Chapter 2
As Roger pulled up in front of their house he saw that although the house was showing some signs of wear it had basically been well maintained over the years. He knew that many of the younger generation looked for these older homes and a quick glance at the newer cars and minivans parked in the driveways of the houses in the neighborhood convinced him that the neighborhood had it's share of younger couples. He saw that several of the houses had recently had additions added.
"Do you have time to stop in for a cup of coffee before you head out?" Aaron asked, "Ethyl baked a batch of cookies this morning. It's the least we can do for you buying our dinner."
Roger looked at Ethyl and saw that her eyes were pleading with him to stay a while. Roger was sure that with their ages and lack of money their circle of friends was probably small and company was a welcome treat for them so he nodded his head.
As they walked into the house he noticed the there was a chill to the rooms because the wood stove had died down. Aaron told him that he would get it going as soon as he got some wood inside. Roger went outside with him and found out where the firewood was stacked and then insisted that Aaron go back inside and let Roger carry the wood inside. He made several trips in with the wood, stacking it next to the fireplace. Aaron soon had the fire going and, since the stove hadn't cooled completely, the wood stove insert began to give off its warmth.
Ethyl busied herself with the coffee and Roger could hear her bustling about the kitchen. Aaron made small talk for a while with his rear backed up close to the wood stove to chase the chill from his bones.
"Aaron, how about showing me the furnace. I'm a bit handy. Maybe I can think of some way to get it going so that you can at least use it for a while."
Aaron laughed and remarked the furnace was older than Roger but he motioned for Roger to follow him and headed for the stairs that would take them to the basement. As soon as Roger saw the furnace he knew that there was no way that the furnace could be made safe. The furnace had to be fifty years old or more. When he looked at the basement windows he could see daylight around the window frame. He had noticed before that there were no storm windows on the windows on the rest of the house.
As they walked back upstairs he could smell the fresh brewed coffee. Ethyl had brought the pot into the living room and had a dish piled high with several kinds of cookies on it placed on the coffee table. She smiled as they walked into the room and poured all of them a cup of coffee.
Roger took his coffee and two of the cookies that Ethyl pushed at him and began to think. Aaron was talking but Roger was only half paying attention to what the older man was saying. He began to formulate a plan in his mind.
Roger looked at Aaron and then Ethyl, "Mr. and Mrs. Hamm, as you know for our conversation at dinner, I'm an investor. I like to structure all of my deals so that everybody wins. That way we don't have any hard feelings. Have you ever heard of a life estate?"
"Basically," Ethyl said, "But I don't really know the ins and outs of it."
Aaron had a puzzled look on his face and Roger continued, "A life estate is where you sell me the house but I give you the right to live here as if it was your own home for as long as either of you or both of you live."
Aaron still had a puzzled look on his face, "I'm going to make you a proposal. As you know, a life estate has value. If you're agreeable we can have the house appraised by an appraiser of your choice. After you have a chance to go over the appraisal I'll buy your house for seventy-five percent of the appraised price. I'll have the new furnace installed and have replacement windows installed so that your home will be comfortable again. I'll pay all of the taxes and all major repairs in the future including any major appliances that it becomes necessary to have replaced. All you'll have to do is live here like it was still your house for the rest of your life. You do the normal painting and lawn care and I'll take care of everything else."
Ethyl was the first to speak, "That doesn't sound right. What do you get out of it? Everything is in our favor."
Roger laughed, "No Ethyl, you have to start thinking as an investor. I am buying a sound home in an area that should remain fairly stable. We can expect that the houses in this area will increase in value over the years and when you two are gone I'll have a nice property in at least as good condition as it is now and I'll only have paid seventy -five percent of what it is worth today. Look at what has happened to property values the past couple of years. If the situation stays the same I stand to make a healthy profit on this property one day."
Roger knew that he was stretching the truth quite a bit but these people needed some help. As drafty as this old house was he was sure that they would have to move out for health reasons. Maybe in the future he would be able to at least recoup his investment.
Ethyl looked long at Aaron and finally they both began to smile as the deal became clear to them. They knew that they would have had to sell the house soon and they really loved this house; it held many memories for them.
Roger saw them smiling, "Do you have a lawyer that you use?"
Ethyl nodded, "There's a young man three doors down that's a lawyer. He drew up our will. I could get him to do the paper work."
"I wonder if he would come over and we'll discuss this with him. If we all agree on the terms after he has his input I'll have him draw it up."
Roger raised his eyebrows at Aaron and Aaron put on his coat and walked out of the door. Ethyl had a look of her face that Roger couldn't figure out. After talking with her a while he found that she realized that now they would be able to spend the rest of their life in the house that meant so much to them.
Aaron walked back into the house with a man about Roger's age. Aaron introduced him as Byron Safire. After the customary introductions Roger laid out his terms for the life estate that he had offered Aaron and Ethyl.
"I want your role to be a little different than the usual lawyer-client relationship," Roger smiled, "I will pay for you to draw up the contract, but I want Aaron and Ethyl to be your clients. You will act as their lawyer and with their interests in mind. I don't know the legal way that works but if it causes you problems I will sign a paper giving away my rights and allow you to accept my payment for your services, with Aaron and Ethyl being your clients. Do you think that you can draw this up tonight? I'd like to get back on the road tomorrow."
The young lawyer looked over the notes that he had been taking, "Are you sure that you want to set up the life estate this way?"
"Yes. Remember, Aaron and Ethyl are your clients. I insist that you keep their interests first."
Byron Safire looked over the notes again, "OK I can have this drawn up by the morning. If you want to hang around until then I can have you look over the paperwork and sign it. What are you going to do about the appraisal and the settlement?"
Aaron and Ethyl had been setting on the couch with their mouth open and Ethyl spoke first, "We can't let you do this. You're not going to make any money off of this. This is perfect for us but I can't let you throw away your money like this."
Roger chuckled, "As I told you, I am getting this property for seventy-five percent of its value. I can see that you have pride in your home and I know that you'll take care of it. We all know that home prices are going to go up in the years to come. When it's time for me to take over the property it should be worth a lot more. There is a small amount of risk for me as with any investment. I feel that it is a very small risk and I feel that I will make money off of the deal eventually. That's the way most investments work; you very rarely make your money back right away. Now, have you gotten any prices on the furnace yet?"
Ethyl nodded, "Pete Salmon went to school with my son and he has a shop about six blocks from here. He gave us a price but we just couldn't afford it. He's got a good reputation around here and I think that he'll do a good job."
Roger gave the lawyer a quizzical look and the young man stood up, "I'll get working on this and I'm sure that I can have it done by tomorrow."
Roger nodded, "I want to talk to this Pete Salmon. I'll arrange for an appraisal. If we all agree on the appraisal I'll sign the paperwork in the morning and give the Hamm's a check. My lawyer can do the settlement. He has my power of attorney for these things."
Byron Safire shook Roger's hand and left to start on the agreement. Aaron and Ethyl seemed to be in shock.
Roger smiled at the pair, "This should work out good for the two of you. I'll bring the house up to a livable condition and you'll have enough money for your needs and I doubt that you'll have any money worries for the rest of your life. I can see that you two aren't the type of people that throw your money away. By the way, I'll talk to Byron Safire and tell him that this deal is just between us. There's no reason for the neighbors to know that you've sold the house to me."
Ethyl and Aaron got a relieved look on their face and Roger knew that they still had a lot of pride left and they were worried that the neighbors would think that they had to sell the house because of money problems.
Roger stood up, "Now, if you'll give me directions to Pete Salmon's shop I'll stop over there and see about contracting for your furnace."
Ethyl got a piece of paper from the kitchen and drew him a map. She got a worried look on her face; "You're not going to get back on the road today if you don't leave soon. You don't have time to go running all over town for us."
Roger smiled, "I'll stay in a motel tonight and start out when I get everything here set up. As I told you I'm just trying to see a bit of this country. I don't have any timetable."
"Please stay with us tonight. Why waste money on a motel?" Ethyl asked.
Roger moved toward the front door, "I want you two to talk this over
tonight without any interference from me. I'd like you to call your
kids and talk it over with them also. Nothing has been signed yet and
you have plenty of time to back out. I also advise you to talk to Byron
and go over the life estate with him. Remember, he works for you. You
tell him how you feel the life estate should be structured. Now I'm
going to see if Pete Salmon is in his shop."