This is a fictional five-part series containing real estate letters written by bidders and presented to the sellers of a local family's estate. Enjoy.
Hey there,
My name is Ray Taylor. I am twenty-two, single, and have never had to write a letter like this, because I have never bought a house before.
Honestly,
I’ve never bought much of anything before.
I never win anything either so whatever kind of contest this
is, it makes me a little scared knowing that I have to tell you things about myself but probably won’t win the right to
purchase your beautiful home, anyway.
Well, here goes.
My Nana died a few months ago and left me a lot of money,
which is both sad and wonderful. It’s sad because my Nana was the biggest and
best part of my life and now she's gone but it’s wonderful because, due to her generosity and what her lawyer called my "ability to benefit", I'm changing my life. In fact, I was just able to rescue a trio of old dogs from the pound. It felt great being able to hand over a couple hundred dollars and walk out with three lives saved.
I’ve always wanted a dog of my own, ever since my Dad took Millie and
dropped her off on a long country road when I was seven. My Mom wouldn’t let us
kids go with him but we definitely knew what was happening. Millie did too, I could see it
in her eyes when Dad's truck pulled away from our house. Those are the kinds of
things a kid never forgets.
So, when Nana passed and left me everything in her will, the
first thing I did (after giving her a proper burial) was go to the animal
shelter and told them to give me all the dogs that were slated for the gas. The three they brought out were scared, worn out, and hang-dog depressed, and you could tell they thought they were walking their last walk but I bent down, put my arms around them and told them it was going to be all right. My goal is to make them a good home. We will prop each other up. I’ll let them know every day that they are loved and safe.
My apartment where I live now was where my Nana lived for
the last sixty years so there is a lot of clearing out to be done. I recently started
getting rid of junk and things that I won’t need. My Dad, who I hadn’t seen in over
ten years, came and took a bedroom set, a few lamps, the record player and all
the record albums, and, I suppose, anything else that he wanted. Oh, yeah, he took the refrigerator too, so I am living out of coolers, but that's ok for now. The good news
is, even though he came by to claim pieces of Nana that he didn’t seem to care
a whole lot about while she was alive, I still have furniture for every room of
my home.
I mean your home.
Well, you know what I mean.
If you could see yourself helping a young person with literally no past worth mentioning, but, possibly, depending on a little luck and lots of hard work, a very bright future, then that young person is me, Ray Taylor. By the way, I am a female and Ray is a short for 'Fay Wray'. I know it's odd but you don't know my parents. The only thing they had in common was their love of old movies.
Anyway, my job is within walking distance of Grant Avenue and maybe because no one else wants to
work they are paying me a ton of money. My mortgage
payment, which the realtor helped me figure out, would be less than Nana’s rent and
I’d have more than enough for the taxes and maintenance, etc. All of this is very exciting.
The first thing I will do is install a doggy door. The second
thing I will do is call a locksmith. I don’t know why I’m
telling you this, it’s just that the realtor seems to think it’s important to
give you details. It's weird to share plans like these, really, because I have never had an opportunity to make something my
own.
But, hey, as long as I'm dreaming, I can tell you I'd like to go to college someday. Buying this new home is the steppingstone on which everything else will depend. Thanks for maybe helping me in this way.
Hope, Faith, Charity and I are looking forward to your reply. Yes, I changed their names, but they don't seem to mind. They're all in the backseat of my truck as I’m typing this on my laptop. I’ve never
seen a dog smile, but I swear they all look really happy right now.
