Pros and Cons

House hunting is exhausting. You keep looking for the right one in the right place at the right price. Your standards and must-haves are adjusted or lowered with each passing day. This is when it can get a little risky. Buying a house is not like shopping for a dress to wear to your not-really-your-friend-but-she-insisted-on-inviting-you friend's wedding. You don't shop and shop and then just pick something because you're running out of time and they're not your wedding photos anyway. Buying a home is very permanent. As least it will be for me and Jeff. We like where we're living, we have steady work, and we're pretty much equidistant from both our families.

It's not my dream home but I don't think we'll ever be able to afford something that I would consider a dream home. The house does have a lot to offer and it meets 20 of my 24 House Hunting Criteria. The 4 items it doesn't currently meet can be changed later. The main issue is the house is over budget and it needs work--work to make it livable and work to make it a beautiful home. When faced with tough decisions many people suggest creating a pro/con list. So, here it goes...

Pros:

• Location. This house is in a great neighborhood. When I drove through the first time with my Realtor I was certain I couldn't afford anything in that neighborhood. I'm the one that requested to see the house, and yes, I knew it was out of my budget. When I show the rest of the house photos you might understand why I thought I could offer a lower price and it be accepted. It's a great area for jogging, the lots are all fairly large (close to an acre for ours), and all the power lines are underground so our days of losing power at the lake house every time the wind blew will be over. It's closer to work, to my gym, and maybe even Jeff's beloved Kroger. Lowe's is also closer and we'll be going there on a daily basis pretty soon. 
• Storage. Life at the lake house has been surreal most days. The view can't be beat and we have a lot of privacy. But, sometimes it's more than obvious that we are lacking space. Jeff has embarked on a landscaping business and that involves a trailer and large equipment that needs to be protected from the elements and theft. This house has a large two car garage and a work shed in the backyard (with electricity!). There's also a walk-in closet in the master bedroom, large closets in the other two bedrooms, and, best of all, there's a pantry and laundry room. There's also a bonus room upstairs in the attic.
• Potential. The house does not currently have an open floor plan which is something we really enjoy at the lake house. There is potential to create a great room by knocking down the wall between the living room and kitchen. It's most likely a load-bearing wall but this isn't a change that would take place any time soon. We would need to save lots of money for that kind of renovation and there are other options when dealing with a load-bearing walls. The whole attic could be converted one day to livable space if we ever got that adventurous. 
• Overall space. Sandi and Remy are our only kids right now and we want them to have a nice yard to play in. This house has a huge backyard, and front yard for that matter, and we know they will love having all that room to roam. The master bedroom is large enough for our king size bed and other furniture, the two other bedrooms are large, both bathrooms are large, and the entire attic is accessible. The garage has two storage rooms with shelving.
• Cuteness. The house is cute and has great curb appeal (or it will after Jeff works his magic). I'd love to paint the whole house a nice grey, paint the shutters black so they'll pop, and maybe a juicy green front door for some whimsical fun. Or paint the shutters navy and have a yellow front door. I think it would be fun to decorate the house for Halloween, too. 
• Longevity. Jeff and I fully intend to love and take care of this house for many years to come. It has room to grow for kids if we have any in the future. We can see ourselves living there for twenty years or more. 
• Bonuses. It has a split floor plan for the bedrooms, the master is on the opposite side of the house from the other two bedrooms. Gas hook-up for the stove. There's also a gas fireplace but we're not certain it works. It has a separate dining room which we may or may not enjoy. The yard has a sprinkler system. There's an attic fan! Did I mention the PANTRY?!?!?

Cons:

• Price. This house is over budget. Based on what I wanted my monthly mortgage payment to be, plus what money I could contribute to a down payment, I had a modest budget for a first time home buyer. Then I viewed houses within that budget and it wasn't looking good. Even if the house was in poor condition I was willing to put in sweat equity to make improvements. When you're in a bad area you will not see a return on your investment. So I upped my budget a little. This house is at the tippy-top of my budget plus improvements need to be made. There are also the unknowns that go along with owning a home like when the A/C dies or a pipe bursts. Combine all that and it's financially terrifying. 
• Current condition. It's a mess. No joke. Every nook and cranny needs to be cleaned, stripped, re-painted, replaced, updated; everything. All the windows are caulked shut for heaven's sake! There are the big things like replacing the floors and the remodels I would like to do down the line--kitchen, bathrooms. Then there's all the little projects that are also time consuming and costly. The yard is an absolute mess, it hasn't been cleared since the snow and ice storms we had earlier this year and it hasn't been cared for in many months, maybe years. 

• Outdoor lounging space. We had lots of outdoor lounging space at the lake house. There's the covered porch and the deck along the back side of the house. There's also a concrete space below that back deck and the dock on the water. The new house has none of that. There's an enclosed porch which Jeff loving refers to as the Florida room but it's not a place I want to spend any time in it's current condition. There is an uncovered deck between the master and the Florida room but it's tiny and rotted. To me it doesn't seem worthwhile to repair/replace it. The front porch is pretty small. There's enough room for some potted plants and maybe a chair but it's not the wrap around porch that I've always envied. 

• Oddities. I've already mentioned the tiny deck between the master and the Florida room. There's a half bath in the master--in addition to the full bath. Say what? The living room has a knee wall and another section off that room that is just...I don't really know how to describe what it is. There's no direct path from the kitchen to the backyard so when we want to grill we have to walk through the living room and then the Florida room OR walk through the master. That's right, there's a door from the backyard into the master. Jeff loves that part, me, not so much. The path from the garage to the rest of the house (past the kitchen) means you walk through the eat-in area. The door from the garage into the house doesn't open all the way because the railing blocks the door. It doesn't have a linen closet.

Our original closing date was for May 16th, then May 28th, and now it's today. This has been an uphill struggle from day one with this house and it will be for many years. But, I think the pros make it worthwhile.