One Great Big THANK YOU to Everyone
Last night was a house-lookin' night, and Gail and I had four houses on the agenda: 1 one-story and 3 two-story houses.
As it turns out, she and I are (still) very much alike, because we both prefer two-story houses. We also prefer houses with an unusual house layout (i.e., front door is somewhere other than the immediate front-and-center of the house, angled rooms, angled ceilings, hidden rooms, etc.).
The first house we saw was the one-story, and it was in a neighborhood in which all the houses looked absolutely IDENTICAL. The only things we really liked about the house were the open spaces (which would change once we moved in enough junk) and the kitchen design/décor.
Bearing this in mind, we went to the second house. The outside of the place looked fairly unusual, as did the inside, which appealed to both of us: lots of natural light, funky angled ceilings, and that sort of thing. However, the neighborhood reminded us of places out East, where people are parking two or three cars on the road, essentially leaving one lane of traffic for commuters. Plus, all the houses looked almost shoved up together. Nice house, wrong neighborhood for us.
The third house was almost right off of I-35, and it would have taken amazing timing and concentration not to kill oneself while leaving the subdivision, due to traffic. The house itself had some pretty interesting features (plus a pool and a spacious backyard), but nothing extremely eye-catching.
The LAST house was the most expensive (possibly due to its newness, possibly due to it being right across the street from a large golf country club?), but when we got there, we were immediately awed. The streets were wide, houses spread out, and the garage was tastefully tucked behind the house with access to the alley, so there were very few cars parked in the middle of the street.
Interestingly enough, the inside spread was ALMOST IDENTICAL to the house that we saw second which we really, really liked (but just didn't like the neighborhood).
We marveled at the interior of the home, jaws hanging low at each new room, and finally had to make the decision. Gail kept whining, "I didn't want to like this house, but I KNEW I was going to!"
After realizing that we could very well afford the place, and it would be ideal for us for a good while, we decided to place a nice bid. We also agreed that if they came back with a counter-offer of half the difference, we'd take it.
We're really glad we didn't get that first house, as this one is SOOOO much cooler. Plus, the couple is younger, and probably isn't as concerned with making so much money off of the sale.
I'm really anxious about hearing back results. Please keep any and all crossable appendages crossed for us!
And a big "Thank You" cookie to all who've cheered us along the way:
[Go with the grace of G.O.D.]
As it turns out, she and I are (still) very much alike, because we both prefer two-story houses. We also prefer houses with an unusual house layout (i.e., front door is somewhere other than the immediate front-and-center of the house, angled rooms, angled ceilings, hidden rooms, etc.).
The first house we saw was the one-story, and it was in a neighborhood in which all the houses looked absolutely IDENTICAL. The only things we really liked about the house were the open spaces (which would change once we moved in enough junk) and the kitchen design/décor.
Bearing this in mind, we went to the second house. The outside of the place looked fairly unusual, as did the inside, which appealed to both of us: lots of natural light, funky angled ceilings, and that sort of thing. However, the neighborhood reminded us of places out East, where people are parking two or three cars on the road, essentially leaving one lane of traffic for commuters. Plus, all the houses looked almost shoved up together. Nice house, wrong neighborhood for us.
The third house was almost right off of I-35, and it would have taken amazing timing and concentration not to kill oneself while leaving the subdivision, due to traffic. The house itself had some pretty interesting features (plus a pool and a spacious backyard), but nothing extremely eye-catching.
The LAST house was the most expensive (possibly due to its newness, possibly due to it being right across the street from a large golf country club?), but when we got there, we were immediately awed. The streets were wide, houses spread out, and the garage was tastefully tucked behind the house with access to the alley, so there were very few cars parked in the middle of the street.
Interestingly enough, the inside spread was ALMOST IDENTICAL to the house that we saw second which we really, really liked (but just didn't like the neighborhood).
We marveled at the interior of the home, jaws hanging low at each new room, and finally had to make the decision. Gail kept whining, "I didn't want to like this house, but I KNEW I was going to!"
After realizing that we could very well afford the place, and it would be ideal for us for a good while, we decided to place a nice bid. We also agreed that if they came back with a counter-offer of half the difference, we'd take it.
We're really glad we didn't get that first house, as this one is SOOOO much cooler. Plus, the couple is younger, and probably isn't as concerned with making so much money off of the sale.
I'm really anxious about hearing back results. Please keep any and all crossable appendages crossed for us!
And a big "Thank You" cookie to all who've cheered us along the way:
[Go with the grace of G.O.D.]