Thursday, February 4, 2010

House Hunting

We are officially in the market for a home of our own. It happened way sooner than we were expecting it too, but we are so ready to be done renting. Once we figured out that we could scrape together a good down payment in 8 weeks, we were all in.

So we're looking. Don't love anything yet. We thought we were going to love one. It was bank owned and looked so great in the pictures. The upstairs was GORGEOUS, but the kitchen was cheaply redone by the bank and it needed to have closet rods and shelves put in every closet and pantry, and the basement gave us come concerns too. I wanted to love it, but I was more concerned than in love.

Where do you make the compromise between a home thats the right price vs thats the right size, one that needs updating vs one that only needs personalization? I realize that with our budget and buying our first home I'm not going to get a perfect dream home that needs nothing and we'll stay there our whole lives. But can I get something that I like in my budget? I suppose its not fair to judge yet... we've only seen 4 homes so far. But is our house out there? Will it come along soon enough for my liking? And how much am I going to have to compromise?

6 comments:

Jess said...

There's definitely a balance. We had specific needs for our basement (home office, photography studio) so we were pretty picky. Plus, we thought we'd be getting a fixer-upper since Sam is so handy. Quite the opposite. The inside is fabulous, the yard was awful. Not what we expected. Just keep an open mind. You'll know when you find it. Good luck and have fun!

Bonnie Parks said...

amen, Rosie. I worry about that stuff too.

Ashleigh said...

Well, you know that it won't be your forever, dream home and so don't be too turned off to the fixer uppers. I would definitely look at those since they would be more in your price range (I'm assuming), but make sure the stuff that needs fixing can actually be done without too much stress and $$$. I said absolutely NO to our house when Chad threw the idea around of buying it. I wanted something that didn't need so much fixing, something that was pretty to look at...but it just wasn't in the budget. Now that we've moved in and have been SLOWLY fixing it up, the things that I used to hate about it, really don't bother me. In fact, I love our home.

Mom T. said...

Brigham Young used to say, go in the small end of the horn. Meaning, start small, grow big. Don't have big expectations to begin with because you have plenty of time to grow. Brian is handy, you're creative, and it will be an adventure!

Alison said...

That is very exciting. As far as compromising there are things that won't be perfect however you should make a list of things you will not compromise on.
Something I wish we had done is (if there is one in your ward or something) taken a contractor or someone who knows about homes to go through with you and point out structural or appliance problems the house might have.
For us some of our things we wouldn't budge on was a good neighborhood, a yard, no fixer uppers (you will end up fixing enough things) remember things can be repainted, carpet replaced so don't get scared off just because you hate how it was decorated:)
When we found our house it felt different from the rest we had looked at. It felt good being there.
Good luck! don't rush into anything.

cathi6 said...

Just remember, it's not the house, it's the people that make a home. Sometimes what you least expect is what you love the most in the long run!!!!! Enjoy!