We are two adults in an unmarried relationship, currently living in Oakland. Both of us are 37 and Jewish. Cyndi is bi, Mikel is straight. We have no children but may in the future. We would like a place that allows us to keep chickens and maybe goats or sheep. Cyndi runs an organic soapmaking business and needs an office with a kitchen or the ability to put in some kitchen equipment. The office can be part of our living unit or separate. She would not have many customers on site (it's a mail order business) and she would not have more than a handful of employees.
We want a 3+ bedroom house with at least 1500 sf (plus 2 rooms--or a kitchen and a room--and some storage for Cyndi's office). We don't care if our house is separate or attached to other people's homes, as long as we're on the ground floor. We plan to have a large organic garden with a focus on edible landscaping (fruit and nut trees, edible perennials, etc).
We will be buying. We have about $250k to invest (not counting transfer taxes). We have already sold our house in Oakland and we have as long an escrow as we need, with the ability to rent back for a month or two in order to complete work on our new house. We just need to give the buyer 30 days notice to close escrow. We are willing and able to move at any time and we want have our new property by spring 2002 at the latest.
We have $150k in cash to work with which would go for the down payment and any repairs needed on the property. We can afford a $100k mortgage (this is about $800/month for the mortgage plus about $200/month for taxes and insurance). We are willing to pay extra to buy a property with rental units as long as the rent covers the extra monthly expenses. We might be able to pay a bit more than our budget for the right place.
Mikel is healthy. Cyndi has MCS/CFS/FMS and asthma. She currently uses a wheelchair out of the house and has trouble with hills and stairs, but is hoping that will change once she moves to clean air. She is reactive to the usual MCS culprits. She is fine with natural gas, wood/barbecue smoke, limited chlorine in a pool, and small amounts of mold.
Wants 1-2 bedroom home or 1 bedroom plus study. Lives in San Rafael. Has MCS.
David is 45, single, and lives in Kansas City. He has MCS and is looking for a 1-2 bedroom home. He prefers to stay under $150k but can go as high as $200k. He'll put most of his share into his downpayment instead of a mortgage. David hasn't met any of the other people in person but will be able to fly out to meet us later.
David has more recently indicated he would probably not wish to join us, though he is still keeping his options open.
May want a 1 bedroom or larger home. Unlikely to be able to buy. May want space to park an RV. Lives near San Jose. Has MCS.
Couple prefering 1-2 bedrooms but it will depend on cost. Unable to put money down but can make payments contingent on Kathleen finding a local job (should be easy). Live in Arizona; would have to check out the area to make sure it is safe for Bets, who has MCS.
"At this point, I'd be most interested in a place to rent space for a 10x36 mobile home. (I'm about to buy one, made for someone w/MCS.) My current situation is tenable, though I've been looking for something better for a long time. I'd like to stay closer to my support systems & sweetheart down here (in Palo Alto) if at all possible-- so I'm not ready to buy up in Sonoma, but I'd like to put the mobile there if the property you chose allowed it, and worked for my sensitivities. However, I am in a rental now, so my situation could easily change to wanting to being a tenant (of something larger than the mobile,) or a buyer. At this point, my timing is flexible.
"My sensitivities look more wide-ranging than what Cyndi described on the website, but if I were in a stand-alone unit, I'd think that would be ok, unless wood/bbq smoke, or mold were an issue in the area. I'm not able to go property hunting or anything (health status doesn't allow that at this point) but I'd be very grateful to be kept in the loop, so that I can look for opportunities for doing things together in a way that might be good/helpful for everyone."
We spoke by phone in early January, 2002. She is interested in half of the duplex on Watson Road and will go and see it later in the month. She is able to buy and has MCS.
For more information, contact Cyndi Norwitz at cyndi@tikvah.com - Page last modified 1/13/02