Open House

We always knew that our current home would be a "starter home" for about 5 or so years. For the past year we'd been feeling the itch to move, and it's been growing a lot stronger recently. So we've been working on specifics details like a time line, financial plan, investigating school districts and taxes. But part of the "fun" has been going to open houses and seeing what's out there.

We know some of the things we want (4+ bedrooms, 2.5+ baths, non-basement laundry, a decent yard, master suite, attached garage) and some of the things we don't want (like a ranch or patio style home, pool, location on a main road). But going to some open homes has allowed us to consider different things (and sometimes reconsider things we said we'd want). Two of our favorites have been these:

House #1 - pretty much the perfect house in person.Only 6 yrs old with an awesome entry way, great space and natural light, and a beautiful open kitchen with hardwood floors. It has a wonderful master suite with HUGE walk in closet, and a second floor laundry just to name a few perks. Even the price & location are perfect for us. Unfortunately the yard is fairly small. Dave doesn't seem to like my idea of excavating out the hillside in the back. Sure, it makes the yard private, but what's a move without some demolition?!




House #2 has a much bigger yard, and it's a wooded lot to boot. It has a first floor office with french doors and a beautiful fire place in the formal living room. The basement is finished and has a "mother in law" suite which is a nice open bedroom and a full bath with sitting area. The house is only 6 years old and is environmentally friendly as it is geothermal heated and has a whole house fresh air exchange. Unfortunately it's a little above our price comfort zone, but hey, you never know! Maybe it will be on the market for a while and they will drop their price.

But we both agree that while looking at houses is fun, it's kind of a tease since we're looking to move early next summer / late spring. We still have a few minor cosmetic things to finish up with this house before we put it on the market. And we definitely can't move unless we sell this house - 2 mortgages are not in the cards. Since we didn't win the big powerball jackpot, I'll guess we'll just have to dig deeper and find some patience.