I know I know, it's been a
long time since I've been here. I feel like I’ve let all 17 of you who read
this blog down, but I have some good news to share! I found my dream house (for
this stage in my life at least). It all started back in October when my realtor
said he had the “perfect” house for me. I had the day off and decided to go
take a look. Putting aside the cosmetic updates that it needed, I was in love.
It checked all my boxes:
It checked all my boxes:
- 3 bedrooms
- 2 bathrooms
- Closet in the foyer
- Window in the full bathroom
- Small yard
- A lot of natural light
- A lot of closet space
- Close to public transportation
I went back two days later,
this time with my mom and my aunt. I couldn’t get that house out of my mind,
and made an offer the same day. After negotiating, they finally accepted exactly
a week after my very first showing. Then the waiting began. Waiting for the
bank approvals, appraisal, etc. After what seemed like forever, it was time for
the closing. For those of you who have never bought a house, a closing consists
of basically signing your life away to the bank for the next 20+ years. Even
though that sounds scary, it is the largest investment you will ever make and at
least your money is going towards something. Especially here in NY. Believe it
or not, my mortgage payment is less than some of my friends’ monthly rent
payment. We headed to the house afterwards to celebrate with some champagne and
discuss all the changes I wanted to do before moving in.
The very next day, I was ready
to meet contractors to get estimates for all the renovations. Renovations
included:
- Knocking down the wall between the kitchen and dining room – Open concept people!
- Changing all interior doors
- Gutting the half bathroom
- Adding baseboard and crown molding to the entire house
- Refurbishing the wood floors
- Removing wall paper and wood paneling
- Install recessed lighting
I finally decided on one of
the 8 contractors, because we knew him. Unfortunately, whether you know the
person or not, all contractors are the same. I needed to get everything done in
3 weeks because my lease was up at the end of the month and I needed to be out of my apartment!
My renovation process was pretty seamless, minus the 3 weeks of patiently
waiting to actually live in my house. I took this time to pack up my apartment,
which I thought I was doing a good job of until my mom saw my progress and took
charge.
On the very last day of renovations, (the day before I was to move in)
my contractor tried to pull a fast one on me and ask for more money. MORE
MONEY?! It was an interesting conversation to say the least. This is why you
should always make sure you have a contract in place before starting any type
of job. Even though it was a lot of blood, sweat and tears (I don't mean this literally), it was completely
worth the investment. I’m still unpacking boxes and deciding how to set up my
furniture, so it will definitely be a process. I can’t wait to share the before
and after pictures with you! And now that I have a home office, you’ll be
hearing from me more often.
