After a while, the houses all start to run together. The street names–Greenwood, Woodlawn, Greenland, Riverwood, Creekwood, Woodwood, Woodforest, Forestwood, Forestforest, Forestlawn, Lawndale, Dalewood, Woodgreen, Greenwood–all seem to come full circle after a while. Did we drive down this street already? Did we look at that house already?
If we bought that house, could we fix it with a coat of paint? Is that house too close to Briley Parkway and the new Home Depot or will that be a selling point in the future? Sure, we could walk to FUBAR from here but is it safe to walk to FUBAR from here? Why is that house surrounded by a fence with barbed wire at the top pointing inwards? Is tinfoil really a good substitute for blinds? If you’re living on a block with a $500,000 110 year old house on it, isn’t that house always the burglar magnet?
It’s frazzling, to put it mildly. I’m waffling between being excited and being a little overwhelmed.
In other news, we finally have a new neighbor. He seems nice, but also frazzled. His cat ran away when he tried to put him in the house. We tried to make him feel like there’s a chance the cat will be back. I hope so anyway. Losing your cat like that is rough.
Filed under: Stories About Me
It’s easy to get worked up into a real estate lather, that’s for sure.
You’re doing the right thing! Take your time shopping for the right place. It’s the best buyer’s market in a decade and that won’t change overnight. Accept that you’ll probably have to miss out on a few potential places before you get the one you were meant to have.
Find a realtor you trust to serve as your advocate and then do a self assessment as to whether you are a restorer or not. RUABelle and I aren’t much for sweat equity. We took a year to find a house that we could just barely not afford and then made a jump at it. Over time, the payments got easier and the equity built up on it’s own.
I can’t wait for the housewarming party!