Looking at houses next week!

[Nik]

Some of you may remember that I am up against a deadline to move out of my current home and that we are looking to move near the Portland area into our first ever home.

Well fast forward to now. I have found us a realtor in Oregon and also one in Washington (as we are also considering Vancouver Wa). I also have a mortgage person now and am pre-approved for the home loan. And next week we fly up to look at our top picks of the listings. The puppies don't get to come on this trip but with any luck we will be finding their new home next week and locking it down.

Once we have closed on a house I will likely be moving up first with the pups to get settled and Sean will make trips with all our stuff until he is ready to join me. What a scary and exciting time!

Wish us luck with finding the place that is right for us. Hopefully in just a couple of short months I will be sharing lots of photos of our pups in their new home.

Also on an interesting side note next week's trip to look at homes coincides perfectly with our second wedding anniversary! Last year we went on our honeymoon (delayed by one year) for our anniversary. And this year we will be spending our anniversary finding our new home. It seems like the last three years have been non-stop full steam ahead progress for our life journey. I am hoping that next year there will be a little bit of time to relax and enjoy it all and maybe to get back to my passion project which is a novel I am working on. <3

 

[Sheila Braund]

Some of you may remember that I am up against a deadline to move out of my current home and that we are looking to move near the Portland area into our first ever home.

Well fast forward to now. I have found us a realtor in Oregon and also one in Washington (as we are also considering Vancouver Wa). I also have a mortgage person now and am pre-approved for the home loan. And next week we fly up to look at our top picks of the listings. The puppies don't get to come on this trip but with any luck we will be finding their new home next week and locking it down.

Once we have closed on a house I will likely be moving up first with the pups to get settled and Sean will make trips with all our stuff until he is ready to join me. What a scary and exciting time!

Wish us luck with finding the place that is right for us. Hopefully in just a couple of short months I will be sharing lots of photos of our pups in their new home.

Also on an interesting side note next week's trip to look at homes coincides perfectly with our second wedding anniversary! Last year we went on our honeymoon (delayed by one year) for our anniversary. And this year we will be spending our anniversary finding our new home. It seems like the last three years have been non-stop full steam ahead progress for our life journey. I am hoping that next year there will be a little bit of time to relax and enjoy it all and maybe to get back to my passion project which is a novel I am working on. <3

Wow such an exciting adventure for you all! Glad you have all your ducks in a row with pre-approved and agents looking for the perfect home for you! Good luck!

 

[Nik]

Wow such an exciting adventure for you all! Glad you have all your ducks in a row with pre-approved and agents looking for the perfect home for you! Good luck!

Thanks Sheila! Some days I feel like super woman with all the work I do for our family as well as my regular job. And then other days I feel woefully behind in everything and completely inadequate to the task at hand. Just so long as the super woman side of me holds out til we own and are living in that new home.

 

[Sheila Braund]

Thanks Sheila! Some days I feel like super woman with all the work I do for our family as well as my regular job. And then other days I feel woefully behind in everything and completely inadequate to the task at hand. Just so long as the super woman side of me holds out til we own and are living in that new home.

Buying your first home can be extremely stressful. I'm in the mortgage industry. But I'm in Canada.....So ask lots of questions....if your not getting answers I do know mortgage brokers in the states that I can give you their contact info.....Angie is one that would be happy to answer question you may have..... And she's not one that will try to steal you away from your broker you have now..... Just sometimes some brokers are great at working the numbers and getting you the best fit for a mortgage.... But not so good at explanations.

 

[Boxergirl]

I'm so excited for you! Sheila is right. House hunting and buying, especially the first time, is hugely stressful. As for feeling like super woman ... I think you've been working your butt off for a long time and you definitely qualify for the title. It's all going to pay off. I know it will. I'll cross all of my appendages that you find just the right home for your family.

 

[DennasMom]

WhooHoo!
Welcome to the PNW neighborhood!

 

[Courtney H]

That's so exciting! We bought our first home in 2014, more so for our dogs than us! We wanted them to have lots of yard to run in!

 

[Boxergirl]

Are you home yet??

 

[Nik]

We are still in the Portland area and today the offer we made on a home (yesterday) was accepted. We have all signed and Monday I give them the earnest money and schedule the inspection. We should be all closed by March 30th and we get to move in on April 12th. The couple needed two weeks rent back and we agreed to give them that in exchange for them letting us keep the washer and dryer (they really wanted to keep them for some reason).

It's a nice big fenced in yard for the dogs and the house itself is bigger then what we live in now if not quite as big as I would prefer. The best part though is that the neighborhood is extremely quiet and we are surrounded by giant cedar trees on the perimeter of the yard and there is some nature walking trail thing behind our backyard.

The house also comes with a hot tub! Yay! And a wood burning stove in the living room.

It has been a long week so far. I am utterly exhausted emotionally and physically and I am still a little scared to be excited and happy because until we are living in the house I am paranoid about it falling through. I am a worrier. It's what I do.

The house hunting process was interesting though. I learned that my husband has what I call "yard eyes". The right yard (read big) will make him blind to all other faults. We had some yelling matches as a result of this when I would reject a house because it was too tiny, had dead squirrels on the porch, river rats chilling in the yard, gangster obnoxious neighbors, a tiny murder hole in the master bedroom or was unlivable due to holes in the floors, mold in the ceilings and in one case no electricity run into the house.

He was mad at me for loving a house that didn't have side yard access (though the garage could be converted to a pass through for him) despite the fact that every update imaginable had been done to the home, it had two fire places, was beautiful in every way and had a full landscaped large back yard with mature fruit trees (cherry, apple, plum, orange, lemons, etc) and a separate fenced in vegetable garden, a meat smoker house, a gorgeously covered back deck with a built in bar, a built in giant bbq, etc.

The first house we actually agreed on together we bid on and got outbid. We were heart broken and got into yelling matches about what our back up should be (this also happened to be on our actual anniversary, two days ago). We slept on the disappointment and were kinder and more understanding of each other in the morning and went back to the drawing board. He looked at my second favorite with me again and I looked at his second favorite with him again and we looked at several new houses together.

The very last house of the day (yesterday) he adored and I also liked (though I was still lusting after the yard with the fruit trees and the deck with the bar and the two fireplaces). We spent an hour in that place walking the property, walking the house discussing what we would do if it was our's. Then we looked up crime for the neighborhood, drove the neighborhood several times, looked up local supermarkets etc. And finally I agreed to put an offer on it. The back deck is what sold me. Standing on the back deck overlooking the yard the only thing you could hear was the wind through the trees. Looking straight out you saw the large trees surrounding you and it felt like a secluded forest retreat. I demanded that he agree to make a few updates for me if we went with the house (replace the current chain link fence with a solid wood fence), add a second wood burning stove to the downstairs, convert the nicely built existing shed into my outdoor workout/yoga studio by adding insulation and nicer flooring. And then we sent in our offer with our realtor's help.

This morning our realtor let us know that they countered because they wanted to keep the washer and dryer but would let them go in exchange for letting them rent back for an extra two weeks. We agreed and signed the new contract. Yay!

We still looked at our scheduled houses in Vancouver today just in case. And we found one house we might both be happy with as a back up. It is a gorgeous house with two fireplaces but the neighbors are closer then I would like and the yard is smaller then I would like.

And that has been my week. About 8 houses a day with no breaks for eating or anything. By the time we get back to the hotel we have been so exhausted that we have been passing out into dead sleep. I am happy to stop looking at this point and tomorrow we go visit OUR home again so I can take some pictures.

Which means in a little over a month the pups, the husband, the kitties and I will be Portlandians! I sure hope the dogs get used to the rain fast (they aren't big fans of actual weather of any sort).

 

[Boxergirl]

I so hope everything goes off without a hitch. I really believe that house hunting is one of the bigger stressors in a marriage. It's easier if one person doesn't really care much. I can't wait to see pictures.

 

[Nik]

I took a few photos when we went by our house today and by a few i mean a ridiculous amount but for some reason the forum page keeps telling me the files are too big to post :-(

 

[Boxergirl]

We'll just have to wait then. I hope you both still love your choice after a second viewing.

 

[Nik]

The house with my husband standing out front^



Back deck - me in red w our realtor^

And of course the back yard...





And yes we still love it at second viewing. Even after learning we need to replace the adorable wood burning stove.

 

[Boxergirl]

Very nice! I love the deck and the yard! And yes, definitely replace that stove. You're going to love it. I'm so happy for you.

 

[Nik]

Here is an aerial view ... you can see the walking paved trail directly behind our home. I love having green space that can never be built on behind the house.

 

[Boxergirl]

Now that's really nice.

 

[Pastor Dave]

Looks great....I like the red hat, too. Location is everything...if one plans on selling. Lots of room for your doggies, lots of vertical things for the dogs to pee on. I try to keep my mastiff away from the shrubs...they are quickly destroyed, as you probably know. Anyway....someone told me that moving is worse than going through a fire....not sure what that means, but anyway....the meatloaf in the oven is calling me. Have a great day.

 

[Nik]

Thanks Boxergirl! and Pastor Dave! Ya I love the location and neighborhood and everyone says that is the most important part.

The dogs were so thrilled to see us back at home yesterday. I really cant wait to show them their new home with their improved and larger yard. I think they will love it.

This whole process is very stressful though. Yesterday we did the inspection and came back with some plumbing issues, moisture in the attic and a few other things that need to be addressed asap. So we are trying to work with the owners to see if they will fix the major issues. Things are adding up quickly as to where the money needs to go once we move in and I am just praying that the owners work with us on this. The realtor seems confident that they will, but I am a worrier. Once we hear back as to whether they can fix this stuff then I only have the appraisal to worry and fret over and after that I believe we are home free til closing. Hopefully the worrying portion ends quickly so I can focus on packing.

 

[glen]

Wow nik that is a beautiful house and garden, i hope it goes real smooth for you and we see pics of you all there soon. Wishing you all the happiness you deserve

 

[Nik]

Thanks Glen! I am so nervous right now waiting to figure out how the things found in inspection will be handled. Apparently we need to make adendums to the contract and send it to them and they can either deny or agree or counter. If they deny it means we don't get the house. Ugh.

I can't wait until this part is over and I know it is for 100% sure our's.