Its here. The day we are leaving to check out homes in our next city. The camera bag is packed, the suitcase is packed. We will leave once I get off work (perhaps a little bit early), and stop about 2/3 of the way there. Because I really hate driving through the mountains at night. During the day its fun, but what's the rush? So we will stop, and then Saturday morning at about 1pm start trying to find our home.
We have a list of about 10 homes to check out this weekend... still not sure how long we are staying... if we figure out what we like pretty quick (with a backup plan in case it falls through), then we might head back to Louisville Sunday.... if not, or if we just want to explore and take it easy, we will be back on Monday.
So what do most of the homes we are looking at have in common?
hardwood floors... or more importantly... limited amounts of carpet. Some carpet is ok... it really is... but we have 2 cats and have hated having an apartment with nothing but carpet.
cabinet space... or the room to add more. Our kitchen is overflowing with gadgets and pans. We want more room. So for the most part the homes we are looking at either have similar space to what we have now...more room... or have the space to add more... its nice to have a kitchen designer/builder for a father.
the Ranch. All of the homes we are looking at are of the Ranch style. I like the idea of everything being on the same floor. It simplifies things. And thats how I want to try to make life in our new city... as simple as possible... for having a husband in Gen Surg residency of course...
3bed 2bath. Because why would we want any smaller than that? And why would I want to take care of anything bigger?
more space. Our current apartment is a little over 1200sqf... everything on our list is on average 1500-1600. I want to spread out a little bit.
close. To the hospital (within 15 minutes usually (at least our online favorites are)). To the mall. To anywhere I might want to frequent.... Sonic... Homegoods... Lowes...
established. All of the homes on our list were built in the 60s and 70s. I don't like the huge pop-up cheaply made homes that anything is anymore... and I like some trees. Not the tiny 4 ft tall things that the builder put in to watch grow... and not in the woods... But some real trees in the yard to watch blossom and fall year round... even if it creates extra yard work for me. Leaves=compost. Better yet.. these older homes on our list have been updated.
the yard. Most of the homes on the list are on 1/4 to 1/3 of an acre. A manageable size for us.. (me).. with enough room to throw in some raised garden beds.
safe. I used a crime map online to help decide the areas we wanted to look... and had the realtor drive around a couple I wasn't sure about. And utilized Google street view to check out a few for myself. Nothing will beat seeing it in person, but this has definitely helped weed out a few.
What I can't completely tell from the photos but hope to end up with.
light. I want windows. I want to have sunshine light my days. I don't want to feel like I'm living in a dungeon.
open spaces. What I love about our apartment and our parents' homes is that the kitchen opens up to the living area. We can cook and still talk to our friends... we don't have to feel like we are slaving away alone while everyone enjoys themselves somewhere else... or feel crowded in by everyone standing in the kitchen.
laundry room. I want a room for this if we can. Or at least not have the machines behind a closet in a narrow hallway like we do now. This might be asking too much but I can dream.
So wish us luck. I've already read all of the horror stories from others about buying a home during residency. But you aren't stopping us. Maybe we are idiots... but we are also a medical couple that isn't in debt. And that helps in our decision. My husband has no student loans. The only thing we are in debt for is a small monthly car payment. He did the military route for med school... so at the end of these 5 years (also a big reason we are buying) we don't have to freak out about selling quickly. Because our next location there will be either free housing on base or enough of a housing stipend (on top of pay) to cover an apartment. So we can take our time selling... or rent out our house. We have thought about this a lot. Maybe we are still naive but we have to learn our own lessons. So please just wish us luck. Say a prayer that we find what we are looking for this weekend and it all goes smoothly. Be happy for us.
Because we are about to live here:
We have a list of about 10 homes to check out this weekend... still not sure how long we are staying... if we figure out what we like pretty quick (with a backup plan in case it falls through), then we might head back to Louisville Sunday.... if not, or if we just want to explore and take it easy, we will be back on Monday.
So what do most of the homes we are looking at have in common?
hardwood floors... or more importantly... limited amounts of carpet. Some carpet is ok... it really is... but we have 2 cats and have hated having an apartment with nothing but carpet.
cabinet space... or the room to add more. Our kitchen is overflowing with gadgets and pans. We want more room. So for the most part the homes we are looking at either have similar space to what we have now...more room... or have the space to add more... its nice to have a kitchen designer/builder for a father.
the Ranch. All of the homes we are looking at are of the Ranch style. I like the idea of everything being on the same floor. It simplifies things. And thats how I want to try to make life in our new city... as simple as possible... for having a husband in Gen Surg residency of course...
3bed 2bath. Because why would we want any smaller than that? And why would I want to take care of anything bigger?
more space. Our current apartment is a little over 1200sqf... everything on our list is on average 1500-1600. I want to spread out a little bit.
close. To the hospital (within 15 minutes usually (at least our online favorites are)). To the mall. To anywhere I might want to frequent.... Sonic... Homegoods... Lowes...
established. All of the homes on our list were built in the 60s and 70s. I don't like the huge pop-up cheaply made homes that anything is anymore... and I like some trees. Not the tiny 4 ft tall things that the builder put in to watch grow... and not in the woods... But some real trees in the yard to watch blossom and fall year round... even if it creates extra yard work for me. Leaves=compost. Better yet.. these older homes on our list have been updated.
the yard. Most of the homes on the list are on 1/4 to 1/3 of an acre. A manageable size for us.. (me).. with enough room to throw in some raised garden beds.
safe. I used a crime map online to help decide the areas we wanted to look... and had the realtor drive around a couple I wasn't sure about. And utilized Google street view to check out a few for myself. Nothing will beat seeing it in person, but this has definitely helped weed out a few.
What I can't completely tell from the photos but hope to end up with.
light. I want windows. I want to have sunshine light my days. I don't want to feel like I'm living in a dungeon.
open spaces. What I love about our apartment and our parents' homes is that the kitchen opens up to the living area. We can cook and still talk to our friends... we don't have to feel like we are slaving away alone while everyone enjoys themselves somewhere else... or feel crowded in by everyone standing in the kitchen.
laundry room. I want a room for this if we can. Or at least not have the machines behind a closet in a narrow hallway like we do now. This might be asking too much but I can dream.
So wish us luck. I've already read all of the horror stories from others about buying a home during residency. But you aren't stopping us. Maybe we are idiots... but we are also a medical couple that isn't in debt. And that helps in our decision. My husband has no student loans. The only thing we are in debt for is a small monthly car payment. He did the military route for med school... so at the end of these 5 years (also a big reason we are buying) we don't have to freak out about selling quickly. Because our next location there will be either free housing on base or enough of a housing stipend (on top of pay) to cover an apartment. So we can take our time selling... or rent out our house. We have thought about this a lot. Maybe we are still naive but we have to learn our own lessons. So please just wish us luck. Say a prayer that we find what we are looking for this weekend and it all goes smoothly. Be happy for us.
Because we are about to live here:
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| And this is downtown... |
What a huge step in your lives. Wishing you the very best of luck. Can't wait to hear how it goes.
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