Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Buying a House

So, I'm going to be buying a house sometime in the near future. The very near future.

Unfortunately,

-Houses cost money
-The houses I like are expensive
-I've never bought a house before, so I don't know what to expect.

Yesterday, Melody went with me to to look at a few houses, and then my Realtor, Stacey, took me (us) back to look at a few houses I had already seen and liked.

I really like three of the houses. I want... really really really want... two of them

House One:

Syracuse
$105,000
3 bedrooms
2 bathrooms (one of which has a hot tub. Hurray)
ready to move into
beautiful carpet and tile flooring
lots of counter space
two car garage with plenty of storage
washer/dryer hookups, but no washer or dryer
no fridge, stove, dishwasher, etc
backyard
cute back brick patio
front porch
swingset (if only i had children)
AC

Goshen
$73,000
beautiful, old Victorian home
5 bedrooms
2 bathrooms
2 staircases
various nooks and crannies
the ceiling is falling out throughout the whole second floor
the bathrooms need to be fixed
several ceiling tiles are missing from one room in the first floor
one room would need to be redone (the wallpaper is horrendous)
the kitchen has basically no counter space, though some could be put in
washer/dryer hookups, no washer/dryer
no fridge, stove, dishwasher, etc
teeny tiny yard with two trees (one's a peach tree!)
full basement that I'd be afraid to go into
huge entryway
lots of closets
lots of storage space
needs new windows (several are missing altogether, the rest aren't... winter ready)
no AC
the outside would eventually need to be painted - touched up, at least

Words can't really describe why I'm having such a hard time deciding. I want in by mid-august. So that means the first one would be best, right? Yes, probably. Oh, but that house in Goshen...
you just don't understand.

Once Melody's pics are uploaded completely on the computer, they will be added in another post.

Other things I need to learn:

*how much do dishwashers, stoves, and refrigerators cost?
*how much are washers/dryers?
*is it really worth it?

3 comments:

glassblowerscat said...

I do understand. Believe me.

Appliances aren't worth it unless not having them immediately is going to be an enormous inconvenience. The Goshen house is cheaper. Take the extra money and buy appliances, redo rooms, put in new counter space ... the works.

I've moved a lot and worked on many houses. Don't buy something just because it doesn't need immediate work. Buy something that has soul, that you really love. Even something you think is okay right now will eventually need to be changed to suit your individual style, so make your life easier and just buy something that fits you to start with, even if it needs a little work.

There. Aren't I wise?

Robin Marie said...

Very wise. And I'm definitely leading towards the Goshen house for that reason. I love it.
Thanks for the advice

Melody said...

What'd your parents think? Is it even possible?

All weekend long Alice keeps talking about all the reasons why it could be a bad idea.

Then again, Alice hasn't seen it either.