Written July 1, 2013.
So if you know me, you know that A) I'm not a patient person, and B) I'm not good at not having answers.
Those two traits, coupled with my extremely anxiety-ridden general state of being means that buying a house is probably one of the worst adventures to embark upon. But alas, here we are...traveling down that path.
John and I have spent years talking about owning a home, and dreaming about bar-be-queing in the backyard. I've fantasized about a kitchen more conducive to my baking addiction. We've hoped for storage well beyond the spaces into which we've been cramming our belongings for the better part of 5 years.
Whole 'nother ballgame, however, when you're staring into the abyss that is your financial life: somewhere down there, a monster is chained up, howling with laughter because it knows that when you fall in, the feast is afoot.
We started our house hunt kind of by accident at the end of May. We had been planning to start looking over the summer once Hell Week at work was over for me. Then our church advertised a first-time homebuyers' seminar, so we were like, "YAY! Information disbursed in a friendly non-committal atmosphere! People who are in the same boat as us! Just what we need!" So John called to RSVP, only to find out it had been cancelled because the realtor who would be hosting it was away or something. But John got to talking with another realtor at that firm, and we decided to meet with him to kinda talk about things. That meeting turned into the beginning of our house hunt. In fact, I think we saw some places that very weekend. It was all fun and new and exciting.
I should also add that we spent a lot of time--a LOT--on real estate websites learning about the process, obsessively using mortgage calculators, researching loan options, making budgets like were frigging accountants. Seriously. I would blink and see math and dollar signs. It was a relief to know we could actually afford a home that was not a hovel, and that many of the features that were important to us were feasible. Would there be compromises? Hell yes. The difference between us and 90% of the couples on HGTV? We are okay with compromise.
So here we are. About a month after beginning our journey, we have found The One. It was the first house we walked through where both of us realized, "This feels like home." It's cozy and charming and, I feel a little like Goldilocks, but just right. We submitted an offer last night, and now we are in the terrifying, knee-knocking phase of waiting for a response. Because I'm a pessimist, I expect them to return the offer with a photo of them flipping us off. Don't get me wrong--we made a strong offer that we feel is very attractive and confident. But I just assume that Murphy's Law is always against me, and that nothing will work in my favor. We are the only offer on the house currently, and we just hope this family wants to play ball with us.
So, that's all for now. Although, of course, when I finally post this, the process will be done and you'll be able to read in quick succession what happened next (lucky you). So this is really my way of documenting how I--we--feel at each stage along the way, much more for my own benefit and sanity than your reading pleasure, but thanks anyway for coming along.
And so...until I have more to report on, adieu.
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