Starting our Cleaning Work in the House
Before completing the paperwork and negotiations, we had already spent three days cleaning the garden and inside of the house. We were tired of waiting and doing nothing. Thankfully, Adriano has the key of the house. He is a good friend of the owners, and he always unlock the door for us! We also invite two architects and show them around. One of them will start working while we are in the Netherlands organizing everything, ensuring we continue the process.
Jaap-Willem proudly tells our friends:
“We are one month ahead of schedule.”
I wonder: “Did we even have a schedule?”
Actually, yes. Jaap-Willem’s break from work started on October 1, 2019, and the plan was to resume within three months on 1 October 2020.
According to one architect, it’s crucial that we act swiftly. Once construction begins, everything will slow down, and there’s little we can do about it. Headaches will likely start from that moment, he warns.
Friendly Owners
The owners of the house are very friendly: two elderly sisters, one son, and an elderly man. We asked them to show us all the borders of the land and house. Armed with paint and a camera, we marked the borders with yellow paint and took pictures of the boundaries and people. We trust them, but you never know. Neighbor disputes over garden and land borders are common in Portugal, and we prefer to avoid any future troubles.
Then we signed the Promessa Compra e Venda at the house, the first contract before the appointment with the notary. Surprisingly, the owners gave us their keys already. However, the house will only officially be ours once they arrange new house documents with the correct size. Otherwise, we could face some problems in the future.
Relax!
It took one and a half months to reach this point, not as quick as Clara promised. We didn’t do much work inside the house, just the three days. But no problem, ‘Calma’ is the motto in Portugal, we’ve learned that already. We are just in time because August is approaching—the warmest month and the start of school holidays. Cinta has her last school day, and we head to the Netherlands for a month or two to sell our house there and handle everything before the big move.
First, we invite our Marije and Gui to our new house. We celebrate and toast in the garden of our new home, which we name Casa da Lima.
