Tag Archives: Moving

Puerto Rico Prep Time

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Can you believe it has already been 2 months since Britton’s memory/health scare? Me either! He went back to work this week and our schedules have normalized once again. However, what is in the back of our minds (and sometimes in the front), of course, is our move! This is a big deal for us because we have lived in our Greeley, Colorado house for nearly 10 years now! Talk about time flying! Now that we have only 8 or 9 months until we move we are seeing how much really needs to get done!

Thankfully we have already made our checklist and have started working our way down our timeline to Puerto Rico at a nice pace. We are certainly on track, but just like any major event (say, planning a wedding for instance), most things have to wait until just before the actual event is about to take place.

In the mean time, we have accomplished a few tasks on our lists. One of those was to find Kitty a pet carrier that was airline approved. We found a Sherpa brand soft-shelled cat carrier on Craigslist for just $20. Brand new they cost about $70, so we thought that was a decent deal and Kitty seems to like it ok.

Kitty and the Carrier
Kitty and the Carrier

Britton in carrier
Britton liked it more! 🙂

We also pulled the trigger on buying new carpet for the upstairs of our house. Now that Schnoodle is gone and we will be renting out  the house when we move, it makes sense as an investment to fix it up for the future tenants. Plus we will be able to enjoy it for these next few months. I believe they will be installing it this weekend, so stay tuned for the before and after transformation.

In order to install the carpet we have to move off all of our furniture and anything else that is on the carpet. That has helped us to see more clearly what we will be dealing with in terms of “stuff” when we actually move. It’s kind of astonishing how much “stuff” we accumulate over the years. And we have consciously tried not to buy or accumulate!

Basement Stuff 2
Stuff from around the house now in the basement -clothes, shoes, computers, pictures, guitars, etc

I am starting to see the wisdom in Britton’s view of starting fresh in Puerto Rico and not bringing much with us. For one thing we will be living in a studio cabana when we first move there and two, it is going to be difficult to transfer/ship a lot of our life and belongings there. Already a few of the items in our “first moving bag to PR” ended up getting broken in transit even with the “Fragile” warning. So…we have a lot of stuff to clear out one way or the other. It is eye opening to realize that our stuff is just that -stuff- and it feels good to have a clean slate. But it is still difficult to sort through especially when you’re a sentimental and collecting type like me.

Overall, things are swinging right along during this Puerto Rico prep time and we are still on course for our tentative move date. As it gets closer and closer, our dream life of Puerto Rico and “real” world  of Greeley life are starting to converge and it is very exciting!!

Tall Yard 2
Soon we will be back here!

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Lares Puerto Rico Property Update

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View of the property

View of the property

Well we saw that the Lares, Puerto Rico property was back up and listed for sale online.  The price had gone up in the listing by $15,000.  We had gotten our deposit back after a year + of waiting on the title. She was free to try and sell it to another buyer and we are free to look around again.  So it was not a bad thing at all to see it listed.

I decided to call Alwilda just to see how things were going.  I asked her how the title was coming along?  She replied “I have sold the property”.  I was kind of surprised, but knowing how badly she wants to move I was happy for her.  “Bien! Bien!” I said, “When will you be able to move?”.  She said that she is selling the property in June to some Canadians.

There are a few things that struck me odd about that.

I’ve looked up lots of information over this last year and its kind of hard to pin down, but I don’t believe she can sell the property until it is listed in the title registry.  I’ve seen information online that even says  that a notary has to sign for the deed and the first thing they have to do is verify is that the title is properly filed in the registry.  This one isn’t listed, which is why we couldn’t buy it.  Carlos (her lawyer & also a notary AND ex-son in-law) kept telling us that if we paid with cash, then we would be able to buy the property…Yeah….right.  I have a bridge to sell you.

The other odd thing is that she is selling it in June which means to me she hasn’t sold it.  Maybe they are looking into it the same as Cassie and I did?  To visit and make a decision.

I don’t know the people that are buying the property but if they are reading this (they might stumble across this),  be careful.  There are some odd laws in the books down there.   William is the one who owned the entire plot broke off and sold the 25 acres to Alwilda.  William has children who may have legal right to the land when he dies (Spanish inheritance laws).  When we applied for the loan thru the bank, the bank was saying “no way” due to the title issues.  Some of the best advice I received from a realtor was to go thru the big well known institutions and reputable places.  They are protecting themselves in the deal and as a result you get that protection. Which is why even if you have cash to buy something outright its not always the best route.  You lose a lot of protection so you better be sure you know what you’re doing.  That’s my opinion anyway.

estrella-awilda-and-britton
Estrella, Alwilda and me, plus Pirulo (the dog)

It’s a beauitful property deep in the mountains of Lares and if we could have bought it legit, I think we would have.  However, I think we are just going to look for a place closer to the beaches and wish Alwida the best of luck.  We do feel like we kind of missed out, but it is probably for the best for both parties.  We will continue to stay in touch with her and visit when we are in Puerto Rico next.

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Puerto Rico Update

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I called to price out what it would cost to ship our stuff (including a car) to Puerto Rico and this is what I received. I think for these prices we’ll just sell most everything and buy the stuff there. Another blog site written by a couple who already moved there, The Kruse Chronicles, told me that a car is about $2,000 more there than here because of shipping, but that sounds like a deal compared to paying almost $3,000 just to ship an old car! They also said they sent most of the their stuff via US mail and sold everything else on Craigslist and garage sales. We’ll see.

As a reminder, the price quote to ship your 1998 Honda Civic on Open carrier from Greeley, CO to Lares, PR is $2,570.

If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to call us at 1 888-345-0033, or email sales@Auto-Transport-Today.com.

 This is for all the other “stuff” (furniture, clothes, all my shoes :-o)

Transportation Charge 1,918 lbs.

Fuel Surcharge

Orig. Service Charge 1,918 lbs.

Dest. Service Charge 1,918 lbs.

Miles

Charges

Charge per Light/Bulky 160.42

Binding Estimate Fee 523.26

DOC FEE: Preparation of export

documents.

75.00

CCVL: Door to door service. 3,300.00

Total: $4,058.68

Plus all this fine print makes me wonder if that is truly the final price:

This estimate includes labor, loading, unloading, protective wrapping of
furniture and basic valuation. Carrier reserves the right, at shipper’s expense
and shippper’s agreement, to re-pack any item not correctly packed by
shipper. Packing material and labor may or may not be included and will be
charged per items ordered and listed on the packing materials price list. On
interstate moves an 18 wheeler may be used to deliver the property. If the
origin/destination does not have access for an 18 wheeler the shipper may be
required to pay for shuttle service. This estimate is rate based on the weight
estimated. The total amount of this binding estimate must be paid in full prior
to unloading. Additional charges will incur for services performed not
specified in the estimate. I understand that I may be notified of final charges
prior to delivery and while in transit. All charges are based on tariff rates.
The first date indicated as available for delivery is the first date of the delivery
window. Pickup and delivery dates are estimates and not guaranteed. Tariff
is available for viewing upon reasonable request. Shipper and/or agent has
full authority to order services and enter into this agreement.

 

 

 

 

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