we are on our way to buying our first home. the next step now is finding the right one to buy. we went looking at houses today with our real estate agent. it was good, informative.... but now we're very confused about what we want! let me explain. we were able to check out 5 homes. three of them ended up being way too small for some reason or another, like an "eat-in kitchen" with absolutely NO space for a table, but yet no dining room either. or another one in which they've converted the living room into a dining room, but now the only "living" space is in the very dingy rec room in the basement... not so great for entertaining. etc.
another house we looked at today felt huge, with 4 bedrooms and a large basement... but it was nasty! the homeowners in no way were trying to sell us on it. all the walls, doors, door frames and counters would need work. the kitchen appliances were all old and rusty. i would be afraid to use the bathroom it was so gross. the carpets were stained. the windows needed replacing. etc. etc. etc. and that was the priciest one we saw today.
there was one more. this is the one that confuses us. it confuses us because we like it. a lot. but it's brand new. and in a suburb. and we don't like suburbs. we don't like that all the houses are the same, we don't like that there's no foliage, we don't like that there is absolutely no character in suburbs!! also, we want a minimum of 3 bedrooms - one master, one office, one art room/future baby room. this lovely little brand new house only has 2 bedrooms, but they are quite large. and it's a bi-level, so the basement, which will be unfinished, has fairly large windows, plenty of room to make a rec room of sorts, a bathroom, laundry room, and 2 smaller bedrooms. the house is pretty cheap considering that they'll be building us a new one (our choice of colours, appliances, carpet, etc.) so we could save money by not needing to do renos right away (unlike the nasty house!), and use it to landscape and finish the basement.
the location is not so good for the fact that we only have one car and i'm not willing to walk more than a 5-minute walk home from work after a 12-hour shift. and that it's in a SUBURB!! seriously, what are we thinking?? i've already decided that if we move into a new house, i'm planting a crazy wild flower & rock garden in the front yard. just to be a little different, to bring some life into it, to make it more organic - that is, if we're allowed.
we're still gonna keep looking. there were a few that we weren't able to look at for various reasons, including the one that we've had our eye on since before christmas (and it's still for sale.... but what does that mean?) this particular house has a whole lot more character and is in a great location.
this is our first house. WE'RE BUYING OUR FIRST HOME! crazy. obviously we've never done this before, so we are totally open to suggestions. if you own your home, please leave a comment with a tidbit of some good advice about house-hunting. what do we look for? what should we keep in mind? if you know us well then you'll understand our desire for a house with a bit o' character... any advice?
any at all?
Saturday, January 19, 2008
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8 comments:
I completely understand your need for character!! I walk around Victoria with all the shiny brand new condos going up with all their newness and sameness and sigh, and then look at the old Victorian houses with yearning.
That said, this isn't your "you have to live here forever" house. It IS going to be your "you have to live here" house, though! What would you rather do after a 12 hours shift - walk a bit of a way to get home, or walk just 5 min before you have to start stripping out carpet and painting and reno-ing?
You need to find a place that feels like home, like it is or at least can be a reflection of you guys. That's for sure! Just make sure it isn't going to be TOO much work right away to make it yours. At least, wait until Dad is done with his bathroom renos so he can help you! ha.
Also, make sure it has a nice guest room with a comfy bed for my next trip to visit you, ok? ;)
At least you can knock off some potential houses as NO WAY! What if you LOVED ALL 5 houses! I'd say that would be worse! Or if you HATED all 5. At least now there is hope and hope is nice. One house will jump out at you and you will want that house so badly. Maybe you just haven't seen it yet. It may not be in the right location, it might be totally the wrong colours but you will see the POTENTIAL and you will know! Besides, I personally cannot imagine you guys living in a house that will look like everyone else's. It may start that way but not when you are done with it! 3 reasons - You guys are just far too creative and have waited too long for your own home and you are related to Colin and Jodene!
mom
You have a strong bent toward the character house verses the new suburban abode. So far you don't really have more than one option. Wait until you've checked all possibilities. Then the decision mught be easier. Or harder. It will be one of those 2.
Dad
we'll be praying. it's a big deal!
Mom and Dad said I should leave a comment. First, as much as you want to make your house your own, you aren't the one looking at it and the ones that you are looking at aren't yours. Keep in mind that you can plant awesome flowers and kule trees but when you look out of the windows, it will be the neighbours' vynil that you will see. (Vynil is a weird word.) Also, make sure that you have enough cash to finish your basement. 2 bedrooms won't be enough for very long and it will take quite a few years of savings before you can afford to pay for finishing your basement unless you extend your mortgage. Newer houses also don't mean top quality in their construction. That being said, there still should be less surprises building.
Chris
well I have no real advise because we haven't done this yet. But I just wanted to say I am excited for you and hope that you can enjoy the journey to finding your new house! can't wait to here where you end up!
We looked at A LOT. Keep looking and don't settle. Paint does wonders when it comes to renos. If it's the only thing you can afford it will look totally new once painted. I liked to check the taps, the pipes, the walls (for cracking, etc) and the yard. All the best.
I remember looking for homes. NOT FUN ON THE WEST COAST!!! We were shocked out of our socks at teh prices.... We found this one and thought it was wayyy too small for us... but for some reason we knew it was for us! It would be our home!! We ended up getting it even though we were way out bid= the owners liked us!!! :) And now it is home. I know we won't be here forever but it is a cozy little home that we made "us". I almost never want to move again! Anyway- enough rambling. Can't wait to see pics of the home you decide on! Be picky! And always try to get a neighbor who lives in a bright red barn with a plywood cow on the side... and a neighbor who has roommates that start their house on fire............ can't go wrong with that!
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