h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

For those that were following, it looks like our buyers have probably pulled out over the damp.

The costs they were estimated have gone from 1k (about the cost of the damp course) to about 7k (the cost of putting everything back the way it was afterwards). We can't afford that.

We are currently exploring the options of Mr Vip and I doing as much of the work as possible (stripping off plaster, taking out all the kitchen cupboards, etc.) but to be honest, I have a feeling they won't go for that. If they are counting these costs, it means they are paying professionals to come in and do this, so they won't be happy with DIY instead. No solution to that, as we can't pay for their DIY decisions.

And this, of course, means we've almost certainly lost our dream house.

A disappointing morning.

Thanks, Clive. We'll make something of it and find something in the end, but it's disappointing when the early stages of this process went so well. I'm OK but Mr Vip let himself get a little too excited, I think. Ah well. We'll cope.

Cheers, MC. We did a lot of talking last night and have decided to put our house back on the market for a couple of months. If it doesn't sell, that's OK too - it's still a great house and if we are clever with the mortgage we could be free of it in ten years. Of course, it still will only be a small semi rather than the gorgeous detatched we were hoping to buy, but it would be a good financial decision.

So whatever the outcome, we can be happy.

Plus I've just had a long chat with my dad, so I feel a lot better now. He's good at that.

Mr Vip is currently showing a couple around the house so perhaps we might get that dream house after all. Can't count chickens an' all, but it's nice to have some interest.

It's quite weird listening to someone else do the tour. We both have quite different style so it was decided I'd hide downstairs so we didn't crown and contradict!