With a new baby on the way, Jordan and I have been looking for a place to live with 3 bedrooms and room to grow. We have rented these almost 5 years of marriage which has worked for us. We gradually moved into bigger spaces when the occasion called for it, eventually renting a house so the girls could have a yard to play in. Now as we get ready to welcome our third baby girl, we have found the price range for renting a 3 bedroom house or even a 3 bedroom apartment for that matter is quite a bit more dinero than we are willing to spend. I have found some homes that have been in our price range, but let's face it, a 6x8 bedroom isn't going to cut it. Honestly, once you've lived in a house, moving back into an apartment isn't the most desirable move.
A few months ago, Brynna, my sister-in-law, suggested we take a look down the street from her. Jordan knows I LOVE looking at houses, so he agreed to go. This house was a foreclosure for $60,000 which is well within our price range and would actually be a reduction from our monthly rent. Before visiting the house I looked at the available pictures and researched information about that particular foreclosure company. Based on the pictures, the house needed work, but I was willing to do some work over the years.
The time finally came to visit the house and my dad was nice enough to come with us since he has more of an eye and knowledge for home structure and repairs. My mom also came along to play with the girls at the park across the street. Jordan, Dad, and I joined the realtor in the house and I instantly knew it was not for us. I am willing to do work, but I'm not going to completely redo a house. The floor was so wavy I was afraid I was going to trip unless I high-stepped through the place. It looked like the last resident had contemplated starting a fire with the floor boards, but resolved to use them to gouge holes in the ceiling.
The renovations needed to make the house livable for a young family were flooring on the 1st floor, ceilings, air conditioner, furnace, roof, foundation, and the 2nd floor bathroom. The master bedroom had been recently switched up. But I should tell you, the house had been made handicap accessible. I'm not saying that's a bad thing, but the way the last owner did it was not the best move. In the corner of the bedroom, they closed off a section and put in a toilet. Once again, not bad, but it was just a toilet, the sink was on a different wall so I could wash my hands from the bed if I wanted to. Finally, the took a walk in closet and turned it into a walk in shower. The shower that look nice in the pictures was poorly assembled. Since the shower was not in a bathroom, you could walk straight into the shower from the bedroom and shower for all to see. That's not really my thing.
Even thought this house was definitely not what we were looking for, I will always be grateful because it got Jordan interested in our house hunting process. We have since found a realtor and are in the process of taking a NeighborWorks class to help us be more informed home buyers. We have visited many houses and I have looked at dozens more online trying to find the right home for us.
Kaylee has enjoyed visiting homes. Every house she likes is accompanied by the comment, "I want this house so I can get a dog." Although, yesterday we visited 8 or 9 houses and only one was occupied. The family had a couple little girls and a lot of barbies and dolls. Kaylee's comment turned it to , "I want to get this house so I can get a dog and these barbies." After a few laughs and "you're so cute" remarks I explained that we don't get to keep their toys.
Jordan and I are realistic in our search. We realize we that we can either afford a small house that needs cosmetic updates or a larger house that needs more work. Since we're planning on having more kids, we would like a place large enough to sustain us.
The houses we looked at have been in every condition and size. Something people need to realize is that if there is a room with a closet, it qualifies a bedroom, no matter the size. A couple of the houses we have looked had a nursery type room where you have to walk through a bedroom to get to it. Nursery rooms are also smaller than other bedrooms because they need only hold a crib instead of a bed. One of these houses also had a TINY staircase. So small that Kaylee kept saying it was her size.
The worse house we visited would be one that we visited yesterday. It was turned into 3 apartments, which was not the issue. The owner made some renovations but didn't complete the whole process. He put in new cabinets, but the flooring wasn't fixed before they were put in. That wasn't the issue. Upstairs there were still beds and desks, games in the closet, books and stuffed animals laying around. It felt like a creepy horror movie where the people just disappeared.
Out of all the houses we have looked at we there is one that has felt like home. It was the first house we looked at (besides the foreclosure) and every house we look at makes us like it more. Hopefully by next week we can get the process started and be in a new home before the baby comes.
A few months ago, Brynna, my sister-in-law, suggested we take a look down the street from her. Jordan knows I LOVE looking at houses, so he agreed to go. This house was a foreclosure for $60,000 which is well within our price range and would actually be a reduction from our monthly rent. Before visiting the house I looked at the available pictures and researched information about that particular foreclosure company. Based on the pictures, the house needed work, but I was willing to do some work over the years.
The time finally came to visit the house and my dad was nice enough to come with us since he has more of an eye and knowledge for home structure and repairs. My mom also came along to play with the girls at the park across the street. Jordan, Dad, and I joined the realtor in the house and I instantly knew it was not for us. I am willing to do work, but I'm not going to completely redo a house. The floor was so wavy I was afraid I was going to trip unless I high-stepped through the place. It looked like the last resident had contemplated starting a fire with the floor boards, but resolved to use them to gouge holes in the ceiling.
The renovations needed to make the house livable for a young family were flooring on the 1st floor, ceilings, air conditioner, furnace, roof, foundation, and the 2nd floor bathroom. The master bedroom had been recently switched up. But I should tell you, the house had been made handicap accessible. I'm not saying that's a bad thing, but the way the last owner did it was not the best move. In the corner of the bedroom, they closed off a section and put in a toilet. Once again, not bad, but it was just a toilet, the sink was on a different wall so I could wash my hands from the bed if I wanted to. Finally, the took a walk in closet and turned it into a walk in shower. The shower that look nice in the pictures was poorly assembled. Since the shower was not in a bathroom, you could walk straight into the shower from the bedroom and shower for all to see. That's not really my thing.
Even thought this house was definitely not what we were looking for, I will always be grateful because it got Jordan interested in our house hunting process. We have since found a realtor and are in the process of taking a NeighborWorks class to help us be more informed home buyers. We have visited many houses and I have looked at dozens more online trying to find the right home for us.
Kaylee has enjoyed visiting homes. Every house she likes is accompanied by the comment, "I want this house so I can get a dog." Although, yesterday we visited 8 or 9 houses and only one was occupied. The family had a couple little girls and a lot of barbies and dolls. Kaylee's comment turned it to , "I want to get this house so I can get a dog and these barbies." After a few laughs and "you're so cute" remarks I explained that we don't get to keep their toys.
Jordan and I are realistic in our search. We realize we that we can either afford a small house that needs cosmetic updates or a larger house that needs more work. Since we're planning on having more kids, we would like a place large enough to sustain us.
The houses we looked at have been in every condition and size. Something people need to realize is that if there is a room with a closet, it qualifies a bedroom, no matter the size. A couple of the houses we have looked had a nursery type room where you have to walk through a bedroom to get to it. Nursery rooms are also smaller than other bedrooms because they need only hold a crib instead of a bed. One of these houses also had a TINY staircase. So small that Kaylee kept saying it was her size.
The worse house we visited would be one that we visited yesterday. It was turned into 3 apartments, which was not the issue. The owner made some renovations but didn't complete the whole process. He put in new cabinets, but the flooring wasn't fixed before they were put in. That wasn't the issue. Upstairs there were still beds and desks, games in the closet, books and stuffed animals laying around. It felt like a creepy horror movie where the people just disappeared.
Out of all the houses we have looked at we there is one that has felt like home. It was the first house we looked at (besides the foreclosure) and every house we look at makes us like it more. Hopefully by next week we can get the process started and be in a new home before the baby comes.
How fun for you guys! We're hooked on Zillow and looking up homes we hope we can afford. We have no idea what we'll actually buy when the time comes. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteHouse hunting is so much fun. I actually miss it. We've lived here for over 4 years...the longest place we've been since getting married. Every where else averaged about 18 months.
ReplyDeleteHaha, that made me laugh, especially thinking about washing your hands from bed. What a great feature! And I know what you mean about home repairs--I wouldn't have considered buying out house if we'd had kids, but I'm happy we were able to get it fixed. I'm ready to get home so I can finish it! Good luck and hurry up--I wanna come play with your dog too.
ReplyDelete