738. Why I Paid More Than Market Value for an Apartment

💌 738. Why I Paid More Than Market Value for an Apartment

Even though I was extremely busy trying to sell my beauty parlor, I still made time to go house hunting. My husband was away on a business trip in Suwon for civil servant training, so I had to go alone. Since so many pilgrims kept coming, I was looking for a spacious place to enshrine the statue of the Blessed Mother, but I could not find a house that truly appealed to me.

Although I had made a lot of money running the beauty parlor successfully, our budget was not large because I had to continuously give money to my mother-in-law, as she would always ask for it. I searched hard, going to many places but could not find a good home that fit our budget. Then one day, the wife of a colleague who had started working at the same department as my husband came to see me. She had always been very fond of me.

“Uram’s mom (Uram is the name of the Little Soul’s youngest child)! I heard you are moving? Let us live across from each other. I am in apartment 301 at Sugang and I saw the apartment right across from mine, 302, is up for sale. Come over there, okay?” she said. My husband did not like apartments because he loved planting and caring for trees and bonsai. Besides, he preferred to live in a single-family home whenever possible since he had many cherished flowering plants and bonsai that he carefully nurtured.

However, not only was there no suitable place, but thinking about elderly man Bong, I could not afford to delay any longer. So I followed the wife of my husband’s colleague to Sugang Apartment to take a look. It turned out to be a wealthy household, equipped with many things, including an air conditioner. Then the homeowner said to me, “If you buy the apartment, I will throw in the air conditioner, the earthenware jars, the wardrobe, and all the bonsai I have been growing.”

Back in 1986, it was rare to find a home with an air conditioner. I really like the armoire and the closet—the armoire, in particular, was clearly made of beautiful, high-quality wood. The owners said they would leave behind the pretty earthenware jars, still containing soybean paste, soy sauce, and gochujang (Korean chili paste). I had always made my own, so I had no intention of eating what they left behind, but I thought, “It would be nice to share it with people in need.”

From the veranda all the way to the back laundry room, a huge number of bonsai trees were lined up in a row. Even if you searched for top-quality bonsai trees today, you might not find any as beautiful and impressive as these. The owner explained, “This bonsai is worth one million Won, that one is seven hundred thousand Won and that one is five hundred thousand Won.” They also said they would give me various other things besides these.

At that time, a unit in Sugang Apartment could be bought for about 7 million Won, but that particular apartment was asking for 9 million Won, which was much higher than the market price. However, I thought, “Even if I pay 9 million Won and it is expensive, just the things they are offering to give me—even the many bonsai trees alone—must be worth several million Won.”

Thinking that my husband would like it, I thought, “Alright, let us bring joy to Julio,” and decided to go ahead with the purchase of the house. When I called my husband, who was away on a business trip, and told him, he was also pleased and urged me to sign the contract quickly. I paid the deposit and the interim payment in full without asking for any discount.

A few days after paying the down payment, I went to the house on the morning they promised to move out, but no one was there. They had left early that morning, locking the door tightly and leaving without handing over the keys. I did not know their new contact information, so I had no way to call them. I was taken aback but I practiced Semchigo as if they had kept their promise, offered it up, and waited to hear from them.

A few days later, the sellers called and said, “Meet us in Gwangju to get the keys and bring the remaining balance with you.” Believing that everyone shared my trust, I went to Gwangju without suspicion and paid the full remaining amount just as they said. When I received the keys and opened the apartment door, I found it empty, with nothing but trash scattered around!

My personal reflection note with Mama Julia🌹💗 

Link 👇🏻

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