03/07/2017
I haven't really been blogging as much lately, so in case I missed it:
Last year we found out that my husband had to move for his job, we rented out our home and I stayed with my mother for a couple of months while we house hunted down here. We bid on a few houses and had to back out due to bad inspections and not really finding a house we wanted in our budget that we thought would be a good investment and safe for our daughter (mold). -I emboldened the highlights for the lazy readers out there!
Since August we have been living in an apartment here, its safe and its okay... but they don't maintain it well, its apartment living with a baby and two dogs, and other tenants don't clean up or leash their dogs (half the time). I have got two scars from a dog since living here, had to return a dog to its owner 2-3 times, and my dog has been in a fight 2 times with a loose dog! When my husband has tdy and is gone for work I have to walk our two dogs and our baby, and with all these lovely people who aren't responsible with their dogs it can be SUPER stressful! It is also 900 sq ft, which is small when you are used to, and have stuff that fits in, a 1500 sq foot house with a 2 car garage. It also feels cramped with a toddler and two dogs running around!
About to be OUR NEW HOUSE:
$69,300 Purchase Price- we were approved for $140k and wanted to stay under 120k
HUD Foreclosure
Sight Unseen- inside in person, I drove by and peeked in windows and saw pictures and a walkthrough video online but being such a good deal and having looked for so long we didn't wanna wait to put in an offer.
Good Investment- Neighborhood comps are much higher so we can put money in and get it back, and we have wiggle room to make any unforeseen repairs, or just unseen ones!
Newer AC Unit- It is a 2013 model so it was just a few years ago!
3 bedrooms/ 2 baths
1600 sq ft roughly according to the listing (it looks a little smaller though, honestly)
2 car garage
Brick House
In a culdasac/safe area
Good School District
We are buying this property with the intention of turning it into a rental property. With our first home we became unintentional landlords, but we always intended on eventually becoming landlords... just not with that house! Although we are buying this property to turn into an eventual rental it will be our residence for at least a few years prior, so I'm going to make this house our home!
The Plan:
Open the wall between the living room and dining room
Replace Flooring in the majority of the house
Paint the whole house
New Toilet(s) (one is broken, if the other looks yucky I'll replace it)
Epoxy Shower/Tub Combo if needed (I hate dingy looking ones!)
Install Walk in Shower in Master
Remove some Upper Cabinets
Refurbish Cabinets
Install Privacy Fence
Replace Front Door
Replace Locks
New Lights (2 need replaced)
I also have some question mark items on my list as I haven't gone in yet. I will be going inside soon however to see if there is anything that needs added to the list as well as to measure and start coming up with ideas/budgeting. We want to get as much done as possible prior to move in!
Originally we were planning on hiring much of this out as diy-ing with a toddler isn't super easy, but our budget just took a huge hit thanks to some jerk who vandalized our 2012 AC unit at our first house... so now we have to pay to replace it, as repairing it will be at least $1300 and that won't guarantee it is fixed that will just let them know if another expensive part needs fixed hence they recommend replacing! Not super news but that is what we are stuck with so we are just trying to take it in stride and be thankful that everyone has been so helpful and that we are able financially to afford to replace it because some people would really struggle our where we live it isn't very optional, it gets really hot and our tenants need AC in summer!
Financials:
Finances are my domain. My husband brings home the bacon and I conserve it. Many people are broke, and not just because of the unlivable minimum (and often times above minimum) wage! People don't budget, they don't wait, they want something and they want it now. I want things to, but above all I want security. I want to know that we can pay all of our bills, that my daughter won't ever have to go hungry, go without utilities, reliable/safe transportation, or a home!
We live below our means and because of that (and the fact our house is rented, and this house is relatively cheap) it might be possible for us to pay off this new house we are buying in under 5 years! We are not rich by any means, we have a middle class income! "It's not about how much you make, it is how much you keep". We keep our costs down! I'll do another blog post later about our budget, but I am super excited and I wanted to share with ya'll.
Look forward to some DIY posts and before and after pictures!
No comments:
Post a Comment