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Opening the back door, which led onto a wide landing and a stairwell down to the alley, he said, “There’s room here for a stackable washer and dryer, and some pantry shelves over there.”
I looked at him skeptically. I didn’t like that it was open to our neighbors’ downstairs and anyone who managed to get in the alley door.
Reading my mind, Ronnie said “No one’s going to steal our pasta.”
Of course, that wasn’t what I was worried about.
Ronnie pointed out the breakfast nook on the other side of the kitchen. It was tiny but charming.
“You’re sure you want a condo? You don’t want to hold out for a house?”
“It’s not a condo, it’s a co-op.”
He’d explained the difference to me before, probably more than once. I didn’t remember it though. Based on the look on my face, he added, “There are only one or two banks in the state that will finance a co-op, that drives the price down. They’re only asking sixty-five thousand.”
“And you think it’s worth that?”
“I think it’s worth far more than that… after I get on the board and convince them to convert the building to a condominium. We’ll nearly double our money right there.”
“How much do you think the renovation will cost?” I asked, looking at the harvest gold appliances and sagging piss-colored Formica counter tops.
“I’m planning to take an immediate second to pay for everything. We’ll refinance into one payment down the road.”
I noticed he didn’t say how much he thought it would all cost.
“Isn’t sixty-five thousand low? Even for a co-op?”
“There is one thing.”
“Which is?”
“The previous owner died. Right there,” he said, pointing at the kitchen sink.
“He died in front of the sink?”
There was an icky brown stain on the linoleum in the exact spot—
“The neighbors found him about a week later. He was still standing there.”
That explained the stain.
“Standing?” I asked.
“Slumped? I don’t know, they didn’t take pictures. His family is in Ohio. They don’t want to fly out, so they gave everything to the Salvation Army and now they want to unload this place ASAP. It’s not even on the market yet.”
“How much do you need?”
“Ten thousand, I think.”
“How much do you have?”
“Five. Maybe six.”
“Then you can’t do it.”
“I’m thinking, if we put both our names on the mortgage… We could get an FHA three percent down…”
“You know I don’t have credit.”
