Mr Ruby Slippers and I have been wanting to buy our own house for ages now. We're renting, and it does seem kind of a waste to be throwing money at our landlords every month with nothing to show for it in the end. Also, we really want our own place where we don't have to share a garden with other people who are constantly talking loudly and having parties. Our landlords are very nice (we had some horrors before them!) but the fact is there are just too many people always around, making noise. I like a quiet existence. Plus there is always someone in the garden; be it the maid, one of the two gardeners, or all the scores of people who seem to come and work with our landlady every day. This means our wimp of a cat is too scared to go do his kitty business in the garden. Which results in him screaming at me all day, which is just a teensy bit annoying.
Ok, it's annoying as all hell.
Quite aside from the problem that we actually don't have any money to buy a house, I'm a bit picky. (Read as: everything I want is expensive). And we REALLY don't have money for expensive.
These are my "must-haves" when it comes to a house:
1) Must be in a non-dodgy (expensive) area.
2) Must have walls on all sides that are higher than I am.
3) Must have electric fencing or similar on all of said walls.
4) Must have an electric gate.
5) Must be a stand alone house, not a cluster-home/townhouse complex, unless said complex has separated houses with no shared walls.
6) Must be light and airy, for I cannot function in a dark, cramped space.
Do you see my problem? 1-5, and probably 6, all scream EXPENSIVE!!!! But I refuse to live somewhere where I don't feel at least marginally safe, and I need all that stuff to feel safe. And #6 to feel happy :-)
And we haven't even got inside the house yet!
Actually, I don't want much from a house. I'd like the kitchen to have a free-standing island, and I'd like the sink and/or cooking area to face the tv, because I like to watch concerts and movie commentaries while I cook and wash dishes. I'd like the rooms not to be too small and pokey, I'd like big windows, and I'd like an upstairs, because I just enjoy the view too much to give it up.
Unfortunately I'm not seeing this happening any time before we win the lottery.
8 hours ago
I totally get it! I took classes in Interior Design long ago and I think it's ruined me! I have awful expensive tastes too!
ReplyDelete"Champagne taste on a beer budget" is what my dad always said. lol
You should visit with your banker - get an idea of what your price range is. Then go home and take a hard look at your monthly expenses, pick a mortgage amount you're very comfortable with, then call a realtor and see a few houses in that price range. You might be surprised what your money buys you. And, if it isn't all you hoped, you'll have an idea of how much more to save to get to the next level. You know?
ReplyDeleteI hear you!
ReplyDeleteMy husband and I have somewhat simple qualifications for a house - has to have a basement (we live in Kansas and tornadoes aren't nearly as fun as they seem like they should be); the garage cannot stick out farther than the front of the house (and preferably it would be around the side or back or detached and hidden); it has to have a porch or the ability to have one added (not a deck, a porch. A deck is an obvious add on and usually uncovered, or covered with a cheap tin roof. A porch is part of the house, by golly! And has a proper roof on it that can support a porch swing); it must have three bedrooms and an office space, plus a living room, kitchen, and actual dining room (not necessarily a formal dining room, but a space for dining that is obviously separate from either the kitchen or the living room).
And that all does add up to more than we can afford at this time. Sadly.
There is an upside to renting, though - you're not generally responsible for repairs aside from calling the landlord/lady. Which is nice. But doesn't make up for having a space of your very own.