Hello hello, and welcome to Episode 92 of Life On the Brink!
Last summer, my husband and I decided it was time to start thinking about buying a house. This summer, I’m coming to you from my new home. Simple as that? Hardly. The past year has been full of unknowns and new challenges, but also lots of beautiful surprises. Whether you are hoping to move or buy in the near future or simply wish to be prepared for when the time comes, I’ve got you covered!
In this episode I'm sharing:
-how I navigated the world of real estate
-some of my own experience as a first-time home buyer
-early renovation timelines
-3 things I wish I'd known as a new homeowner
and LOTS more...
Plus, this week's Little Joy involves a quintessential summer activity, and I'm sharing a comforting album of music that will make any space feel cozy and homey.
For the complete show notes, click here!
For full transcript, click here!
Site: lifeonthebrink.live
Social: @anna_on_the_keys
Hello hello, and welcome to Episode 92 of Life On the Brink!
Last summer, my husband and I decided it was time to start thinking about buying a house. This summer, I’m coming to you from my new home. Simple as that? Hardly. The past year has been full of unknowns and new challenges, but also lots of beautiful surprises. Whether you are hoping to move or buy in the near future or simply wish to be prepared for when the time comes, I’ve got you covered!
In this episode I'm sharing:
-how I navigated the world of real estate
-some of my own experience as a first-time home buyer
-early renovation timelines
-3 things I wish I'd known as a new homeowner
and LOTS more...
Plus, this week's Little Joy involves a quintessential summer activity, and I'm sharing a comforting album of music that will make any space feel cozy and homey.
For the complete show notes, click here!
For full transcript, click here!
Site: lifeonthebrink.live
Social: @anna_on_the_keys
Welcome to Life on the brink, a lovely little place filled with inspiration and creativity that is dedicated to enjoying life one day at a time. I'm Ana. And together, we're exploring the beautiful things in this world that fascinate us, and often discovering something new. Hello, hello, and welcome to episode 92 of life on the brink. Welcome. It is a fine summer's day, as I'm coming to you. The first sunflowers that I planted this year have bloomed. And the goldfinches are already eating up all of the seeds. It's just that time of year, I hope that you're doing well, that you are eating lots of watermelon, or peaches, and all of those things. I am currently very much in a house and renovating mode. I've done quite a bit of work in our kitchen this past week, more updates to come, I think that room will probably become quote unquote, finalized before several others. And I'll be sure to do a full like before and after and whatnot. But suffice to say I am just really loving, decorating and being in this house. And I've been reflecting a lot on this house journey that really started about a year ago. And so today's episode is going to be all about my experience as a first time homebuyer, the things that I learned things that served me well, and also things that I wish I'd known or would have done differently. So in case you are someone who's hoping to buy in the near future or simply will be moving, because some of this is just moving applicable, I think, or you would simply like to be prepared for when the time comes. I've got all that covered. Because there have been a lot of unknowns, and a lot of challenges. And but also a lot of beautiful surprises. And I think the real estate market is confusing and terrifying place. But it is doable, and it's really not that bad. So before we get into it, let's make a cup of tea. Let's get cozy. Today I'm drinking a cup of Jasmine green tea. Jasmine I feel is just the perfect thing for a summer afternoon tastes like a flower. And I have it in a beautifully shaped mug that's covered in like watercolor flowers. It's just gorgeous. And at the same time comforting and invigorating. So whatever you'd like to drink, please go ahead and get that ready. Let's settle in. And allow me to begin with a little bit of a recap. And a timeline. In case you haven't caught these pieces as I've been sharing them over the past year. Or if you're just tuning in Hello, welcome. This is life on the brink. So my husband and I His name is Josh, I'm gonna reference him constantly. We lived in an apartment, two bedrooms, 888 square feet. I only remember that because it's a crazy number like that. We lived in that apartment. I will we rented it for three years. I lived in it for about two and a half total. But we we got it when we moved in when we got married in 2020. And so about a year ago, we decided to actually have a conversation about buying a house and what that could look like what we would dream hope I want out of that experience. Because we were starting to feel it a little bit the the space, the for me, I was really feeling the lack of trees, or private outdoor space. And we just we liked having people over and it was a little bit cramped sometimes. And we really did enjoy our apartment, but we decided to talk about what the next step would look like. So we found a realtor in September of last year and I'll talk more about that later. And I spent almost every day spending quite a bit of time scouring their real estate search portal website for prospective homes. And Josh and I went to see a total of four houses in person. He actually found the one that that we ended up picking and we now live in and we saw this home in mid October. We bid on it the same day we put in an offer that was that was crazy for me. But we did and then we got ourselves into A little bit of a bidding war, which was a bit stressful, but then we got it and, and we closed in November. And then we moved in in February. And I'll talk a bit more about that as well. And I have never felt more like an adult in my life than when Josh and I went and had to sit in front of a lawyer and sign all these papers. And then they gave us a set of keys, and we own a house. It's just absolutely crazy. And it feels kind of surreal, especially the first time I think, and I love our new house. And as we're continuing to renovate, and I'm decorating and adding little touches and pieces, it feels more and more like a real home. And of course, I will gush constantly about the backyard, which does face trees and a pond. And every morning, I look out of the very big master bedroom window into the beautiful yard. And I just let that soak in first thing in the morning. So now that you have a little bit of context into this story in the timeline, and whatnot, allow me to share with you some tips that really helped me during the searching of the house, the buying process and the moving process. Which as I said, some of those can be applied to whether you're renting or not, are just going to be moving soon. But I do have a little side note, which is that this list in this episode will focus less on the finances of home buying, because that's in my head kind of its own thing, and also very different for everyone, everyone's situation is going to be different. So for that I would recommend speaking to your bank, someone who works there or with a trusted family member who has moved perhaps, and then just ask your realtor a bunch of questions. Right, then these are eight tips for moving and making a home. Number one, something that truly just kept my sanity is to find a trustworthy realtor, and then trust that realtor. Usually when I enter a new enterprise, or I am getting into something new, I research it fully, until I feel confident on my own about how it works. But this was actually funnily enough, one area that I didn't do that. And I'm really glad that I didn't. House buying is a crazy and sometimes scary process. But there are people who have literally made their living translating that process to the layperson, aka you and me. And they do that every day. And those people are realtors, and ours was just awesome in that way. So, Josh, and I found our realtor through a family member. And if you are in the Hampton Roads area and are looking to buy a house, please let me know, because I'll give you her contact information. She was lovely. And so once we met with her, I proceeded to just ask her a lot of questions as we got to each next step, rather than doing a bunch of independent research, or trying to make sure that I understood the entire process. From the beginning, I just took it one step at a time and let her guide us. And that really did a lot for my peace of mind because I am an over thinker. And if you're an over thinker like me, then this might be something to keep in mind. I trusted her judgment. And I never really learned what all was involved in the home buying process until it was actually applicable to me, that personally worked out very well for us. And also, Josh was on the same page with me and we were figuring it out. So if you're prone to overthinking this might be a great idea. Number two, I would highly recommend making a list of priorities and also have deal breakers. This was something that Josh and I did before we ever started looking for a house. This was kind of our first step when we sat down and I thought what does this house look like? What are the things it has to have? For us that was at least three bedrooms, because we were in an apartment that had two bedrooms, and we needed more space. So at least three, Josh was very committed to the idea of a garage, because he had a lot of tools and nowhere to put them. And for me, of course, I wanted somewhere to garden some sort of green space. The the yard was actually more important to me than the structure of the house, really. And there were other things. I have the list somewhere. But then we also made a list of priorities, things that were moderately important things that were kind of important and things that just you know, dream scenario would have been nice to have. And actually I should find that list. Hold on. Okay, miraculously, I found this list, I can't get a hold of most of our books still, but I actually found it. So, for us the absolute, like most important things we were looking for were three bedrooms. One and a half bathrooms, at least a garage, a backyard, and the fact that we didn't want to house on a main road. And then, as far as like spacing, we wanted to give more priority if possible, to living room space and kitchen. As opposed to larger bedrooms or, you know, whatever else. Then we had things that were pretty high on the list, which were hardwood floors or laminate floors, because I hate carpet. And we'll talk about that. Then having an ensuite bathroom in the master bathroom. And then I had like, preferred styles have home of architectural styles that I'd seen on like Redfin, this house is not any of those, but just things that I found beautiful. Then I have a note that says lots of windows, porch or patio, those are things that would have been nice, because our previous home, the apartment didn't have a lot of natural light, and had nowhere to sit outside without just being in the grass by your neighbor's cars. And then I had lists of my favorite neighborhoods in Hampton Roads, which is the general area I live in. Oh, I made a note that I really loved built in Shelves, windows in the kitchen, something that faces the woods or water either in the front or backyard. And those are like the dream scenario things. This is really hilarious. So as far as the architectural style, this house did not fall into that. But it does have a fair amount of windows and what Windows there are, are quite large, they're like, not the standard Windows size, they're wider, it does have a back deck. And it does face woods, and water. So that is really like the dream. No built in Shelves anywhere. But you know more adding shelves here and there. Yeah, this is really cool to look back on. So that was the list that I made, I recommend that you and whoever might be living in this new home with you make a list like this. That way, it's easy to go into a prospective home and look at the things that can be worked around the things that may or may not work. And it also will help you recognize your house when you see it. For example, this house that we bought has quite a bit of carpet. But that's changeable. And we are in the process of changing that. It does have some hardwood as well and tile here and there. But when I stood in the backyard, and I saw all the trees and the bushes and the flowers, it felt like home like this could be home and we could make this house into what we want it to be. So especially because real estate can move very quickly, I think it's a good idea to know what you're looking for. So that when you see it, you know what it is? Does that make sense? So in order to do that, I would recommend just thinking about your lifestyle. Think about the way you use your current space, and what are the things that frustrate you about that space. That'll help you find what you need in your next home. Alright, third tip is to get the moodboards going, I started my home Pinterest boards is probably like seven of them, I don't know, one for each room. And then like a general house board, I started working on them before we found our house because number one, it just got me really excited about the potential of house. And two, it helped me enter each new prospective house with maybe a little bit more of an artistic eye, I was able to see what elements I found so beautiful in these mood boards, you know, and I was able to see how I could bring those elements to many different houses in order to make them feel like home to me. Also, it's remained a very useful resource since moving into our house. I referenced them consistently even as I'm going through things on Facebook marketplace, lighting fixtures, what have you. That's what I was doing today. So that's why I bring it up. I referenced those boards. And in fact, if you're interested in hearing more about how to decorate or design a space, on your own and on a budget, I would send you over to podcast episode number 81 which is called designing my first house and how to revamp your space on a budget. So feel free to check that out if you're if you're on board with all the mood board. Number four is to accept that your schedule and space will be different for a while All and to make adjustments as necessary. So like I mentioned, Josh, and I closed on this house in November of last year, but our apartment lease wasn't up until the end of February. So in theory, there was a scenario in which we could have packed everything up and moved it into this house. And if everything could have been cleaned, and the maintenance people could have done whatever they were going to do, and another tenant was moved in to begin paying rent, then we could have shaved off a month or two of rent. In that hypothetical, however, that would have put a very big move, and all of the stress that comes with that, right at Christmas time. So part of me like that's a very special time, obviously. And not only that, it's a very busy time of the year for everyone. And especially, you know, for my teaching job and my performing various jobs, there's already a lot going on. So adding a move during that time, which has happened as a child, I remember moving right at Christmas time. And I remember that year very specifically. And pretty fondly. However, because it was going to be such a transitional time, and was going to have some added stress on it. We elected not to take away the simplicity and the coziness and the wonderfulness of Christmas. Not to say that you need to have you know all those things to have a wonderful Christmas. But we decided instead to use December and January to do some bigger renovation projects at the new house such as the big wallpaper, big wallpapering job in the dining room. That some flooring, we tore up the carpet in the master bedroom, downstairs, etc, lots of painting, and cleaning. We did that through December in January. And then we gradually moved our things into the home in February, and we were out of the apartment by mid February, I can't remember I think it was the 11th. And this came with some different challenges and that we were splitting a lot of our evenings, a lot of our time off between the two houses. But for us, the slower timeline was definitely far less stressful. And I understand that that is not possible in every scenario. And maybe you're looking for a home and you just have to get one and because you have to move. So in that situation, I would look at your time and your space. And think about what things really don't need to happen right now. What adjustments can you make? Because this is a transitional time? It's not your new normal? It's just, it's just an in between? Does that make sense? Sometimes when routines or schedules become altered, a little part of my brain freaks out like, Is this how you want every day of your life to be but that's not really fair, because you're not in a normal stage of your life. You're in between, you're moving. So make adjustments as necessary. All right, number five, this is a big one. Ask for help when packing or cleaning, or moving. If at all possible, I recommend reaching out to your family or your community when making big moves, as it makes things so much easier. And things go way quicker than you think they're going to. There were a few days in February when Josh and I needed to haul a lot of bigger items like the couch and the washing machine and the dryer. And we had no truck at the time. And so our family came out in droves with trucks and dollies and cables and all sorts of things. And everything was moved in, like two hours or something. And likewise, we've had several days where we've needed to either clean the apartment before it was before we turned into keys or to clean the new house. And I would you know no pressure, I would say you you're not obligated in any way. But if you're free, we're moving some stuff or we're cleaning today I would send these texts out to my family. And you know they love us this is what community is I think some people are afraid to impose upon others but I would say instead just show your gratitude. Whether that is you know, with bagels if it's an early morning or however you would like to celebrate or the next time that someone else in your life is moving, then you can offer up your help or your truck. I'm going to leave a photo in the show notes of I basically made a meme to ask my family to help us move. I'm so employed some creativity but we everyone has people in their life that would come to their aid, if if it was needed. So I recommend just asking because it can't hurt. Number six on this list is to meet your neighbors. This is something I've been very intentional about, as I kind of let it slide at the apartment that we still live at. Fortunately, the people around me were very friendly and nice. And I did learn who they were over time. But when we moved into this house, I wanted to make sure I introduced myself and got to know who they were. And Josh is really good at this. So I just followed his lead, basically, it's been so beneficial, introducing myself to the neighbors on either side of our house, as well as those across the street helped to provide a very quick sense of community. And I love knowing that I have people that I can count on. So close by. I've been baking for said neighbors, and actually, one of our neighbors next to us moved out shortly after we moved in. And so I did some baking for them as they left. And then we got new neighbors next to us people even newer than us. And so I introduced us with some banana bread, and they made us baked goods in turn. And would you believe me, if I told you that last week, we had dinner at their house, it was like in real life, that sort of Gilmore Girls community neighborhood feeling it was amazing. So you never know, you might as well introduce yourself as early as you can when you move into a new place. Because then you can start to have a little neighborhood community. And number seven on this list sort of goes hand in hand, which is to walk through your neighborhood. And this can happen on you know, in stages on various walks, taking long walks through my new neighborhood has not only introduced me to other neighbors, people that I relate to quite a bit that don't live on my street, for example. And it's also helped to create a mental map of the streets surrounding my own. I love to see what kind of places I'm able to explore just on my feet. And it's nice to explore a new place, and then watch it become familiar over time. And my last apartment for removed, I lived very close to a library, which was fantastic. I used to walk there all the time. And since moving Josh and I have found trails and good places to bike and nice bike routes, and we made the eight minute walk to Dairy Queen. I mentioned that it was a little joy a couple of weeks ago, we live very, very close to a Dairy Queen. So that seems like you know, a summer must do. But we're finding places that we didn't even know about just by walking and talking with the people that have lived here longer than us. And finally, number eight, I recommend making space for observation. In some cases, I found it very useful to live in a space for a little bit before making big changes. For example, I haven't made too many changes or big plans for the garden in our new backyard. As there are already so many things growing out there. Just this week, lilies have bloomed right outside the bedroom window. And I didn't know that they were there. I'm taking time through this growing season to see what's growing and how it grows. And have only filled those sections that are very empty, with veggies and herbs. And so likewise in the house, I'm noticing how our routines have shifted in this new space. And then I've let those routines dictate the kinds of furniture, art and color that accompany them. It's a much slower process. But all in all, I'd say that our move to our first home was fairly smooth. We were fortunate in the fact that we didn't move very far away from our old apartment, we were staying in the area, and we have a lot of family in this area. And we had time in our lease, like I mentioned before, which made things less stressful, your moving situation may be very different. So just give yourself Grace where you need it. I hope that these eight tips will help you guide you give you encouragement, and ideas. But now I'd like to introduce just three things that I could think of that I would do differently, or that I wish I'd thought of before moving and settling into this new house. Number one is to find reliable contractors and servicers before you need them. Problems will naturally arise from plumbing or electrical issues, to landscaping challenges to renovation questions and sometimes those problems will arise at very inopportune moments. So my suggestion is to find help before you need it, either from local loved ones or even from the previous homeowner, if at all possible For example, since moving into our home in February, Josh and I have become very, very well acquainted with the pest control service that the previous owner of this house used. However, it would have been more useful to establish that relationship before we had need of them. And I have, perhaps more more graphic stories, but I won't go there. I would just establish those connections as early as you can, so that you have someone on call. Or if you don't know who the previous owner of your home contracted, then just speak to people in your area until you can find a good one, one that suits you. My second point, would be to be flexible with timelines. And I'm speaking to myself on this one still, because we all want our new house to magically come together and feel like a home instantly. But I'm again, learning the benefits of going easy on myself in terms of deadlines. I did mention at the beginning of this year, that my main goal for 2023 was to make this new house feel like a home and be like, quote unquote, done generally, by Christmas time, it is now the end of June. And as the year is pretty much half over, I feel like perhaps my version of what done means needs to be adjusted. I do feel like much progress will be made between now and then. And I am using this summer to spend a lot of time on House projects. But it's okay, if it's not done by the end of the year. We're going to be in this house for several years. And it's just time to take each step each project one thing at a time rather than set a hard deadline. And I think it would have been more useful if I had that mindset earlier on not to say that my goal of having things done or having Christmas as a goal was bad. I think I just needed to let it be more flexible in my brain. And finally, my final suggestion to you that I wish I had considered more is to time your new commutes. This sounds like perhaps a no brainer. But trust me when I tell you that looking at the distance on Google Maps is not going to be the same as actually driving to work, or to school or to Trader Joe's in your actual routine. So either before you move in, or in the first few weeks of living in a new space, I recommend timing yourself and giving yourself lots of time to get where you're going so that you have like an accurate assessment to work from. And that you really observe the light patterns and the traffic patterns, as well as where your closest gas station is. I've spent too many mornings over the past several months running late. And though I'm getting the hang of it now, I highly recommend getting comfortable with it sooner than I did. I think it also just takes a little bit of time to get used to which lane you're supposed to be in and what time the school buses are going to come around, etc. So I would just be more proactive in knowing how much time it takes to get places or just give yourself bigger cushions than you think you do. So with that, I hope that this episode is useful that it's encouraging that hopefully, the home buying process and the moving process is a little bit less scary. You don't have to be an expert at it. It's just a matter of doing it when it's time. And if you're interested in more house related content, I just want to recommend a few different episodes to you podcast number 83 is interior design through slow style with my guests Zandra Zahra, and there's podcast 61, which is tips and habits for keeping a tidy home. And I found that even during this in between time, trying to keep things as tidy as I can has helped with my mental sanity. And of course podcast 66 is called listening to your needs and times of transition. All of those complement this episode very well. If you are moving soon then I wish you all the best. And of course I'm going to keep updating as we move into the second half of this year and Josh and I move into the next big stage of renovating and unpacking and moving etc. But now I will be right back with this week's little joy this week's little joy was a morning that I spent by myself. It was this part Saturday, and I actually went to the farmers market. I haven't done it nearly as much this summer one because my favorite bakery is not coming to this market, they decided to build a brick and mortar shop. And it's too far away from my house. And so good luck to them. sad for me. But also, it's just been a very busy summer and with the house and all that stuff, but this past weekend, I had a free Saturday morning. Josh wasn't too keen to go with me, he had some other stuff to do. So I went by myself. And it was just the most lovely morning, the weather was warm. And even though there was threat of rain in the clouds, it didn't rain. And it turns out that apparently, in the absence of this one bakery that really had a monopoly on the market, several other big shops and and places have either come up with new tents or have added like breakfast pastry to their menus, which is great news for me. So after I got my produce and various market goodies, I found a spinach and feta Quassel and I got a coffee, sat outside and read my book. And it was just glorious. My favorite market, by the way is in Colonial Williamsburg, which just transports me I feel like I'm so far away from home, just in a different, different place. And actually, I'm quite close to I live much closer to it than I did before, which is which is nice. And the moment I got off the highway and on to what is called the colonial Parkway, which connects Jamestown Yorktown and Williamsburg it just it felt different. I rolled the windows down. I turned up the classical music and just enjoyed how green the trees were. And how, how far away it felt a glorious morning by myself, my soul needed it. So of course, I invite you to ponder your previous week, and to think about the little joys that have brought you little moments of happiness. Speaking of allow me to share this week's album of music is by Chet Baker. It's called Chet Baker sings. Colin, it could happen to you. I don't remember what I was listening to. I think it was probably online or something. And I heard just the most beautiful relaxing music. And I thought what is that and then I paid attention to it. And of course it was Chet Baker singing. If you're unfamiliar, Chet Baker was a jazz trumpet player and vocalist in the sort of bebop era, particularly in the cool and West Coast styles of jazz, if you're interested in those details. But of course, his voice is like butter to me. And so this album of music includes vocal tunes by him. And I think it's just a really nice, comforting album that when played will make any space feel a little bit more homey? I think so. Feel free to give it a listen. I hope that it's as lovely to you as it's been to me. And of course, you can find the show notes for this episode at life on the brink dot live. It's where you can also send me an email if you have an episode idea or question please feel free to reach out. And it's also where you can sign up for the free monthly newsletter which will be coming out next week. If you're listening to this the day it comes out. I hope you have a lovely week that you're enjoying the summertime and that you're able to enjoy your home or your space just a little bit more this week. Until next time, thank you so much for listening. Thank you for tuning in to this episode of Life on the brink. If you're enjoying these episodes, please feel free to leave a star rating or even better leave a review on Apple podcasts to help spread the word. For podcast show notes and extra inspirational posts throughout the week. Head to the blog at life on the brink dot live. And if you'd like a little extra dose of inspiration in your life, sign up for the monthly newsletter, which lights up your inbox the first Friday of each month. Thank you so much for listening. And until next time, friends you have a lovely week. Bye