Tuesday, January 20, 2009

House Hunting

Sorry I haven't been posting! We have spent as every spare minute this weekend house hunting. Saturday afternoon we looked at some houses and found some really beautiful ones, but they were all pretty expensive. So Monday we met with our mortgage banker to get pre-approved. We found out we both have great credit scores!!! Jeff's is 791 and mine is 807! That is amazing, they don't get much higher than that! Yay!

With our finances all figured out we met with our realtor again. We looked at some cheaper homes this time, all in district 20. We were unimpressed, so we revisited a couple we liked from Saturday. Its such an overwhelming decision to make! We were excited to find one home in our current ward: 8384 Old Exchange Dr . Totally cute on the outside but a little outdated on the inside. Unfortunately it wasn't our favorite.

We found a couple amazing homes that we keep coming back to. One that is huge and beautiful and an amazing deal, but one that we may not be able to afford on Sunset Ridge Dr. Another one, not as big but immaculate and has everything that Jeff wants on Saddle Rock Rd. But both of those are in District 11. And then there's the one we can't agree on. Its definitely a great deal, but its got some wierd quirks that we don't like. Its on 7490 Chancellor Dr. The main two levels are amazing for the price but the basement is a mess and the backyard is the worst we've seen.

We may just try to make some low-ball offers on the expensive ones. Thats what Jeff wants to do. I'm not sure. I just want to keep looking. We really want to stay in District 20, but the homes are sooo much more expensive here. Our realtor gave us a million to look at in District 49, so maybe we'll just give up on 20 and look out there. What do you guys think? Take a look at them and let me know! I would appreciate any feedback. I'm still completely undecided.

4 comments:

runningfan said...

Ah, the house hunt. So fun but so stressful! Honestly, I think you'll feel right when you walk in the door. For us, some houses just SCREAMED "no!" and others felt like "maybe" until we found the "yes." You're in a great position because you don't have to sell, so I'd say take your time and let the spirit lead you. I learned to focus on the things we could not change about a house: location (a biggie), floor plan, yard size, number of bedrooms, etc. All the rest, with time and effort (and money), can be fixed. The homes you linked to are all gorgeous and enormous -- good for you!

Shaina said...

Good advice from Heidi. I agree. You have time! From the pictures....the houses all look amazing. With kids that will be school age soon, you really want to be happy with the school district.

Colleen said...

I also think Heidi's advice is great. I think you need to decide on the things you are not willing to ignore, and let the other stuff slide. For us, D-20 was one of those things, but the houses outside of it are so so tempting! So I know what you are going through! And like Heidi said, the other stuff can be fixed over time. It doesn't have to be perfect on move-in day. I can't wait to finish our basement...but I will have to! But I love the house, neighborhood, ward, school dist, so it was worth giving up the basement for that until we can finish it ourselves. Good luck! It is a seriously stressful process, but you have time and can find that one that says, "Home."

Trinette McCrary said...

Okay, I have very strong oppinions about district 11. We just recently moved from d11. There are some great schools, but you really need to be careful. Doherty High School boundries is what I would suggest for d11. Also d11 is making major changes because of low enrollment. They will probably have to close schools within the next 10 years. Research or watch the news because there is a lot going on in d11. They have some great programs and my children had a great experience in elementry. District 49 is over crowded, but they have added some new schools so maybe it is getting better. The only reason my family moved with in town was because I wanted my children in better schools for middle and high school and to have more member friends. It was a huge sacrifice finacialy for us to move, but I wanted my chidren to have the best influences possible, then hope they make good choices. I had it rough during my middle and High School years so I'm sensitive to that. Sorry for the book.

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