Just bought a new home

[Xander]

The offer was sent this morning, negotiated all day, and the contract and earnest money was dropped off tonight. Tomorrow the seller signs the contract, we do inspections and all that next week, then close the property in March (part of our negotiation).

It seems like everyone around me is more excited than I am (by far) . It's times like these I question whether or not the emotion side of my brain is fried. Hm...

For Chicago people, I'm moving a few blocks east of Diversey and Clark. I didn't bother to look at the neighborhood as my friends live there and love it. It's also very dog friendly, which is extremely important.

These things are supposed to be exciting, right? I mean, I'm happy (I almost always am) but what's the difference between happy and excited?

Part of it might be that this feels like an impulse buy. I started looking at property about three weeks ago, narrowed it down quickly, saw this place on Monday, again yesterday, and now we're signing the contract? That seems fast to me... But rationally, it's efficient and I don't believe a much better outcome would stem from a longer search.

So I'm very happy with the property, the price, the process, and all that. But I'm just about as excited as I am drinking a good wine. Is anyone else like this? Why are other people more excited than me?

Maybe it's because I tend to sunk cost bad things happening (feeling as if the deal will fall through) so if it does, I expected it--no biggie-and if it doesn't, great. That's the story of my life. But oddly, I'm a very optimistic person. Maybe this is why my friends call me a robot.

I don't know... I'm just rambling.

[redav]

Congrats!

Buying a house is actually quite anticlimactic--lots of build-up, lots of tension, then ... life as usual.

"If you can keep a level head while everyone else is loosing theirs, you probably don't understand the problem."
"There is a great benefit to not planning. Failure comes as a complete and total surprise and is not preceded by a period of worry and doubt."

If you've done your homework, there are going to be moments of worry & doubt. It's a big decision, after all. I spent a looooong time 'shopping' for a house, but when I found the one I ended up buying, I moved on it pretty fast. My realtor was a bit concerned, actually. But the way I saw it, it was the opportunity I was looking for, and wasn't willing to miss it.

[nikorock28]

Perhaps it is too early to get excited as it just happened. Maybe you will get excited when you actually move into the place. Either way, I don't think it is ever bad to be level-headed about things.

[Bocheezu]

It took me about five months to find my house. I saw one the first week that was actually not bad but I figured I'd be stupid to buy a house the first week. So then I saw nothing but semi-fixer-uppers for the next four months. I told the realtor and didn't want to have to do anything to the house, but I guess she didn't fully understand what "nothing" meant.

When I finally did find a place I wanted, it was surprisingly quick, because there was another bid on the house and we had to move fast. I won the bid by $100. There was some tension there for a couple days, but everything went through. It seemed like everybody was excited about it except me. I think a lot of people tend to get overly excited about first-time anythings -- weddings, newborns, house buying. The only one out of those three that I consider a big deal are kids.

[wordsmith]

Ditched the South Loop idea, huh?

[Trillian42]

The offer was sent this morning, negotiated all day, and the contract and earnest money was dropped off tonight. Tomorrow the seller signs the contract, we do inspections and all that next week, then close the property in March (part of our negotiation).

It seems like everyone around me is more excited than I am (by far) . It's times like these I question whether or not the emotion side of my brain is fried. Hm...

For Chicago people, I'm moving a few blocks east of Diversey and Clark. I didn't bother to look at the neighborhood as my friends live there and love it. It's also very dog friendly, which is extremely important.

These things are supposed to be exciting, right? I mean, I'm happy (I almost always am) but what's the difference between happy and excited?

Part of it might be that this feels like an impulse buy. I started looking at property about three weeks ago, narrowed it down quickly, saw this place on Monday, again yesterday, and now we're signing the contract? That seems fast to me... But rationally, it's efficient and I don't believe a much better outcome would stem from a longer search.

So I'm very happy with the property, the price, the process, and all that. But I'm just about as excited as I am drinking a good wine. Is anyone else like this? Why are other people more excited than me?

Maybe it's because I tend to sunk cost bad things happening (feeling as if the deal will fall through) so if it does, I expected it--no biggie-and if it doesn't, great. That's the story of my life. But oddly, I'm a very optimistic person. Maybe this is why my friends call me a robot.

I don't know... I'm just rambling.

First, congratulations! I know when I bought my house it really didn't sink in until I spent that first night in my new home after all the people who helped me move in had left. I looked around and thought, "Wow, this is mine, I'm a homeowner!"

[SmilesSoSweet]

Congrats!!!

This time last year I was actually in escrow on a house. I did get a little excited about it too.

Then the house inspection was done and I was not happy with what I saw. (Long story).

I was able to back out of escrow and get back my earnest money as well. I continued to look for other places to live then realized that it wasn't best for me to buy a house just yet.

So I'm still renting, but my rent is WAY cheaper than what a mortgage would be.

I say don't get too excited just yet. I think it's a good thing that you are pretty mellow about it.

My boss would tell me that the house isn't yours until you're handed the keys.

[embrassezla]

I had pretty much the WORST home buying experience ever, but still, finally getting in there and realizing it was mine was pretty exhilirating. it will hit you when you do finally move in. Congrats!

[weary]

congrats xander. :)

i know it doesn't feel big now, but it will. maybe when you move in, maybe when you've been there a while. i kind of think of it like traveling. it's fun - but also work - to look for the best prices, locations, etc...and not really, really exciting 'til you're on the plane/road, or maybe even THERE.

don't sweat not feeling excited right now...nothing's wrong with you. sh*t, i've been in my home several years and i still look up sometimes (usually after some type of home improvement or maintenance work i've done myself) and think, "wow, i own a home!" :D

congrats again.

[analogman]

Congrats! We moved pretty quickly too. We went and looked at the development we eventually bought at but didn't see any good lots. 2 weeks later I stopped by again and found out that one of the buyers with a good lot had to back out. I had the sales manager put a hold on the unit, brought my wife in the next day to show her the lot, signed the contract, and put earnest money down.

Moving in will be pretty exciting. Good luck and have fun! :)

[Xander]

Thanks everyone!

Hmm... I think you guys are right. Maybe when I actually move in and am there by myself, it'll finally sink in and I'll be excited... about 30 years of debt. ;)

I'm not sure how long I'll be there, but it can be anywhere from 4-7, so I went with a 30 year fixed. The contract was signed by the seller this morning, so now it's officially off the market.

And yeah, I figured if I'm getting a dog, it would be better to be close to the lake and a dog-friendly neighborhood. South Loop lofts are nice, but this place is comparable overall. Plus, I'm more comfortable with property value risk at this location. I expect the housing market to decline this year, but in the long term, I'll be surprised if I lose money on the place.

Maybe the lack of excitement extends from knowing that I still have a lot of work to do on the place. ...redo the kitchen, put in hardwood floors, new carpet, upgrade the bath, closets, tear down a wall (if I can)... oy. I have no idea how people deal with "flipping" houses.

When the place is ready, everyone's invited to a QLC housewarming party! :p

[winneythepooh7]

Congrats! We are going to start to officially look this summer probably. In the meantime, I am happy signing my lease and spending another summer by the sea :D. I would love to buy a house in the area we live but I just don't know if we will be able to afford it.

[spiritedaway]

Congratulations!!! I agree with the others...I think the excitement will sink in once you move in.

Just a question, are you buying to flip? If so, I wonder if that has anything to do with the excitement level...

The one thing that I find interesting is that you didn't check out your neighborhood because your friends are there and love it? I'm not suggesting that your friends are wrong, but I have a few friends in some not-so-good neighborhood (at least statistically speaking, in terms of crime rates), and they still love and swear by it. Whenever I go to check out houses, I always read up on the neighborhood and check out what is around the area (is it residential, business, other?) Personally, I find it easier to get excited if I am just absolutely positive that this is the right place...and one of those factors (among many) is neighborhood. Just a thought.

[Xander]

Good luck on your search Winney! I have to admit it was fun looking at a bunch of different places. It's like when we were kids, my friends loved Halloween for the candy, but I did because I got to see someone else's house and glimpse into their lives... but not in a creepy way, I swear. :p

And nope, definitely not buying to flip. It's going to be home for a long time. I didn't check out the neighborhood, but it's a (sometimes overly) popular neighborhood, with lots of stores and such. Actually, as sad as it may sound, the thing that sold me on the neighborhood was the fact that a Borders was only two blocks away... plus it's close to city buses (my rational justification). But mostly Borders. I have a soft spot in my heart for book stores. :D The other property I considered had a Borders across the street (veeery tempting, let me tell ya!).

But I don't think I ever was in the market for the "perfect" place... just a "good enough" place. I'll marry the perfect place when I'm ready. ;)

Point of anxiety: It's setting in that I need a 20% down payment in two months. :frustrate gah.

[Xander]

I thought finding a home was a pain in the ass, but closing the property is even worse! Luckily I have a fantastic lawyer, and we're working out the details of the home inspection (some potentially serious issues related to the roof, since it's a top-floor unit)... *cross fingers*