Jul
5
Shortly after my wife and I were married we moved to a small apartment. It wasn’t the nicest nor was it in the safest neighborhood. However it was cheap and we were able to make it as a new couple there. After being there for some time and both moving up in our jobs, we were able to realistically consider the possibility of purchasing a home. This was very exciting since we hadn’t really thought that it could happen so soon. There were a lot of incentives in place that helped us to get started in our hunt for a new house.
We spent a lot of our free time looking online at houses in different areas around where we lived at the time online. It was fun to look at all of the different options that were available and even dream about houses that were far beyond our reach. As a couple that was just starting out, it was fun to dream about million dollar homes that we would probably never realistically live in. It was also good for us to discuss the pros and cons of living in different areas and different amenities that different houses had. We really liked the area we lived in but it was much more expensive to buy a home in that area. We looked in many surrounding areas and found a smaller town only about 10-15 minutes away that dropped prices significantly.
We were lucky to have a friend that was a real estate agent who could help us know what to look for. We decided that though we could get a good deal with a “fixer” house, we didn’t really have the money to do any fixing and that we should just We decided that we both really liked the idea of having a two story house, so there would have to be a lot of incentive in a one story for it to be worth it to us.
After we had been looking by ourselves for a while we had our real estate agent take us out to look at different houses we thought that might work. And wow does it make a big difference seeing it as opposed to just looking online. Some houses that we looked at online that seemed like they would be nice, were actually not very nice at all. And without knowing what square footage meant, we found some good deals but they were way too small.
Eventually we went out looking at houses and our real estate agent showed us a house that was beautiful and in great condition. We thought he was just showing it for fun, but apparently this particular house was a short sale that fell out of escrow. The price had dropped significantly because of this and we jumped on it to make an offer. It was great because the price they were asking was less than what we were approved for.
Short sales sure are an ordeal. It’s nice to get in on a short sale because you can get a really good deal, however it also can be frustrating. For example, ultimately it ended up being an extra one and a half months before we could actually move into our new house from when we originally expected. Also, we ended up having to pay more for it, though not by much. So we ended up paying about $8,000 more than the asking price but at least 50,000 less than the original price. So the savings far outweighed the negatives.
When we found out we were actually getting the house it was so exciting. It was such a thrill to know that we were going to be homeowners. It did make it a little hard for us when we kept having to wait. We would be told that by a certain date that we would be able to move in, and then when that day came they would tell us it would be another week. This happened too many times, but it was still worth it.
After a few short months of looking, finalizing the deal, and the absurd amount of paperwork; we were finally in our new home. We were so excited and have loved every minute of it. Though it can be a huge hassle, if you can do it I think it is worth it to buy a home. It has sure been worth it for us.
By: Cory Blakley