Congrats!
I had a really great agent when I bought my house and I think that made a ton of difference. My friends all had problems with their purchases because they just sort of went with some ridiculous person whose name they recognized, or they went with the seller’s agent, and none of them seemed to have the needed experience to really kick ass for me as a buyer.
It’ll be a good time building a lovely home for you and the cats. Have fun! 
Update: The appraiser was one the bank didn’t like, because he had a rep for lowballing his estimates. End result: He submits an appraisal that is for more than we are paying for the place! Huzzah!
Today the loan was approved and we move into the “sign more papers than you can imagine” phase. Then the contractors take over. I’m Danny Glovering the work that we want done, so the floor and window guys get some business right after Christmas. Not to mention the new furniture…
Bo, I don’t think I’ll ever see “spare money” again! And it feels so good to say that.
I just sold my old place in Georgia yesterday. It feels good to be away from that anchor around my neck. I didn’t break even, but walked away with a respectable amount of equity.
Tripler
Arson is no longer a potential option.
Best of luck. It’s great to have a place of your own!!
What is this thing you call “Spare Money”? I seem to have some ancient memories of such things happening…
Well, the painters are done, so yesterday the electricians and flooring guys took over. In the middle of all that, our new appliances arrived and were installed. New fridge, stove, microwave hood, washer, dryer and freezer. Totally new fixtures in every room, replacing the fugly ceiling fans the previous owner had installed. All LED of course. New outlets as well. Now the electricians have moved on to bringing the garage up to code and wiring it the way I want, with an outlet in the eaves outside for the Christmas lights and a series of workbench-high outlets down one wall. The flooring guys have ripped out all of the old carpet and are laying down hardwood laminate. Next week all the new furniture arrives. We might actually be able to move in by the first few days of February!
Very exciting! How nice to get it all done ahead of moving in!
Isn’t it great to just point and say “do it”? It’s not just a new house to you, with all the changes done at once, it will be like new.
I take it all the changes were pre-approved by the kittehs?
Sounds exciting silenus Congratulations seem to be in order.
I don’t have a cite, but, isn’t Spare’M Oney a sister city to the city of Spare Oom in the nation of War Drobe that was briefly spoken about by Queen Jadis in “The Magician’s Nephew” written by C.S. Lewis? I’m sure I’ve read that somewhere.
Welp, we’ve moved in. Some of the new furniture isn’t here yet, there are no drapes, the cats are all in hiding and the garage is filled with cardboard and Styrofoam, but it’s official. How do I know? The Girl Scouts just came to the front door selling cookies (Thin Mints, S’Mores, and Caramel delights, thank you very much!)
Congrats! Must feel great. Time to break out the carboys and lay down some hard cider to enjoy when you get settled.
Welcome to Home Depot!
When the wife says “You know, we might as well get a Home Depot credit card” you are really a homeowner. Some of the cashiers are beginning to call me by name. Saturday’s projects - recaulking the guest bath tub and getting all the cardboard and styrofoam out of the garage.
It took 48 hours, but all four of the cats now consider the house their new playground. Pixel and Brindle spent the first day and a half cowering under the couch. But yesterday they were prowling the different rooms, discovering that the new computer desk had all sorts of room to walk on, so they can bother me even more when I’m trying to “work.”
Has anything “funny” crawled out of your TV yet?
ETA: But seriously … plant lots and lots of trees … you can always cut them down ten years from now if they aren’t working for you … but you can’t put ten year old trees in later … I’ve always considered that my life’s biggest mistake … I want a big maple tree just there and I should have known that 20 years ago … [sigh]
ETA II: Save $85 a month … then you can afford to replace your roof in 20 years …
ETA III: Now you have room for EIGHT cats !!!
I owned a house for about 5 years and probably would never do it again because I’m just not an upkeep type of person but my " I own the house" moment came when the ancient pvc pipes under the sink blew apart and water and crud just poured out … and I ran to the phone to call the management and realized I had no one to call but me myself and I …