Teddy Burriss

Back in February 1997 I bought my first house in North Carolina.

My wife and I visited the house a few times during the search and eventually agreed to buy it. We met with both Real Estate agents, (the Sellers Agent and our Buyers Agent) and put the plan together.

Everything went well except for two things.

1 – Radon test showed slightly higher levels so we had to get a Radon Mitigation Specialist to put in a Fan to suck the Radon out from under the basement Slab and blow it out over the roof. The cost was about $1000, but the homeowner was obligated to pay for this.

2 – During all visits to the house there had been a refrigerator in the kitchen. During the final walk through on the day of settlement, the refrigerator was gone. I asked the Sellers Agent what happened to my refrigerator. She did not know.

I told her, “No worries, we’ll settle upon the removal of the refrigerator at the settlement table.”

We finished the walk-thru and headed off to the settlement table. While driving there with my wife I said, “I want my refrigerator, no if ands or butts!”

I could go on and on about how the settlement table conversation went, but I’ll collapse it.

I wanted my refrigerator, they said it was thrown away, my Settlement Attorney made one phone call and got me $1000 as compensation for the refrigerator that should not have been removed. I was happy, my wife was happy, the Sellers Agent and home owner were not, but that was not my problem. Success – I got my refrigerator!!!

For most of us, this would be the end of the story, but it is far from over.

We finished the real estate settlement work and I immediately drove to a local appliance store to get my new refrigerator.

I decided to spend the entire $1000 on a really nice refrigerator. I went with the double door, extra-large one with the ice maker in the door.

We picked out the color that my wife wanted and arranged for it to be delivered.

Within two days the deliver guys showed up and brought the refrigerator to the front door.

Here is FAIL #1 – it would not fit in the front door.

The Delivery guys had to take the doors off and bring it into the house in three pieces.

They rolled it into the kitchen.

Here is FAIL # 2 – It would not fit in the space where the old one was.

With a little chuckle in their voice, the delivery guys asked me what I wanted to do. “Leave it in the middle of the kitchen, and go away,” I said, not so happily.

It took me almost a week to cut the countertop, move a top cabinet and adjust the spacer beside the dishwasher to get the refrigerator into place.

The whole time my wife kept laughing at me.

The previous home owner threw away my original refrigerator, I got my $1000 allowance for a new one and a week later I got it into the kitchen.

It’s all good, despite the chaos I put myself thru.

I do this often and used to it.