Adventures in Real Estate can take you from mighty highs to terrifying lows – queue live auctions we experienced for both buying and selling when we lived in Sydney, Australia! But in North America, if you sell in a Seller’s Market, it is probably a quick sale, with multiple offers and likely offers over asking… Now queue the dramatic music here, because after you SELL your home, you are now a Buyer-and reality check – there ain’t much out there!
Street views from one property…
Positive to Negative
Well… start by looking at everything! I literally mean everything! We started our search with a fairly hefty list, I’m not gonna lie! We just know what we want at this point, and we don’t really want to settle. However, after a couple of weeks with no houses to view, we thought it might be a good idea to broaden our search criterion.
Eyes Wide Shut
We started to get in and see some houses – and if you’ve travelled down this path before, I am here to tell you, it’s an adventure! Maybe just me, but only wanting to look at the places that meet your qualifications, or ones that come pretty close. Your eyes are open to viewing these places, but your vision is somewhat skewed. I wanted to find that dream home right away! Why weren’t the housing gods producing??
Dreams to Process
In an effort to broaden the search we decided to view anything that came onto the market that was within our budget, and within our area(s). And this is the most exhaustive, entertaining, and exciting part. We have now seen at least ½ dozen different architectural styles. As a Design professional, this is great exposure and building profile potential. I was seriously dissecting and renovating every. single. house. that we went into! Often into the wee hours I was refreshing that bathroom, ripping up the floor in that kitchen, removing the wall in that livingroom… The list goes on. My husband is no different. He wants the location, the floor plan, the city notes, the building inspection and all the rest. We are a bit much, but we are learning a lot about our own process and we are learning again, about each other…
Process to Reality
I seriously get a kick out of the visualization process. There is usually a lot of stuff that you need to look past. Often you visit homes of people who have passed, homes of divorce situations, or homes of hoarders. They all have stories to tell, and knowing what is important to keep, or restore, or remove are all pretty important.
Hit List
I like to look for the redeeming architectural features of the house like hardwood floors, vaulted ceilings, exposed beams, stained glass windows, crown mouldings and trim, built-ins and niches, decorative metal finishes etc. If none, I look at where they can be created, or inserted. I look at the quality of workmanship of finishings, and the layout and design of the home. I look at windows and lighting, and I look for ceiling height, and door/entry placement. Layout and flow – super important!
And while I am not looking for a perfect house, I want to make sure the house has good bones, and the layout and aspect are good. (Maybe why it takes us a while…)
Here’s a Concept Board I did for one…
For me, while not always pleasant looking for houses, it is always an adventure, and that makes it worthwhile! Read on for details!
Notes from the Crypt
Nightmare notes…showers and sinks in the bedrooms, I went into a house that had shifted 50% from its foundation and felt like a leaning bowling alley, been in untouched and original ornate and Italianate decor from 45 years ago, (this house also had an entry path flanked by miscellaneous stone and marble statues from lions to dolphins and seashells to reindeer!)
A bad dream basement included a stove- large enough for a body, a house so full of ‘things’ you could barely move around in it, and my personal pet peeve, houses that haven’t been cleaned you end up walking on cat litter and fishy crackers… Adventure, right?!
Wish me positive vibes, because I’m still at it, and I know there is a house out there with my name on it!!
