Wheeling and Dealing
Last Friday was one exhausting and productive day! Here is a recap of the events. Warning: This is lengthy. But it is worth the read if you empathize with house hunting.
9 A.M. My husband, infant son, and I left my in-laws to drive approximately three hours to our future home. En route we made two stops: one to fill our car with fuel; another to feed the baby. Our quest was to find a suitable house for our family conditional on the sale of our condominium. We enjoyed viewing the changing prairie landscape along the way, including a trek through the scenic river valley. Furthermore, in accordance with local tradition and superstition, we honked at the “lone tree” outside of the city.
12:30 P.M. After arriving at our destination, we grabbed a quick bite to eat at McDonalds. We rushed off to meet our realtor downtown. Now the house viewings began (along with breaks to feed our son). Our goal was to find a 3 + 1 bedroom home, fully developed, with two bathrooms, roomy kitchen, garage, and large back yard.
House #1: Pros. Move in ready. Large family room with laminate flooring. Bathrooms renovated with beautiful tile work. Cons. Unfinished basement. Almost non-existent back yard.
House #2: Pros. Funky décor with bright colors. Glorious kitchen with island, pantry, and modern appliance package. Fully developed with other great renovations (including heated tile floor in washroom!). Cons. Small master bedroom. Tiny back yard. Alley entry to garage. Dangerous drop-off at edges of lawn.
House #3: Pros. Beautiful view of park. New hardwood flooring throughout the house. Huge double attached garage. Cons. Acceptable, though poorly maintained, back yard. Older construction. Four level split design.
House #4: Pros. Professionally landscaped yard with deck and interlocking brick fire pit area (absolutely beautiful!). Large recreational room. Sizeable master bedroom with en suite 2-piece bathroom. Newer construction. Cons. Small “dated” kitchen. No washroom in basement (though roughed in). Single detached garage.
House #5: Pros. Large roomy house with double attached garage and sizeable dining/family room area. Walk-in closet in master bedroom. Cons. Very small, poorly maintained, back yard. Sump pump problems in basement.
House #6: Pros. Designer kitchen with stainless steel appliances and massive island (totally amazing!). Show home décor. Projection room in basement with surround sound. Cons. 2 + 1 bedroom design. Dirt back yard in shadow of highway.
House #7: Pros. Renovated kitchen. Laminate flooring (tile style) throughout. Large recreational room and bedroom in the basement. Cons. Small living/dining room. Older furnace. Acceptable, though poorly maintained, back yard. Alley entry to garage.
5:30 P.M. After an exhausting and overwhelming afternoon, we returned to the realtor’s office where we placed an offer on one of the seven houses above (while I was feeding our son). We felt we needed to move quickly since several potential buyers were interested in viewing the property. Here is a little challenge for you: Guess which house we placed an offer on. Explain your reasoning.
6:30 P.M. My husband and I enjoyed a much needed meal at Boston Pizza. At this point, I was near tears because of the craziness of the day (our son WAS in tears!).
8:00 P.M. With our house hunting adventure temporarily behind us, we headed back home. Sadly, we run over a few baby ducks (totally unavoidable since there was a car coming in the other direction). I burst into tears and cried for awhile. It felt good! Soon after, we received a phone call from our realtor at home. An offer was placed on our condominium! In joyous celebration, I reached over and honked the horn of the car as we passed the “lone tree” outside of the city. Our trip back was spent de-briefing the day, processing why we placed the offer on the house we selected, negotiating terms of sales with our condominium realtor, refueling the car, and feeding the child.
11:00 P.M. We signed the final papers confirming the conditional sale of our condominium on the corner of Highway # and D. Road. Our realtor looked ridiculously comical has he held a flashlight in his mouth while holding down papers on the hood of his truck in the drizzle. If this all goes through, our condo would have sold in eight days AND we would receive exactly what we wanted from the sale. What a perfect end to an insanely busy day of wheeling and dealing.
11:20 P.M. We reached my in-laws home safe and sound. We praise God for all His goodness and grace. THANK YOU for all your prayers.
Update: We have accepted the counter offer on the house we looked at on our trip, though we are waiting on financing and the home inspector's report to solidify our decision. Furthermore, we will know if the conditions have been lifted on the sale of our condo at the end of this week.
9 A.M. My husband, infant son, and I left my in-laws to drive approximately three hours to our future home. En route we made two stops: one to fill our car with fuel; another to feed the baby. Our quest was to find a suitable house for our family conditional on the sale of our condominium. We enjoyed viewing the changing prairie landscape along the way, including a trek through the scenic river valley. Furthermore, in accordance with local tradition and superstition, we honked at the “lone tree” outside of the city.
12:30 P.M. After arriving at our destination, we grabbed a quick bite to eat at McDonalds. We rushed off to meet our realtor downtown. Now the house viewings began (along with breaks to feed our son). Our goal was to find a 3 + 1 bedroom home, fully developed, with two bathrooms, roomy kitchen, garage, and large back yard.
House #1: Pros. Move in ready. Large family room with laminate flooring. Bathrooms renovated with beautiful tile work. Cons. Unfinished basement. Almost non-existent back yard.
House #2: Pros. Funky décor with bright colors. Glorious kitchen with island, pantry, and modern appliance package. Fully developed with other great renovations (including heated tile floor in washroom!). Cons. Small master bedroom. Tiny back yard. Alley entry to garage. Dangerous drop-off at edges of lawn.
House #3: Pros. Beautiful view of park. New hardwood flooring throughout the house. Huge double attached garage. Cons. Acceptable, though poorly maintained, back yard. Older construction. Four level split design.
House #4: Pros. Professionally landscaped yard with deck and interlocking brick fire pit area (absolutely beautiful!). Large recreational room. Sizeable master bedroom with en suite 2-piece bathroom. Newer construction. Cons. Small “dated” kitchen. No washroom in basement (though roughed in). Single detached garage.
House #5: Pros. Large roomy house with double attached garage and sizeable dining/family room area. Walk-in closet in master bedroom. Cons. Very small, poorly maintained, back yard. Sump pump problems in basement.
House #6: Pros. Designer kitchen with stainless steel appliances and massive island (totally amazing!). Show home décor. Projection room in basement with surround sound. Cons. 2 + 1 bedroom design. Dirt back yard in shadow of highway.
House #7: Pros. Renovated kitchen. Laminate flooring (tile style) throughout. Large recreational room and bedroom in the basement. Cons. Small living/dining room. Older furnace. Acceptable, though poorly maintained, back yard. Alley entry to garage.
5:30 P.M. After an exhausting and overwhelming afternoon, we returned to the realtor’s office where we placed an offer on one of the seven houses above (while I was feeding our son). We felt we needed to move quickly since several potential buyers were interested in viewing the property. Here is a little challenge for you: Guess which house we placed an offer on. Explain your reasoning.
6:30 P.M. My husband and I enjoyed a much needed meal at Boston Pizza. At this point, I was near tears because of the craziness of the day (our son WAS in tears!).
8:00 P.M. With our house hunting adventure temporarily behind us, we headed back home. Sadly, we run over a few baby ducks (totally unavoidable since there was a car coming in the other direction). I burst into tears and cried for awhile. It felt good! Soon after, we received a phone call from our realtor at home. An offer was placed on our condominium! In joyous celebration, I reached over and honked the horn of the car as we passed the “lone tree” outside of the city. Our trip back was spent de-briefing the day, processing why we placed the offer on the house we selected, negotiating terms of sales with our condominium realtor, refueling the car, and feeding the child.
11:00 P.M. We signed the final papers confirming the conditional sale of our condominium on the corner of Highway # and D. Road. Our realtor looked ridiculously comical has he held a flashlight in his mouth while holding down papers on the hood of his truck in the drizzle. If this all goes through, our condo would have sold in eight days AND we would receive exactly what we wanted from the sale. What a perfect end to an insanely busy day of wheeling and dealing.
11:20 P.M. We reached my in-laws home safe and sound. We praise God for all His goodness and grace. THANK YOU for all your prayers.
Update: We have accepted the counter offer on the house we looked at on our trip, though we are waiting on financing and the home inspector's report to solidify our decision. Furthermore, we will know if the conditions have been lifted on the sale of our condo at the end of this week.