I don't think I've really talked about (at length, anyway) our house buying fun that we've been experiencing for the past couple of months. I was wary of getting too excited about it in fear that something wouldn't work out. Our friend K. wanted me to kind of blog about the process (probably while the process was happening), but to be honest, you wouldn't have wanted to read about it. Aside from a few gleaming possibilities, most of the house "shopping" was torturous. I never thought I/we would be this way, but we're one of those typical couples you see on Property Virgins that drives you crazy because they want the Perfect House.
One house I fell in love with immediately. It was over a century old, in an older part of town, closer to work and parks, and I don't know...seemed very "us." And though it was old, all of the major upgrades (read: kitchen & bath) had been taken care of. Cork kitchen floors? Yes please! I was sharing my excitement with a coworker and instead of encouraging me, she did just the opposite and told me how terrible it is to resell your house. She is moving with her husband and kids to Florida (her husband is in the service) and she is very excited to be renting an apartment. Basically she told me every possible horror story there could be about selling your house and it totally freaked me out. So, on our second visit to House #1, I couldn't get over the negatives (weird floor plan, poor insulation on second story, not as good of school district) that could possibly impede a resell. Sad, because my husband was just starting to warm up to it. (See, I am the difficult person in this situation.)
We decided to take a second look at another house we liked, which is in a different part of town with better schools, and generally a better resale area. Called our realtor to set up an appointment and found out twenty minutes later that the house was under contract. Booo. I was very sad that day, but worked it off with a exhausting game of tennis in 110-degree heat, and came home to pleasant and encouraging messages from friends.
Well, the next day we were at it again, visiting every house in this city with our dear and patient realtor, Earl. He is seriously so patient with us and deserves every penny from the sale. Going out to look at houses was quickly becoming a tiring thing and not the way I wanted to spend my days off. I told my husband that if we didn't find something in a month, we were calling it quits and just renting. The realtor and owner of one house we wanted to see weren't returning Earl's phone calls, so instead we looked at another ten. The next day I was to fly out of Charlotte and into Seattle and I wanted to get it over ASAP.
And this is the part where y'all call me/us crazy.
While I was out of town, the realtor for that one house (which will now be called The House) finally contacted Earl and they set up an appointment with my husband. JP excitedly texted me that night, "I have warm fuzzy feelings about this house and I knew it was ours right when I entered the door." I had only seen The House from the outside and the photos from Zillow or Realtor.com, but I told him to make an offer. I figured after us seeing about 80 different houses together (yes, that many), he knows what I like and I trust him. For some people that is too huge of a thing to trust somebody on, and I wouldn't have predicted I'd be doing it if you had asked me at the beginning of all of this, but boy... He did good.
The House was built in the mid '40s, is a 4/2, just a little over 2000sqft, has a chain-link fenced in backyard, is landscaped, with original hardwoods inside, and completely remodeled bathrooms and kitchen. It's our dream house and we close on the 26th (assuming everything goes as planned).
My dear husband got everything rolling while I was touring the Pacific Northwest, from securing interest rates, to scheduling house and termite inspections. We now have a Google Document of things to do before closing, things we want to work on, and things we will probably need to buy. It's all happening so quickly, and I do feel a bit overwhelmed, but I have faith that God is in this and I have been praying every day for serenity in this situation. If I start listing my life to-dos on top of The House to-dos, I get very anxious, so I have been taking it one day at a time.
I am heading out for the termite inspection in a bit and am toting our camera along. The next post will have photos plus a grand list of projects. Happy Monday!
3 comments:
!! I'm so excited for you! I eagerly await pictures and more information. I'm so glad you found a house that will soon be an amazing home :)
I could see why some people would think this was crazy, but that's the thing about you and Jon...he KNEW what you needed and wanted, and what house would serve both of you as a family.
Love you guys!
Thanks for the encouragement, friends! See you both...NEXT WEEK!!! ;-)
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