I had been casually looking at houses for about a month. Nothing too serious, just seeing what was on the market. My realtor set up an account for me and sent me daily emails about new listings or any status changes. I had looked at a couple houses that I thought were cute, and every house that I was somewhat, maybe interested in had a contract pending within 48 hours. It's a crazy market right now!
So this story all started one Thursday afternoon. I got the email from Melody about a few new houses on the market. I sent her a quick text asking if we could go see 2 of the new houses. She wasn't feeling great. She had been sick, but she set up appointments for that afternoon. It was rainy and kind of gross, but my mom and I met at the first house after work at 5:15.
I walked in and immediately loved it! The kitchen has been totally redone, the bathrooms have been updated, and it had lots of windows and great natural light! We talked about it some and I decided to go ahead and place on offer on it. Then my mom and I went to get drinks before I met some friends for dinner.
My realtor called to go over the contract. I signed and then we waited. We didn't have to wait too long though. They responded pretty quickly with a counteroffer. And that's when I freaked out!
I started to have second thoughts. Not because I didn't love the house, because I did, but because all of this was so out of character for me. I am not one to act quickly. I'm a processor. I like to lay out all the options and weigh the pros and cons. There was no time for any of that. I called a friend freaking out and he came over and rubbed my back while I stress-cried and tried to talk it through with my parents. Melody said they needed an answer by 11:45. I just felt uneasy. I can't put it into words. I needed more time.
So I called her and told her to tell them no. They had 5 showings scheduled for the next day. Five! And it's a great house. I knew it was going to sale quickly. Melody told me that it was the best house that she had shown all year and if I said no to the counter, that I was going to lose the house. And I still said no...
I thought that was it. I went to work on Friday morning thinking that I had lost the house and would be starting the house hunt over again...
Melody called around 8 on Friday morning. The seller's realtor had called her to see if I had changed my mind. I asked her if there was any way my dad could come see the house. I knew that it looked beautiful, but my dad is so meticulous and particular about everything, I knew if there was a major problem with the house, he would find it. She called and arranged it and he met her over at the house before the first showing. I was nervous and called him multiple times while he was there to see what he thought of it. He finally called me when he was finished and told me that if I really liked it, he thought I should go for it. That was huge! My dad can be pretty skeptical about change and big decisions- especially involving me, so I knew he really liked it.
I called my realtor right away and told her to go for it. This was around 11am. She said that technically the counteroffer was only good until 11:45 the night before so we would basically be starting over. Don't forget that there were 5 showings that day. My realtor and I talked about it. We assumed that they would sit on my offer all day, wait until the showings were done to see what other offers they got, and then start a bidding war. I wasn't willing to do a bidding war, so I still thought that I was about to lose the house.
Melody called me around 1pm. She said that the seller was in surgery (medical professionals, FTW), but it sounded like he was planning to sign the offer. I started to get excited, but not too excited. It wasn't official yet. Until I got the text.
At 2:20. Almost exactly 21 hours after I walked in and saw the house for the first time. It was a crazy roller coaster of emotions for those 24 hours. Sheesh!
I had the home inspection last week. I was a little nervous about it when I walked in and Melody told me that they had 2 backup offers on the house. Seriously?! Did I mention that the market is insane right now?
The inspection was intense. He looked at everything and told me everything that was wrong with the house. As I was walking through it with him, I was getting nervous. The list just kept growing! I started to wonder if I had made a mistake. Then after it was over, he told me that the house was great. He said that when he heard where it was, he was worried that it was going to need a lot of work, but that the house was better than 90-95% of the older homes he inspects. What?! How bad are these other homes?
I got the report a few days later. As I was looking over it, I felt a lot of pressure not to ask for too much. There were multiple backup offers. Worse case scenario: I ask for things to be changed, they say no and walk away from it all because they have a better offer. So much stress! But I asked for what I wanted- including something that my realtor said was definitely not going to happen. She was worried that even asking for it would make them mad and they would give me less than they otherwise would. I asked for it anyway.
After really thinking it through and praying about it, I decided that I was going to ask for what I wanted and if they weren't willing to give it to me, I would have to make a decision from there. I also came to the realization that, as much as I loved the house, if something didn't work out, I was okay walking away from it. Once I came to that decision, it made things a lot less stressful!
I got the amendment to the inspection request back this week. They agreed to everything except the one thing that my realtor knew they wouldn't. I decided that I'm okay with that. I'm still glad I asked for it. It's something that I will plan to do pretty soon after I move in, but I'm okay with it not being done. I really feel good about things.
I met with the lender yesterday. My dad came with me. We discussed a couple different options and decided on the best way to go about the loan. Next up comes the appraisal.
I need to meet the insurance agent next week to talk about homeowners insurance and bundling my home and car insurance. My last State Farm agent was great. He used to call me on my birthday and stuff. He really was "like a good neighbor." He died of cancer a few years ago and the new agent is not super impressive. She does her job, but doesn't go above and beyond like Ray did, so I'm not too bummed about switching to someone else.
Once that is over then I just wait. Closing is not until the end of May, so I feel like things have moved really fast and are about to come to a halt. During that time, I plan to keep saving money. I've been stalking various websites for furniture. And I'm looking for a dog!
Big changes are coming! Look for your invitation for the housewarming soon!
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