On the Home Front

On Day 997...

Well, a lot has happened since the last time I blogged about home shopping . There are a thousand decisions that need to be made, none of which are very thrilling. Do we build or buy? What part of town do we want to live in? Is it worth paying extra taxes to live in the city? Duplex or single-family? Do we sacrifice our sanity and do a lot of the work ourselves so that we have a slightly lower mortgage payment? How much should we care when you plan to sell it in a few years anyway?

When we moved to Asheville, we decided that we would rather not buy/build right away because we wanted to get to know the area a little better and decide which part of town we wanted to live in. Asheville is shaped like a +, so there is North, South, East & West Asheville (most of downtown is too expensive or full of shady characters). It has also been a process on deciding whether to build or to buy. There are pros and cons to both: we can either get exactly what we want and have a huge time commitment for 6 months, or settle for something a little less perfect but we could have it now. (Yes, I am a sucker for instant gratification :)

So after many hours of discussion we have decided to build instead of buy. A not being in grad school this semester (long story) had been a blessing in disguise. We now have the time to build a house, and we are hoping to significantly cut down on costs by doing a lot of it ourselves (insulation, paint, trim, hardwood, tile etc). However, deciding to build is only the beginning.

Next, we went looking for property. There is not much available in this area, and even less that is our price range. I didn't think it would be that hard, we have found some interesting things... land in the middle of a trailer park (the didn't mention that in the ad) or at the end of a 3 mile dirt road, or off the side of a cliff. We thought we had something when A's dad bought an already developed piece of property with 50+ lots, however it turns out that there are a lot of restrictions that he didn't know about, and so it is probably going to turn into a long and ugly legal battle. We really don't want to wait 2 more years. This past weekend we found some other property which is only 15 minutes from A's family and 12 to work for him and 3 for me. Our real estate agent (aka A's dad) is checking into it for us.

In all of this we have been meeting with a loan officer, and trying to keep him updated on what we are doing, what we are trying to build and where. :) It is overwhelming trying to coordinate it and very scary and sobering when you look at the amount that you are agreeing to pay. (And if you want to feel really sick, look at the amount of interest!)

So, all that to say, we have been running all over creation; looking at property, house plans, paint colors, siding types, tile designs, hardwood and carpet selections, interest rates, loan papers and more, and have nothing to show for it. However, I do think that we have found a house plan, if we can make it work on property we have found... but who knows, it could all be different tomorrow...

L