Things I've Learned From House Hunting

As most of our friends and family know, we have been searching for the right house for some time.  Some may say we are picky, I say we are meticulous.  I thought I would share some of the things I have learned about house hunting/selling a house.

1. Make sure your house smells good.  This is key.  We have walked into some pretty nasty smelling houses.  This could mean one of many things, you are dirty, smelly people, you have pets that you do not clean up after, you smoke or you have mold issues.  Making a home smell nice is inviting (Scentsy products do wonders to a home :) ).
2. Clean up.  It's unbelievable to me how messy some people are.  If you are selling your home, make sure it's appealing, first impressions are everything.  If nothing else, run a vacuum to make sure there are not dead bugs laying all over the place.
3. Price your home right.  It's been our experience, if the home is priced right, it sells quickly.  In our experience we find the ones that are overpriced for the market (or our budget :/) sit on the market longer and the seller becomes unwilling to negotiate.
4. Staging.  This goes back to cleaning up.  If the home is staged right, it gives the buyer an idea of what the home will look like with their stuff.  If you have too much or too little, sometimes it's hard for they buyer to get a feel for the size of the home.  *Side note: we have walked into homes that people clearly need to be nominated for the hoarders show. 
5. Information.  Realtors that leave disclosures, maps and neighborhood information for the potential buyers have a much better chance selling the home.  All of that information is helpful to the buyer, especially if they are new to the neighborhood.  Plus it shows that the seller is up front and honest about the condition of the home.

Clearly I am no expert, but I find these small things helpful.

A Dream Home Wish List

With Ryan switching jobs, we had to put our house hunt on hold. I feel like every time we start looking for a house, there is always a reason we have to put it on hold. Hopefully now that Ryan is settled into a new job that we can see him being at for a while, we can really start our house hunt and have a house at the end of it.


Ryan’s new saying is “we are going to miss this” and I can honestly say I don’t think I will miss apartment living. I have been living in an apartment/dorm room for the last ten years and I'm ready to have a home!  I’ve started a mental checklist of a few of the things I would love to have.

So for my dream home wish list (in no particular order):

• A large sink. Our apartment was built in 1986 and has not been upgraded. So to wash a pan, a pot, a Crockpot, anything that is oddly shaped is near impossible. I usually end up spilling water all over the place because it doesn’t fit in the sink and is hard to rinse. There has been a time where I washed a dish in the bathtub (don’t judge).
• Cabinet space. We have very little cabinet space. Our dishes are too large to fit in the cabinet so they have to be put away at an angle, which means most of my dishes are in storage. 
• Counter top space. Are you sensing a theme? We need a bigger kitchen! There is very little to any countertop space and when you have nowhere to put a microwave but on top of the counter, well that means your space to cook is very limited.
• A working refrigerator. A few months ago our refrigerator quit working. It took the apartment complex two days to fix it, so I ended up throwing out about $100 worth of food. Since then our refrigerator has constantly dripped. We have called several times with no fix. The bottom drawer fills with water which means I have to throw out the food that sits in that drawer. We have cups inside the fridge to catch the water but it doesn’t always do the trick. 
• Neighbors that don’t smoke pot. If you follow me on twitter, you know that we come home to a very smelly apartment several times a week, especially on Fridays. It would be nice to have neighbors that don’t smoke pot, but if they do, a place where we won’t have to smell it.
• A basement! I have lovely Auburn pictures that my husband bought me for Christmas two years ago. We don’t currently have a place to hang them, so they are still sitting wrapped in the original brown paper until we can find a place for them. It would be nice to have a basement to have a sports themed room or a place for our future children to play in.
• More than two bedrooms or at least a place for an office/craft room. Right now our guest bedroom is a catch all. The dishes that I mentioned are stored in the closet, the crafts are stored in a bin in the corner. The dresser and chest of drawers (or as my husband calls it chester drawers) is filled with odds and ends. As much as I try to declutter, the stuff just accumulates. It would be nice to have a desk to sit at with the computer and or a room to organize craft supplies. 
• A fenced in yard. This one is huge. Our poor puppy sits in a kennel while we are at work. It would be nice for him to have a place to run around in after we get home. Right now he has to settle for a quick walk around the block and hanging out on our patio. Not to mention I could build my garden!
• Windows! Right now our apartment has two windows which are covered by thick curtains to keep the sun out. Unfortunately our apartment does not circulate air very well so if we leave the windows open the apartment heats up like a sauna, which means we live in a dungeon. My husband has so lovingly called me a vampire on more than one occasion. 
• A deck. I love to eat outside on patios but that can get a little expensive. I would love to have a deck or patio area that we can grill out, have a fire pit and hang out at night. A few of the homes we liked had a screened in porch as well as a deck. In a dream world I would love to have both!

I’m sure if I gave it a little more thought I could come up with several more items but alas I am out of time. I know these items don’t make a house a home, we can be happy anywhere, but they sure would be comfortable!