First Time Home Ownership: Complete!

Last Friday Matt and I signed papers on a house. This home has been a bit of a challenge to wrestle down, but we finally nabbed it! Back in October, we put in an offer and here we are... December (the 6th to be exact) and it's finally ours (technically still the bank's, but fifteen years from now it should be ours!)! Yay!

This picture was taken in the Fall... there is snow all around now!

Since the day Matt and I were married, we talked about buying a home and making it our own. Both of us were blessed to be influenced by our family's knack for taking something and making it your own. With that, we envisioned having a home that was "rough around the edges" and "needed some love."

This home is exactly that! Structurally, it's perfect. Original walls, foundation and floor plan are all intact; but the house needs updating. The kitchen has the original cabinets, and no appliances. The walls have wallpaper that is a wee bit dated and the floors have carpet that need cleaning.

This is a "panoramic" view of the interior. Matt is standing in front of the main entry, the bedrooms are to the left and the picture is taken from the dining/kitchen area. Gotta love that wallpaper, right?!

Down the line we envision new light fixtures, flooring, an updated kitchen and an overhaul of the fine details in the home. Details often make the difference. New windows, trim and doors will really spruce things up.

For now, Matt is working hard to get things move-in ready! My man bought appliances while I was out of town and I gotta tell you... he is amazing! It's great to know we're both on the same page sometimes.

Between painting, carpet cleaning and having the well-water treated, it should take about a week (or so) to get into the house. I can hardly wait!

This is our backyard! It's so big! Last night, Lucas and Matt did laps on the snow disc around the tree. I was misty-eyed at how fortunate we are.

Right now, Matt and I have much to be thankful for. Not only do we have a home we can call our own, but it's a home that is extremely affordable for us! We were deliberate about finding a home that would actually make life easier, rather than more stressful. Compromises are easier when you think about how stressful it is to not be able to afford a mortgage payment down the road. Being financially responsible and wise took precedence over all other variables in finding a home.

This house gave us everything we wanted in addition to being affordable. I'm not sure we could be any more thankful than we are right now for a place to call home.

Fine By Me: Let's Buy A House

Happy Hump Day, my friends! It's Wednesday and per usual, I love Wednesdays. Not sure why... but maybe because it means the week is half way through!

It's also October, which is one of the most glorious months of the year, for reasons such as pumpkins, homemade baked goods, colored leaves, cool nights and foggy mornings. And snuggling. I love snuggling.

Things are looking up, really.

Matt and I are in the middle of buying a house! As of yesterday an offer was accepted and paperwork was submitted. We have inspections and such, which still leave room for backing out... but it's looking good, folks.

We've had a few snafu's with an interim Realtor, which are humorously bad, really. Situations where interim answers every question with "I don't know the answer to that question" or "Hmm. Yea... you might want to call someone for an answer to that question." Matt and I were incredulous when we were left in a conference room for a half an hour while interim took a phone call unrelated to us.

Thankfully, our original Realtor is back from vacation, and has taken over our proceedings, which leaves us breathing easier. It seems everything is going smoothly and quickly. We'll keep our fingers crossed for now...

So here we are... October. All of our art projects and activities seem to include leaves, beautiful Autumn colors and baked good. Fine by me. Autumn is a wonderful time of the year for delicious treats, snuggling (as mentioned above) and home buying!

There You Have It: Muncie Home Ownership

We're back in Winona after our whirlwind trip to Muncie. Scoping out homes was an extremely valuable experience and we ended up being very pleased with our realtor. Jim was a straight shooter, no fuss, old-school kind of guy. His driving skills were questionable and he did not laugh at any of my jokes... but was impressed with Lucas, so we were happy enough with his help.

Day one Matt and I walked through fourteen houses. Guys... this was no easy feat and I'll say... we were exhausted! We walked through homes that were staged perfectly. They smelled like apple pie and a nothing was out of place. We walked through homes that were filthy and smelled like urine. We walked through old homes and newer homes. That being said, within two minutes of being in a home, Matt and I both knew if it was good for us or not. You just know.

The home that wasn't meant to be.

In the end we settled on two homes that would be fitting for us. Great yards, move-in ready, good square
footage, good layout (I'm big on ambiance and if the home doesn't have good "flow", it won't work for me) and workable kitchens. Both homes were in similar prices ranges, and after much debate we felt like we would put an offer on one of the homes. This particular home had great square footage, two baths, big bedrooms, two shops, nice landscaping and only five minutes from the University! And... it was greatly reduced in price, which almost guaranteed a small profit should we need to sell anytime soon.

Matt and I figured out our down payment options, made phone calls... organized our finances and prepared ourselves to make an offer. We were ready.

In the end we didn't put that offer on the house. It didn't feel right. The home was great, but financially Matt and I have concerted efforts to avoid biting off more than we should. It's not our values to have a home if it means living to pay a mortgage. This particular home was in the upper range of our monthly payment options and though we could afford it, it wasn't the right time.

Owning a home of our own sounds dreamy... down right lovely. The idea of settling in and really allowing the dust to settle sounds down right amazing. There are other things we value in addition to owning a home. Travel, education and continuing to pay down our student debt are just a few other very important values of ours, and if owning a home comes between those goals, then a home just doesn't feel worth it.

So... we're back at square one. At this point, we'll find a very modest rental and look at buying again in a couple months. Matt and I now have a familiarity with Muncie and a knowledge that can only be gained in spending twelve hours in the car with a realtor. We feel educated, and that is not a waste.

For now we'll seek out a rental and we could use some good vibes on that front. Your prayers will be gladly welcomed. Muncie is a college town (Ball State) and for obvious reasons, finding a rental that is both clean and reasonably priced feels nearly impossible.

Home ownership is something Matt and I feel ready for, but when we make that big jump we want it to be right. We're attempting to remain in wise counsel (thanks Dad) and keep a level head with our finances. It's easy to jump into the pool of "let's spend our money", but deep down that's not a value of ours. Maintaining who we are in the thick of this process is our goal and for now, we're hoping it's a success.