh. We were able to sit on the dock and watch huge blue herons and great egrets! We settled in and called Sandy to see when we would hook up with her to start the hunt. We needed to grab some lunch first and Sandy had mentioned that the North Beach Grill was close and near the Lighthouse...another favorite thing of ours! She also said they had Carmel Cake to die for...so we made sure we ordered a piece to take to her. When we met we started off my giving her the cake which earned us a hug from the get go! We clicked with Sandy right off and she totally got what we were looking for and knew the budget was the driver. One perfect property had sold for a "steal " just the month before so the window on low prices was starting to close. We looked at a house on Lewis Ave. and the lot had a nice marsh view but the house was full of mold, nasty, with water damage in some areas. We walked the property and walked back through as I was figuring renovation costs in my head and how much work it would take and I quickly realized that while I had high hopes for this property from the pictures that Sandy had sent...I couldn't see how we could get involved in a project this large and even if we bought in for $100,000 they were asking $140,000 I was concerned that it could easily cost another $100,000 or more to put it right. The only thing it had going for it was the marsh view...and we would not be able to stay in the house while we were working on it so that really was the deal breaker. Sandy had sent us a couple more pictures we roared off in her mini van to check them out. We looked at another house on Lewis that was on the other side of the street and it had a much better marsh view. It was clean inside but that was about the only other good thing I could say...it was a hodge podge of add ons and had a strange floor plan and lots of steep stairs. I have some issues from spinal cord surgery in 2006 and stairs are getting to be another deal breaker. So our top two possibilities were really not working out. We agreed to meet the next day and try again.  Stay tuned more tommorow.

Back to the Beginning...we fell in love with Savannah and then Tybee Island...

John our sea kayak guide mentioned that real estate prices on Tybee were down and that Tybee was an awesome place for anyone that loved the outdoors. John did us two big favors...he told us were the locals go to get the best oysters for lunch...the Sundae Cafe and then over lunch we starting talking about real estate and then John gave us his realtor's name.  I also found out that John was on Facebook to keep up with the children and grandchildren. We became friends over Facebook and that kept us in touch and helped my resolve to follow up with his realtor after we returned home. I called Sandy McCloud and was prepared to hear that we probably couldn't find anything in our price range. Instead Sandy seemed very interested in trying to find us a foresclosure or a distressed property...which was what our budget required. She agreed to keep her eye out and get back if she found anything. After a couple of weeks and we had not heard anything I thought that was the end of our search. Sandy actually had emailed me and it hit my spam box...when she did not hear from me she decided to phone me and actually caught me at home...which is rare. The first of a string of interesting twists and turns. She had a couple of properties that she emailed us that were interesting.We decided to take three days and go to Tybee and see what she had found. We knew our budget would not handle a beach front property and were hoping for something on or near the marsh. We looked for a place to stay that would not be a condo and would be on the marsh so we could experience what living in a cottage would be like on Tybee. We found the Mermaid Cottage website and spent a couple of hours poring over all the cute cottages. We decided on Fiddler on the Creek since it was on the marsh and was a one bedroom. We made reservations for three nights and went down in November.

Stayed tuned for the next part of the story tomorrow...

Paws and Paddles ready for it's first Mermaid Cottage Rental guests!

We are decorated by Jane Coslick and cleaned,fluffed, and organized to please our guests!
The yard will be done this week, the new deck and stone patio is decked out with nice comfy chairs ( pads in the pantry) and the webber charcoal grill was tested on ahi tuna steaks with pineapple salsa and it was seriously the best tuna ever! Used a hand full of wet hickory chips and it made a huge difference. I organized the cabinets, pantry and laundry area and labeled all so things are easy to find and replace. Tried to think of the extra touches we have appreciated in our travels. Spices, coffee filters, stamps, note pads and cute note cards with paw prints located in a box with all things office like pens scissors tape staples...ok I am a type A! We sincerely want our guests to love Paws as much as we do. Sitting out on the stone patio under the huge old live oak and grilling and chilling with a cool breeze off the marsh with the salt air and the hickory smoke was so perfect I don't remember being more relaxed. More later...off to work and putting on the big girl pants and high heels!