Financial Possibilities?

Well, thanks to our collapsed deck, our finances could get interesting.  I’ve hesitated to say too much (still do) but here is what is happening.

From everything I’ve read from my mortgage company’s website, as long as we repair the deck to an as good or better condition, they will be satisfied.   Once the work is complete, we do need to sign a statement saying we have done so.  According to the bank rep, they will be sending the form with their endorsement on the insurance check.  As far as our insurance company is concerned, the claim is now closed.  I can see via the tracking that they have mailed something (hopefully the check!) back to us.

The financial possibility:  When the contractor we are going with was at our house, he mentioned the possibility of raising the deck rather than doing a complete rebuild.  He would replace the supports and the rotting flashing against the house along with whatever else to make it usable and safe.  Since at some point we plan on doing an addition, it makes no sense to build a brand new deck only to tear it off in a few years.  As for the vent piping from the furnace, Hubs can take care of that.

I sent an email to the company to inquire about the cost, and then I anxiously waited.  Of course, the owner was away from the office for a few days.  I finally heard back from them on Wednesday.  The estimate came in at $3,800!  Honestly, I had no idea what to expect.  I also realize that when it comes to construction, you always need to allow room for error in pricing – don’t they say 20%?  I almost don’t dare even think it, but by doing it this way, we potentially could have enough leftover to pay off our remaining debt.

What about the $5,500 certificate I purchased for $3,000?  We would use any overage to meet with their design team to draw up a  set of plans for our addition/remodel.  When we met with the builder, he said blueprints generally run about $2,000.  They can be more or less depending on how many changes a person makes.  The plans would be ours, even if we later opt to go with another contractor.  So, the certificate still made for a good purchase, plus I’d love to have some house plans to look at rather than just my notebook chicken scratch!

I talked it over with Hubs and then sent an email asking the next step.  Now I’m waiting to hear back from that.  At this point in the year, we are late even to get put on a contractor’s schedule.  Thank you, Mr. Insurance Adjustor, for your umpteen delays.  Grr.  Well, all we can do now is move forward and pray it gets done this year.

So, while nothing is yet set in stone, I sure am enjoying thinking about all the financial possibilities!