The hunt continues

Another weekend, another bunch of open homes to view.

Today we looked at 5 houses, all in the same range of RV.

The first house obviously had some issues with the flooring or, worse, the  piles. Every room was uneven, had sections that gave a lot under your feet when you walked over it...basically, it was worrying. They wanted $5k under RV, but it would cost so  much more to fix if it was the piles. And fixing something this serious isn't high on my list of things I'm willing to do when I get a house.

House number two was locked, and so the estate agent broke in by reaching in through an open window to unlock the back door. Which didn't give me high hopes as to the security of the place. It was nice enough inside, although the bathroom would need to be completely redone, and there was a lot of mould and damp in the ceiling. Also, it's rented to students who have not looked after the place.

House number 3 had an advertised open day of 1.45. We, along with a dozen other people, got there at about 20 to 2. It was funny, because by now we began to recognise other people who were also seeing the same houses as us. We waited until quarter to, then walked up to the house- no sign of the real estate agent. Everyone was standing around at this point. I'd say around 30 people were there. At 5 to 2 she showed up, took her time getting out of the car, then turned around and instead of apologising for being late she said, "Come on then!" and walked up into the house. That turned me off immediately, moreso than the rundown look of the house. The steps leading up were ridiculously steep, and the last step, onto the front porch was very high, even for me (and I'm a smidge under 5 foot 8). The house was nice enough inside, if somewhat run down, and the estate agent didn't even bother handing out flyers with information- she was too busy having a chat with someone she knew. We had a quick look at the garden, but the dead mouse on the lawn - and the horrified look on its face- were enough of an omen. We were out of there!

And on to the fourth house. It was in a lovely location, at the bottom of a quiet cul-de-sac. But as soon as we stepped in it was obvious the photos were very old, and the rooms were tiny. They were what I'd call a UK double- you could fit a double bed in to the room, but that's about it. I want a NZ double, which have room for a double bed and a tonne of furniture or, even like the room I have here at our rental, which could easily fit two double beds and still have room to move around. I wasn't impressed, overall, and it just seemed incredibly dinky for what they were asking, even despite the wonderful view.

My flatmate, B, remarked that maybe we were saving the best until last. And when we walked up to the 5th house, I knew she was right. It was, quite simply, amazing. Same beautiful views, but huge rooms, well maintained, not a spot of mould anywhere. The garden was smallish (which suits me fine) but the rooms were huge and the kitchen and bathroom lovely. The downside- we overheard the agent talking to one of the 40 or more people who were there, and they were wanting $50-80k over RV. Which is insane even though it was beautiful.

So. A wasted day in many respects. I walked out of the last house feeling incredibly dejected. When will I find a place that's right for me, in the right price range? I don't want much, not really. Just somewhere that isn't damp and isn't falling apart.

Next weekend. It's a mantra I keep telling myself. Next weekend, it'll turn up, the perfect house for me. 

The practice run

I'd barely finished writing the last blog post when the estate agent called to say that someone was putting in an offer on House A. He said if I was still interested I could go and have another look yesterday afternoon. So we zoomed round, a well-experienced friend in tow, and had another look round.

The agent was...not very pleasant. But I liked the place and after a lot of talk with my friends and a long thought process, I called the agent last night and put in an offer, under the asking price. I'm not good at this negotiating type business so my friend advised me on what to offer, and I'm glad I took her advice! She gave me an important piece of advice, which is the most useful thing I've heard or read so far.

She said: Either go into a house purchase thinking sensibly or emotionally. Either is fine, just know what you're looking for. If it's your dream house, bid emotionally- place a higher bid to ensure you get the place, and if it's your ideal home, you won't think about the money you could have saved if you'd bid lower. But if it's not your dream house, bid sensibly- figure out how much it'll cost to make the place liveable and also resaleable a few years down the line. And use that figure to help you figure what lower-than-asked bid you're willing to put in.

And so I decided to be a sensible bidder. It certainly wasn't my dream house. So I put in an offer 10k under asking price. I went to the agents this afternoon and signed the Sale and Purchase agreement. I felt a bit...not bullied, but strongly led by the agent at times, and I didn't like his whole attitude. It meant that although I made sure the conditions and clauses were what I wanted, I had to stand up for myself more than I'd have liked. So I was more nervous than elated when I left the agents.

He said he was going to call the vendor as soon as I left and put forward the two offers he'd received (he'd expected three but only two ended up being signed, which was interesting). I got home and about 10 minutes later the agent phoned.

The vendor went with the other offer. The agent said that they'd offered slightly more than I had and that there wasn't much in it. So I'm quite happy that I offered what I did.

The strangest thing was that, overall, I'm not all that disappointed. I didn't like how rushed everything was as I much prefer to sit and consider than dash into something literally overnight. I think that if my offer had been accepted, I would have been a nervous wreck every day until we had possession, worrying.

Now I feel like I can sit back, keep looking, and that I know what to expect from making offers and signing agreements. So I'm calling this house my practice run.

Who knows what'll happen next! Maybe the perfect house is just around the corner!

The hunt- is it almost over?

I've been house hunting for a couple of months now. I know that in the grand scheme of things that's hardly any length of time at all, but it feels like forever.

Possibly it's the impending deadline of our rental house lease being up at the beginning of December breathing down my neck, but I'd hoped we'd have found somewhere by now. I had pictured it all in my head- find a house by the beginning of October, move in by December.

A few weeks ago I thought I'd found the perfect place- decent enough looking, great location, few minor things that needed to be fixed, but it had a lot of character. Luckily we managed to get hold of the building report from the last time the house had been sold, a year or so ago (it's not what you know, it's who you know!) which made it clear that the house was basically falling down and would require more money than I could ever afford to make it safe and liveable. Typical of me, really, to find a house like that and like it.

Still, I wasn't broken hearted, just dejected. Week after week we'd view houses, and none of them were the right ones. And I began to realise that there was a difference between my Dream Forever House and my Dream For-A-While House. So I started to reconsider my Must-haves list.

Two months ago I started out with this list:

Must  have:
Three double bedrooms
Modern kitchen and bathroom
OSP
Reasonably sized garden (not less than 400sqm total)
Be in a certain area of the city

Would prefer, but not deal breaker:
Open plan kitchen/dining/living
Second toilet
Easy care garden

And now, I've found a house that ticks some of my Must Haves (location, OSP, garden size and ease) but fails to meet them for the kitchen and room size. And yet I love it. I adore it. I could immediately picture us living there and it's all I've thought of since.

The house has two double bedrooms and one single, but they have built in wardrobes. It has a decent sized lounge, and an open plan kitchen and dining room, leading into an adorable little conservatory. It has a separate laundry (you have to go outside to get to it) with a second toilet, and an even more separate office/workspace. The garden is a postage stamp, but adorable. The decor is older than I am. And there are cracks in the walls and ceiling that I'd have to fix. At least one section of the roof needs replacing asap.

And yet. I'm in love with it. I can imagine curling up in the conservatory reading a book. I can imagine what the bedrooms would look like with our furniture and painted up the way I like. It could be amazing. It could be home.

I had a feeling, as the weekend approached that this would be it- that one of the houses I'd planned to see this weekend would be The One. I suspected it would be house A, the one I've fallen in love with, which had just gone on the market on Friday, or house B, a house that had been on the market for awhile but had dropped 10k in price. House A was the last place we looked at yesterday. But to make sure it was the one, we went to look at a couple more today- one was lovely and well done up but didn't entrance me the way house A did (or at least, not in a way that wasn't related to the light fixtures which I've taken photos of as they would look amazing in house A. And house B was just...not right. I walked in and thought 'meh, whatever'.

And to me, that's made it clear that house A is the right one.

Which means, on Tuesday (since today is a Bank Holiday) I have to:
Arrange a second viewing
Talk to my mortgage advisor at the bank
Hire a solicitor

All so I can:
Make an offer on a house.

I feel a bit sick just typing that. Like that feeling you have at the top of a theme park ride, before you drop twenty storeys.

Fingers crossed this is all going to work out!

Ah, the first post.

My name is Becca. I'm a 30 year old university teacher who has finally come to terms with the fact that it's about time to stop living like a student, and start living like an adult. Or at least, my idea of what an adult should do.

For the past 10 years, I've moved from place to place for school and work and when I haven't been living back at home with my parents, I've been in rented accomodation. Until I moved back to New Zealand last year, I didn't even own any furniture (something that had to change very quickly once it became clear that 99% of rental properties come unfurnished here). Suddenly, literally overnight, I owned a bed and a dressing table and a lounge suite and bookcases-that-are-full-of-DVDs. It was a pretty big step and it's taken me about a year to come to terms with how permanent having furniture is- I can't just pack up and run away anymore. Not that I've ever actually done that, but it was nice to have the option, if I'd wanted.

And now that I've gotten over the whole idea of buying furniture, I'm starting the process of trying to take an even bigger step- buying a house. It's a natural progression, since I have a very secure job and I'm earning enough to shell out a fair amount in rent each month. New Zealand house prices are low enough- at least where I live- that the mortgage would be less than my rent, so it makes sense. Logically, I can see that, and it's exciting. But that doesn't stop the thrill of fear that runs through me when I think about it too long.

I started this blog to chronicle my journey of discovery- both of a house that I can call home, and also of myself, as a grownup.

I've called the blog 'The Birdhouse Project' for a couple of reasons. Firstly, because the name is a bit of a pun on my family name. Secondly, because I have six budgerigars who I adore very much and who I'm sure are very excited by the prospect of a new place to fly about. And thirdly because the budgies, my bestfriend/roommate B and myself will  be creating ourselves a little nest and feathering it as we go.

Here's hoping it's a smooth but entertaining journey!