We have a new address and a story we want to tell. It began in January 2018 with our “dream house” in Pineville vibrating nearly off the foundation. The past year and a half we found ourselves in a situation that was extremely personal to us as we sought resolution. Living in the house made us constantly aware of the conflict, but we recognize that the other parties were focused on financials and likely rarely thought of the affect on our family.
When Thomas and I got married, we lived in a tiny, sweet, old mill house in Pineville. Micah and Alice were both born while we were living on Park Avenue. Alice’s pack ’n play was in the hallway and we were looking for more space. We wanted to stay in Pineville near Thomas’ work in a community we love.
In August 2014 we toured our Johnston Drive house and were in awe when we walked in the front door. It was like I heard angels singing. Here was a quaint, 100 year old house, in Pineville, with more space and a great yard. The seller chose our family over a higher offer and in the negotiations left much of the furniture so we didn’t have to buy any despite more than doubling our square footage. We loved the character and spaciousness of the house. It was such a gift from God. In this house we could entertain, we had room for guests, we kept bees and made beautiful gardens. (We also had plenty of old house frustrations.)
In 2017 we heard that a townhome development was planned for the land adjacent to ours. The developer bought two houses next to ours and had the fire department burn them down. We weren’t thrilled with the changes, but truly thought that the development would be good for the town. By December, the land was cleared and the graders were beginning to prepare the pads.
Then in January 2018 our house began to rattle with the vibrations. One day in particular I took a video of our glass china cabinet shaking so much that the contents were clinking with each pass of the equipment outside. The floor vibrated and the wall cabinets groaned. We noticed large cracks in the plaster in the dining room nearest the construction. Other cracks began to appear throughout the house, so we emailed a contact at the developer with whom we had previously interacted. And so began a journey of trying to protect ourselves without demanding too much.
Our first meeting with them was very intimidating as they arrived at our front door with a geotechnical engineer. As we went through the house to discuss the damage he took a lot of pictures. It was the first time we noticed a large crack on the brick foundation along the same wall as the interior evidence. They asked if we would allow soil testing around the house. This was our first indication that instead of fixing the damage, they hoped to blame natural settling and a poor foundation.
Suddenly we understood that the argument would rest on how well we could show that the damage was not simply preexisting conditions of an old home. The developer put a seismograph in our yard with a trigger to notify them if an unacceptable level of vibration was detected. We had to secure our own geotechnical engineer, structural engineer, and insurance information. It took nearly a month to find an engineer willing to look at our property. In mid February we received a report that indicated that the front wall in our "blue room" was in danger of sliding off the foundation.
Thomas and I were overwhelmed, offended, concerned and angry all at the same time. We determined to approach this situation with the perspective that we can’t control what happens to us, only how we respond. Early on we prayed that we would remember that we don’t really “own” anything that we have. In light of the eternal Kingdom, the way we represent Christ is what will last. We wanted to deeply believe the promises of Jesus that the Father provides and cares for us.
The great thing about this goal was that it allowed us to “win” in the end no matter what. There were many times that one of us would get angry at the responses of the developer, but we were able to remind each other that God would resolve the situation for our good.
During this season there were many reminders of God working on our behalf. A good friend connected us with a family member that was willing to give us insight on the legal process in construction matters. Another family member connected us with a local attorney when we realized we needed to obtain counsel. This saved us a lot of money and allowed us to communicate our goals of repairing the house as a fair solution.
A huge challenge was finding contractors willing to help us with estimates for foundational and interior repair. By mid March it became clear that the extent of foundation work and bringing everything inside up to code basically "totaled" the house. Our initial desire to stay in our home began to seem unwise as it would cost more than the value of the property to repair and we would need to move out during this work.
After many difficult conversations and much prayer, we realized that our best option was to settle the matter by selling our property to the developer.
It is a funny thing to be in the middle of a story, knowing that it will be okay, but not having any idea how.
When Thomas and I got married, we lived in a tiny, sweet, old mill house in Pineville. Micah and Alice were both born while we were living on Park Avenue. Alice’s pack ’n play was in the hallway and we were looking for more space. We wanted to stay in Pineville near Thomas’ work in a community we love.
In August 2014 we toured our Johnston Drive house and were in awe when we walked in the front door. It was like I heard angels singing. Here was a quaint, 100 year old house, in Pineville, with more space and a great yard. The seller chose our family over a higher offer and in the negotiations left much of the furniture so we didn’t have to buy any despite more than doubling our square footage. We loved the character and spaciousness of the house. It was such a gift from God. In this house we could entertain, we had room for guests, we kept bees and made beautiful gardens. (We also had plenty of old house frustrations.)
In 2017 we heard that a townhome development was planned for the land adjacent to ours. The developer bought two houses next to ours and had the fire department burn them down. We weren’t thrilled with the changes, but truly thought that the development would be good for the town. By December, the land was cleared and the graders were beginning to prepare the pads.
Then in January 2018 our house began to rattle with the vibrations. One day in particular I took a video of our glass china cabinet shaking so much that the contents were clinking with each pass of the equipment outside. The floor vibrated and the wall cabinets groaned. We noticed large cracks in the plaster in the dining room nearest the construction. Other cracks began to appear throughout the house, so we emailed a contact at the developer with whom we had previously interacted. And so began a journey of trying to protect ourselves without demanding too much.
Our first meeting with them was very intimidating as they arrived at our front door with a geotechnical engineer. As we went through the house to discuss the damage he took a lot of pictures. It was the first time we noticed a large crack on the brick foundation along the same wall as the interior evidence. They asked if we would allow soil testing around the house. This was our first indication that instead of fixing the damage, they hoped to blame natural settling and a poor foundation.
Suddenly we understood that the argument would rest on how well we could show that the damage was not simply preexisting conditions of an old home. The developer put a seismograph in our yard with a trigger to notify them if an unacceptable level of vibration was detected. We had to secure our own geotechnical engineer, structural engineer, and insurance information. It took nearly a month to find an engineer willing to look at our property. In mid February we received a report that indicated that the front wall in our "blue room" was in danger of sliding off the foundation.
Thomas and I were overwhelmed, offended, concerned and angry all at the same time. We determined to approach this situation with the perspective that we can’t control what happens to us, only how we respond. Early on we prayed that we would remember that we don’t really “own” anything that we have. In light of the eternal Kingdom, the way we represent Christ is what will last. We wanted to deeply believe the promises of Jesus that the Father provides and cares for us.
The great thing about this goal was that it allowed us to “win” in the end no matter what. There were many times that one of us would get angry at the responses of the developer, but we were able to remind each other that God would resolve the situation for our good.
During this season there were many reminders of God working on our behalf. A good friend connected us with a family member that was willing to give us insight on the legal process in construction matters. Another family member connected us with a local attorney when we realized we needed to obtain counsel. This saved us a lot of money and allowed us to communicate our goals of repairing the house as a fair solution.
A huge challenge was finding contractors willing to help us with estimates for foundational and interior repair. By mid March it became clear that the extent of foundation work and bringing everything inside up to code basically "totaled" the house. Our initial desire to stay in our home began to seem unwise as it would cost more than the value of the property to repair and we would need to move out during this work.
After many difficult conversations and much prayer, we realized that our best option was to settle the matter by selling our property to the developer.
It is a funny thing to be in the middle of a story, knowing that it will be okay, but not having any idea how.
Luke 12:29-32 "And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. Instead, seek his kingdom and these things will be added to you. Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom."
such a loong time ago, it seems :( what a great testimony!
ReplyDelete