I settled on a condo this afternoon. I now own my very first house!
I feel quite happy about having a new place in the DC area, one that’s truly mine in a way rentals weren’t.
MADs – please come to my housewarming! Saturday night November 5, 7:30 PM, in Oakton, VA. Please reply in this thread or to my email; I’ll send out directions around November 1.
Ok.
Yay! Isnt home ownership great? I bought a house earlier in the year, and have just let it out to foreign nationals. So, they pay the mortgage from me, and I get to call myself a landlord. Bonzer! Best of luck with the new home!
Welcome to the wonderful world of big tax deductions!
Why, oh why don’t we have a raspberry smiley?
Congratulations, Scuba. You know, you’re pretty skimpy on the details there. Is it a townhouse, an apartment-style condo, a fixer-upper, what? How many bedrooms? How many baths? How old? How big?
Congrats Scuba_Ben. I’m just as nosy as featherlou, so c’mon give us all the details!
Nyah-nyah! I’ve already seen it. 
See you on the 5th, Scuba_Ben.
Adolescent responses can such fun now and then.
YAFI, YGI. Details:
It’s a garden-style condo, about 20 years old. 2 bed / 1 bath, plus a sun room and a den. It’s about 1200 square feet, not counting the patio (my unit is at ground level).
The unit is in immaculate condition… except for the paint colors. The master bedroom is olive and the second bedroom is peach, neither of which is my color. So I’m going to have to pick a new color for the bedrooms.
Ah, immaculate condition except for the paint - that’s damned near perfect. I would hate to move into a house that was already in perfect condition, because I like to make my mark on a place. I freely admit that I am quite territorial. 
1200 feet is a nice size for one person - I assume you are living in it alone, since there were no “we’s” in the OP. Owning your first property and moving into it is an indescribable feeling. I think the closest thing to it was getting my driver’s license and taking my own car out by myself for the first time.
Dude, congrats! 
It would be cool to meet you and some of the other area Dopers before the “let’s have a beer” event on the 19th, but I have an all-day conference on the 5th: I have to be in DC at 8am ( 
), and I’ll most likely be exhausted when I finally get cut loose around 6pm. It’s why I didn’t suggest that date for the NoVa get-together.
That said, it’s also possible that by 7:30 I’ll be in serious need of a drink/party.
I hate to be wishy-washy, but can I play things by ear the day of? I’ll keep an eye on this thread for details, but will have to make a judgment call that afternoon…
Wicked cool, Ben!
I’m moving into my place shortly too - one more week!!!
Having a painting party next weekend if anyone wants to come. Bring your own roller and blue tape
Yaaaay now we can do “confused new homeowner” threads together
Congratulations! I bought my first home six months ago. In fact, I’ve spent the day painting the living room. (Spent the summer fixing the yard.) After decades of “apartment eggshell” I’m painting my house an amazing array of greens, yellows, reds and bright, bright whites! I love finally having “my” space, to do with what I want and having as many cats as I want without paying a deposit!
I hope you enjoy your new home even half as much as I’m enjoying mine.
Congrats Ben!
I believe I said this in ZipperJJ’s thread but it’s worth repeating. There is nothing like the thrill of owning your first place. I’m in my third (built this one) and fun though that was even though I’ll never build another one, too much to think about, it still didn’t compare with the feeling of buying that old farm house that was my first house. I recall running all through the house while it was still empty saying over and over, “It’s mine! It’s mine! It’s alll mine!”
Congratulations. Wishing you luck and joy in your new home.
Thanks for all the congratulations, everybody.
swampbear, I did something similar. After settlement, I went to the condo (to drop off a load of stuff), walked in, and proclaimed, “MINE!”
Misnomer, playing it by ear is okay. Show up whenever; the party is likely to last a few hours.
I will be there at the party in spirit!
(Oh–sorry about haunting your new house in advance and all. Get the defective Ouija board mentioned in another thread, I’ll be out with a good exorcism or two.)
Seriously, congratulations. What paint colours are you thinking?
At present, Kytheria, I’m thinking about shades of light brown.
However, interior decorating is not my main skill, and is something that I prefer to delegate to someone else. But that’s a discussion for another thread.
Dude! Congratulations! Oakton aint too shabby.
I wish I could be there on the 5th to warm the place up but I’ll probably be in Atlanta helping my sister with her new babies !!!
An update.
The good news is, I’m all moved out from my Philly apartment.
The bad news is, move-in may be delayed a couple of days, due to the shipper’s logistics. So it’s very likely that the housewarming will be pushed back a few weeks.