Into the North
I am officially moving from my apartment just south of the river to to a duplex in north-central Austin. The move will tentatively take place in mid-May, and yes, I'm thrilled and excited, though I will be sad to leave south Austin. I will also be further away from the Beekeeper, who also lives in south-central Austin, but he frequently talks about moving, so it may not matter much in the long run. In addition, the duplex I rented is a two bedroom-- woohoo! I plan to use the second bedroom as an office/guest room, but I'm certain Brandon will adopt it as his "room away from home" when he's there. So, in case you were wondering, no, we aren't "shacking up," as one friend who asked me put it. I choose not to "shack up" until or unless I'm engaged, with a specific wedding date already set. That may seem nonsensical or old-fashioned, but I personally just think it's best that way. At least I believe it is for me.
Anyway, as for my new abode--- it's an adorable 1940s duplex with beautiful hardwood floors, carved tile in the bathroom, crown molding, a large fenced yard and all the usual modern amenities, AND is located in a nice established neighborhood. It has pretty much everything I was looking for with a few minor exceptions. I would have preferred a house instead of a duplex, but it's not that big of a deal. I also would have liked more storage space and a slightly larger place in general. My duplex is about 750 square feet, which is within the size I was looking for, albeit on the small end, and it's not exactly loaded with massive storage areas. That's ok though. I'll just have to simplify my lifestyle, which is something I wanted to do anyway. Besides, my apartment now is smaller (though it has A LOT more storage space) and the apartment I lived in when I first moved to Austin was MUCH smaller and did not have much storage, so I know I can pull it off. I'll just have to get more creative, which I think is a good thing.
And anyway, it is kind of ridiculous if a single person and her dog cannot live comfortably in a 750 square foot house!
During my house/duplex search, I discovered many places that were within my budget and quite a bit larger than the place I rented but they were also very far south or north or had carpet or linoleum or just had that shoddy and soulless 1970s/80s construction quality. I also discovered the much treasured pre-1960s houses with hardwood floors that were not only tiny but would cost you an arm and a leg to rent. There was one house I looked at just a few blocks north-east of the place I rented that was about 100 square feet larger with a much smaller yard but was renting for 1,000 dollars a month! Yes, it'd be nice to have the extra space, and the privacy of having a house instead of a duplex, but it definitely wasn't worth it for the price. Besides, I really wanted a decent yard for Queequeg, and I got it with my duplex.
I also looked for places in my favorite side of town-- south-central Austin. Of course, with my budget it became painfully obvious that I couldn't afford anything other than a 400 square foot teeny-tiny house or duplex. Yeah, um, no thanks! As much as I love the Bouldin Creek/Travis Heights/South Congress area, I'm not willing to pay 950 dollars a month for a 450 square foot garage apartment with no private yard. I'm also not willing to rent a 1200 square foot house or duplex for 775 a month in Boonies South Austin or Cedar Park. Or a dilapidated but quaint 1930s house with no appliances, no bus routes to ANY grocery store or shopping center (no, not even Walmart!) on the eastside for 700 a month.
My point is: I searched for quite awhile and always came up with dead ends. There was always some deal breaker problem with each place I found-- either no pets over 30 lbs (mine is 45), it had carpet, was over my budget, didn't have a fenced yard, or was on some bizarre, busless side of town.
And thus, I found my little post-war duplex. And I am pleased. As with boyfriends, you may not find everything you always thought you wanted, but if you're lucky and persistent and you refuse to settle, you'll eventually find a place that's pretty damn close to perfect. And, in fact, it may turn out to be exactly what you were looking for without even knowing it. But we'll see ...
Anyway, as for my new abode--- it's an adorable 1940s duplex with beautiful hardwood floors, carved tile in the bathroom, crown molding, a large fenced yard and all the usual modern amenities, AND is located in a nice established neighborhood. It has pretty much everything I was looking for with a few minor exceptions. I would have preferred a house instead of a duplex, but it's not that big of a deal. I also would have liked more storage space and a slightly larger place in general. My duplex is about 750 square feet, which is within the size I was looking for, albeit on the small end, and it's not exactly loaded with massive storage areas. That's ok though. I'll just have to simplify my lifestyle, which is something I wanted to do anyway. Besides, my apartment now is smaller (though it has A LOT more storage space) and the apartment I lived in when I first moved to Austin was MUCH smaller and did not have much storage, so I know I can pull it off. I'll just have to get more creative, which I think is a good thing.
And anyway, it is kind of ridiculous if a single person and her dog cannot live comfortably in a 750 square foot house!
During my house/duplex search, I discovered many places that were within my budget and quite a bit larger than the place I rented but they were also very far south or north or had carpet or linoleum or just had that shoddy and soulless 1970s/80s construction quality. I also discovered the much treasured pre-1960s houses with hardwood floors that were not only tiny but would cost you an arm and a leg to rent. There was one house I looked at just a few blocks north-east of the place I rented that was about 100 square feet larger with a much smaller yard but was renting for 1,000 dollars a month! Yes, it'd be nice to have the extra space, and the privacy of having a house instead of a duplex, but it definitely wasn't worth it for the price. Besides, I really wanted a decent yard for Queequeg, and I got it with my duplex.
I also looked for places in my favorite side of town-- south-central Austin. Of course, with my budget it became painfully obvious that I couldn't afford anything other than a 400 square foot teeny-tiny house or duplex. Yeah, um, no thanks! As much as I love the Bouldin Creek/Travis Heights/South Congress area, I'm not willing to pay 950 dollars a month for a 450 square foot garage apartment with no private yard. I'm also not willing to rent a 1200 square foot house or duplex for 775 a month in Boonies South Austin or Cedar Park. Or a dilapidated but quaint 1930s house with no appliances, no bus routes to ANY grocery store or shopping center (no, not even Walmart!) on the eastside for 700 a month.
My point is: I searched for quite awhile and always came up with dead ends. There was always some deal breaker problem with each place I found-- either no pets over 30 lbs (mine is 45), it had carpet, was over my budget, didn't have a fenced yard, or was on some bizarre, busless side of town.
And thus, I found my little post-war duplex. And I am pleased. As with boyfriends, you may not find everything you always thought you wanted, but if you're lucky and persistent and you refuse to settle, you'll eventually find a place that's pretty damn close to perfect. And, in fact, it may turn out to be exactly what you were looking for without even knowing it. But we'll see ...