In Houses Just Like This

“But you know, love grows best in little houses with fewer walls to separate..Where you eat and sleep so close together you can’t help but communicate. Oh, and if we had more room between us, think of all we’d miss. Love grows best, in houses just like this”

The last time I took some time to myself to write, I was sitting in the living room of my tiny condo in a post-Christmas, tree still up, tissue paper and presents all over, half of everything we own in Home Depot moving boxes, kind of mess. Our place had been on the market for six weeks without a bite. I began focusing on my New Year’s goals because we were beginning to accept the fact the market wouldn’t pick up until spring when we might be able to sell our place and in turn, buy our first home. 

That was January 1st. This is mid March and I am sitting at the dining room table of the home we had been losing a lot of sleep and stressing dreaming about since we first saw it just before Thanksgiving. We received an offer at the end of January and had exactly 29 days to get approved for financing before our set close date. I didn’t believe it when people initially told me ‘everyone has a horror story’ when I would tell them my husband and I were in the process of buying a home. Please take it from me – it’s true. We even hesitated telling family (outside of our parents) and friends because we were certain the deal was going to fall through on our perfect home. There were some tears and some fights (one ending with “Wait…why are we fighting!?”. We literally had NO clue), but as the 29 days rolled on and the inspections went well on both condo and house, anxiety turned in to excitement and I finally let myself get excited about the dining room table I had been looking at for two months (Yep, the one I am sitting at). 

Buying this home does not make me a real estate expert but I learned a lot about the process in the last month and Bryan and I have had some pretty good laughs as we navigate this home-ownership adventure together. Without further ado – here are a few things I’ve learned a short amount of time. 

Keep EVERY. SINGLE. paper/documentation from the last two years (or at least know how to access it). 

If you think you’re remotely close to purchasing real estate, you might want to familiarize yourself with how to get copies of your last two year’s tax returns, know how to access past pay stubs from your HR website, and have a copy of each W2 you’ve received in the last two years. You also must be able to explain any large transactions (debit or credit) from your bank account within the last 60 days, avoid taking out any new forms of debt (credit cards, car loans, etc.),spit fire, promise your first born child, sell your left kidney…etc. etc. 

You can not and should not try and fix or replace everything at one time

We still have a little bit of this new homeowner fever and have a hard time reminding ourselves to hold back on all new furniture, floors, etc. We’ve been here just about three weeks now and are so glad the only thing we’ve bought is our table and a desk (both needed). We want to take some time to live in our home before deciding on big purchases. It’s important to get acquainted with your space before making it your own! 

Set up the bed first. 

My Father-in-law is honestly one of the best people I know (for endless reasons!) and has helped Bryan and I every step of the way (even in our condo.. I can’t count the number of times I came home to find him under our kitchen sink fixing a pipe or helping Bryan install doors). On move in day, he went right upstairs to put our bed frame together knowing full well Bryan and I would not want to put up a bed at the end of the day when we were exhausted from moving. Don’t unpack a thing – put your bed up first so that you can plop in to it when you’re ready!

Your first purchase should be curtains/blinds.

This just comes from the fact we didn’t. We moved in on a Saturday. We said “we’ll buy curtains tomorrow”. A week later we were still changing in the bathroom because we kept putting it off. Don’t do that. It was a pain in the butt.

Ask furniture retailers if they will price match.

I’m going back to the dining room table here because it might be my favorite item I’ve ever owned. I mentioned I had been looking at it for a couple months online but I was determined to see it in store. Much to our surprise, the entire 5-piece set was about $700 more expensive in store! The problem was, if we ordered it online it wouldn’t be delivered for 3 weeks, but if we ordered directly from the store they offered delivery within 48 hours. I wasn’t optimistic we were leaving with a receipt in hand and was trying to accept the fact Bryan and I would be eating on the floor for the next three weeks but decided to ask an employee about price matching anyway. I barely had the questions out before she said ‘of course we can match it!’. We had our table two days later! Shop around, find the best prices, and don’t be afraid to be upfront if their website is offering coupons, better deals, or better shipping costs/options. They want your business!

Whiskey or wine bottles work perfectly as a rolling pin.

I don’t have much to say about this. Desperate times call for desperate measures.

If one of your rooms is freezing cold (alternatively, too hot in the summer) check that your vents are open before freaking out.

Imagine that. Check the vents. 

On that note, if you turn on the shower and you don’t have hot water, check to make sure that the handle wasn’t simply installed backwards before having a full blown panic attack.

….okay, we’re going to get better at this whole house thing. Shout out again to my Father in law for this solution!

Comcast will always goof something up. *sigh* 

I have no advice to avoid it. Just be prepared.

Home is where your best friend is. 

Beginning this new chapter with the man I love so much in the town/neighborhood we grew up in makes me the happiest person in the world. I was pretty adamant we stayed in the same zip code but realistically I would have been just as happy as long as it was a home with him. Deciding where to put the couch that is WAY too big for the family room, making weekend waffles, and planning future bonfires with friends is 10X more fun with your best friend. 

So here we are. Approximately 22% unpacked and 1.5% done with all of the things we’d eventually like to do to the house. And I couldn’t be happier. We have an incredibly long way to go (and 30 years of debt! Holla!), but I haven’t been this excited for something…well…ever. My heart is full, the vents are open, and the dining room table is more amazing than I could imagine (I’m going to keep mentioning this one). I can’t wait to begin this next chapter and eventually raise a family in our perfect home!