h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I wish you luck, Ivan.

It's actually moving beyond the fun phase for me, and into stressful...

Just remember - after the stressful phase comes the euphoric phase where you complete the purchase. And then you get to redecorate...

And remodel... which is why we're limiting ourselves to cosmetic fix-ups and not major renovations, so we don't wind up with a money pit.

Something that may be "just me" ... The day we received the keys to this, our first home, ... We entered, did a little dance-of-joy in the kitchen. Whooo, it's ours !!!

Then I went to the smallest room and, with a small nail punch, made a teeny hole in a wall immediately under the light-switch. Milady asked "why?"

BECAUSE I CAN !!!

That room is now the 'dressing room' adjunct to our bedroom. Painted and slightly architecturally changed to suit our tastes. But that small hole, less then a millimetre in size, is still plainly visible to me. A mark of personal freedom that renting or leasing can never really give.

Right under the light switch? Bad idea, you might hit a wire

When I first moved in to my last flat, I was hanging shelves and managed to drill into the main cable *before* the fuse box Fortunately, I only hit the neutral wire...

I had the offer accepted on my flat in January but the moving date that was set wasn't until mid/late March. So I did little drivebys every now and then just to remind myself that yes, it was still happening and yes, it was still there and stuff. By the time I got the keys I was OK.

Here in the UK I hate buying. The process seems so disorganised. How can you move without having a set date?

I.e. in Iceland you make your offer which will include how much you want to pay, how you're going to pay it (i.e. the split deposit/mortgage ratio), what you want included (like appliances, swing sets, etc.) and when you want the keys.

The seller can negotiate on all of those things and then when you have an agreement you have a binding contract for both parties.

I appreciate that Iceland is a lot smaller than the UK (and more digitised) but here the offer / agreement to sell isn't even binding until they have your money! And then when your money has cleared they're expected to move on the same day, which is just a logistical nightmare.

In Iceland it's easy to manage 'the chain' because everybody just negotiates a week (or more) between when they get their new place and when they have to vacate their old one, which usually gives you plenty of time to redecorate without having to live in it at the same time.

The 'system' here baffles me. Is it better where you are?

A centre-punch, with a depth of perhaps 3/8" ... And the wall box is a minimum 3" by code ... I knew I was safe.

I was in and out of every nook and cranny in this place, and then with an inspector, before I was satisfied that I would take on ownership. Having had a hand in the planning and building of maybe 8 residences, 5 industrial facilities and (lost-count) military structures, I felt safe at guessing where to poke a teeny hole.

I don't know a whole lot about the process, but presumably the contract is binding after closing, which is when it's paid for. Once we put down some earnest money, contingent upon passing inspection, etc, the home is no longer shown to other prospective buyers unless we cancel on account of conntingencies not being met. This one home is being sold "as is", so we'd need the contract to be contingent on the home passing inspection.

I've poked plenty of holes in my apartment walls, hanging artwork and stuff. And I was told I was welcome to paint any color(s) I liked provided I put it back to white before vacating. I didn't want to bother with all that painting, though.

As I have seen it, in Canada there are two aspects of a proper inspection. The first and most important is all the attributes that define if a place meets habitability codes and licences. THAT was my key concern.

The same inspector ought to point out things that really are best for insurance wants, general comforts and ecomonics (heat, air, water, etc) That side of things is where personal willingness to be a handy-couple comes into play.

With skill and comfort level, I do electrical, plumbing, heating, carpentry and masonry. Some folks are comfortable looking towards doing their own patch and paint-work, but contract someone for the more mechanical and technical side of things. I can only suggest that you see what the inspector suggests, and decide how much you think you can reasonably take on yourself, or how much you can afford to contract out.

Yep. We're neither of us really handy in the handyman sense, and while we do have a couple of friends skilled in carpentry, etc, I wouldn't want to impose too much on the kindness of friends. While certain fixes might be able to be absorbed into the mortgage loan, we certainly don't want to (a) finance too many repairs as part of the 30-year mortgage, and effectively pay many times over the cost of the work, or (b) throw every bit of discretionary income and fun money at home repairs for the next decade or longer.

If this particular house is too shabby, there's plenty of places we've seen that are newly rehabbed, and a couple of the condos were brand new.

I could look at a map, but if I recall, ... Chi-town is a bee-line from one of our major airports. For substantial feed and air-fare ...

Quick update...

We saw two homes today that we absolutely loved, and one we really liked. All three had garages, back yards, central heating and air conditioning.

#1 was vacant, newly painted, and ready to move in- it wouldn't even need cleaning. It had a cute but very tiny kitchen. I'd need to remove cabinets and install a dishwasher; I'd be happy with one of the slimmer models, though. It had a wood burning fireplace (which I love but K could care less) and bay window in the living room. Two bedrooms and a single bath upstairs, and an unfinished basement with laundry and a spare toilet (no sink or tub). It was a really nice brick home built in the mid 1940s. The only appliances were the washer and dryer.

#2 we liked, it had extra kitchen sinks on the second level and in the basement, which was fine, and full bathrooms on each level 9total of three) plus a cute back porch room which could be used for sitting or for a kitchen table. This kitchen had all appliances including a dishwasher.

The third was gorgeous. Sunny. No fireplace but a foyer with ceramic tiles. Fabulous kitchen. I expect appliances stay. The second level was a finished attic, unfortunately carpeted but I'd live. There were skylights up there. The basement was finished with aun unfinished laundry area, a rec room of sorts, a spare bedroom which we'd probably not use for that purpose, and a second full bathroom. Two bathrooms is plenty, as far as I'm concerned. (Actually, two toilets is fine).

All brick homes, all in nice areas. The first two are a bit far west for my liking but are at least close to highway on-ramps and a CTA station (the same line I ride but a couple miles further west). The third is about a mile north and a half mile west of where I am now. All three had nice lawns and backyards which would accommodate veggie patches, flower beds and/or lilac and raspberry bushes, if I were so inclined at some point.

All three are just under $250K and are bound to sell fast. So now we have to decide if we like any enough to make an offer, at which point we have 5 days to withdraw if it fails inspection.

K seems less than enthused but I wonder if he's just easier to please. Or maybe he's as nervous as I am but shows it differently...

Good luck hun, if you decide to make an offer!

So, when is the house warming party?

oooooohhhhhh

Yup...one of these is The One.

I don't quite get needing as many or more bathrooms as bedrooms - that appears to be an American thing. So while you'll have less space wasted without those, that might mean a lower resale value.

What would be important for me would be rooms with more than one window/windows at varying levels or on different sides, to get more of a feeling of time passing. And multiple smaller windows to frame views rather than just one big one, though some people prefer picture windows. I like bay windows, too

I don't get worrying about resale value. Why move?

Resale value isn't really high on our list of priorities right now, overall, though it is an important factor. Right now we're not *too* worried about that, beyond avoiding houses on major through streets or directly adjacent to commercial land. Since we're planning to take advantage of an FHA loan and a first-time buyer tax credit, we'd have to remain in the home for a minimum of three years anyway. But, that said, there are lots of reasons a person might need to move: if one's family outgrows their current home, relocation for work, in the event of (though one hopes this never happens) a long-term disability/illness which lowers income enough so as to not be sufficient to cover the payments, or when people get older and can't handle stairs,etc, or living alone on their own at all any more.

Mala, we don't *need* three bathrooms, no. The first home, beautiful as it was, was only two bedrooms. We have two bedrooms now, could make do with no less, and could *really* use the third, but we could live without it. What we'd ideally like is to have one room for the desk, filing cabinet, some bookcases, and use it as a den, and a separate spare bedroom in which we could put a bed or daybed so we could have the option of putting visitors up overnight, like my dad when he comes to visit, for example.

We definitely *need* two toilets, which is one of the reasons we've been looking to move, but a second full bath is desirable- especially in the event of overnight guests.

As for windows- the first house had a couple of glass block ones flanking the fireplace, with little shelves for knick-knacks or small plants, and I liked those. The windows in the basement were regular glass but high up. The second and last ones had your typical windows, and plenty of them, especially in the living room and the back room. Those skylights brought a lot of light into that attic, which is probably where we'd keep a spare mattress for sleepovers, since it'd be free of marauding cats. All three that we liked (first and last we liked most) had plenty of light; the first had lots of northern exposure and the last one had lots of both southern and northern. I prefer eastern and southern, on account of my plants seeming to prefer that, but the one to really avoid is western, as during summer western exposure really increases one's cooling costs.

The second home had a really cute kitchen, and someone had gone to the trouble of putting overhead cubbyholes with doors over all the closets and even the bathtub, which sits in a recessed spot. Extra storage is always good! But that one, while it cost about $40K less than the first and $20K last than the last, needs at least $50K in work. The last needs the exterior wood trim painted, and some patching and painting in the basement. No biggie.

I really love wood-burning fireplaces, and could sacrifice space to have one, but on the other hand, a less tiny kitchen would be a good thing, too. I've been lucky that for most of my life, I've lived in places with decent sized or even huge kitchens- the place we're in now had the third bedroom and pantry knocked out to expand the kitchen into one with a large eating area.

I could calculate actual square footage but I don't think you guys need all that detailed of info.

K and I have a lot to think about today. We'll be visiting his family so we can use his folks as sounding boards, too. While we know what we want, and like, it helps to get food for thought from our friends, too! I have such difficulty sometimes making simple decisions, and this one is so huge. I get nervous and second guess myself and if I keep doing that we're going to keep seeing places bought while we "think it over". K's got input, but I don't pick up a sense of urgency, so I'm not sure he thinks any of these is "The One", or if he's going to be happy wherever he's planted, or what. Gah!

Incidentally- we have seen a few places which are just *too much* space and too many rooms for us, especially as I moan and procrastinate half the time about cleaning the ones I already have. Really, two bathrooms would be plenty and when I see perfectly nice three bedroom homes with extra kitchen type arrangements, I'm almost a bit put off. Though I can appreciate why people who live in homes without central air like summer kitchens (where you have an extra sink and stove, maybe a second fridge, and a couple cabinets) in the basement so summertime cooking doesn't heat up the whole house. But truthfully, cleaning *one* kitchen is more than enough work, without having to deal with a second. Though I'd never gripe about a basement that had some actual cabinets installed.

Perfect would be two large or three bedrooms, preferably three but we'd do with two, two bathrooms or at least 1 1/2, one car garage (or deeded parking space for condo), decent sized kitchen, good sunlight, sufficient storage space or a basement, central air conditioning. Big bonus is a working fireplace, especially if it burns wood.