Have you ever wanted or needed something, at the completely wrong time? Well, that was me at the start of the journey but little did I know the universe had other plans. My lease was ending and it was time for me to decide if I was going to buy a home or continue to rent for another year. I decided, despite living through what was just the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, that I was going to buy. I called my long time girlfriend turned realtor, Laura, and told her I was ready to start looking seriously.
We spent days looking at homes. I found one I loved and put in my first offer and it got trumped by a cash offer. Over the next few weeks we checked out more homes, and two additional offers later I still hadn’t found “my home” and the clock was ticking on my lease’s expiration. I, like anyone, got discouraged. I started to think that maybe this wasn’t the best time to buy, and even started looking at renting again for another year. In the midst of this, I reached out to Laura and told her that I’d be interested to see if there are any new build properties that fit within my budget. It was crazy- what we thought would be a slow time in the marketplace it was actually the busiest! Not to mention, it also encouraged me to be more interested in investing because let me tell you, I wish I had $260k in cash to just buy a home outright!
A couple of short days later, Laura had a list of 3 different properties for me to visit. I visited the first one and wasn’t that impressed. The homes were super boxy and just not my style. Also, my backyard would’ve been a steep hill down to a busy road. Not ideal. I still explored all other options before I headed out, just to be safe. When I got in my car I couldn’t help but think to myself, “how hard is it to find what I want?” I’m sure you’re wondering, so here’s what I was looking for…
It’s easy…I’m not super complex…
- I wanted an open concept. I enjoy hosting and there’s nothing that beats the ability of everyone to be able to see and interact with one another in a common space.
- I wanted an updated kitchen with ample counter space, along with storage. A walk-in pantry would’ve been a huge bonus but it wasn’t something that I needed.
- Through my searches, I fell in love with the ranch style home and as a result began the search solely for one level homes. Two-levels wasn’t out of the equation, but it wasn’t a huge want.
- Yard space to be able to take the party outside, or just enough space to build an outdoor oasis that can serve as a mini getaway spot. Having my yard face another house didn’t really make me feel the warm and fuzzies.
- Last, I wanted a 2 car garage. I love to build and create, and to have space that can double as a workshop and a garage was huge.
I kept thinking about everything I wanted. As I was driving to see what was probably by 40th house, I remember feeling discouraged. I felt as though I lost the battle to the pre-owned market, having multiple offers refused. Now that I’ve started looking at new builds, I felt as though I was beginning to lose that one, too.
I pulled up to the second new complex and as I got out, I was greeted by their sales agent. He didn’t waste anytime. We went straight across the street where he began to give me a tour of an unfinished home, but it was complete enough where I could get a great idea of what it would look like. As I walked through the home I couldn’t help but think about everything I saw leading up to this moment, and all of the things I said I loved about each of them existing together within this home. Y’all, this home not only met all of my wants but there were added items that were nice to haves based on my previous viewings. I think it was safe to say, this was my home. I could feel it. I called Laura immediately and told her, and wasted no time to go back into the sales office to begin the process.
In a short 45 days, it was closing day! The process leading up to this day was beyond smooth. I got an amazing deal on a brand new house, and all of the pieces of the puzzle went together in the blink of an eye. I left the mortgage attorney’s office and remember feeling so full of joy. I also felt proud of myself. I was proud that I stuck it out and remained so focused on my goal that I didn’t give up. I cried as I got into my car and headed to get a U-Haul truck so I could get back to my apartment to meet up some of my amazing friends that were kind enough to help me move.
As the moving came to an end, pizza and drinks were in order and boxes started getting opened and unpacked…until…a bad storm rolled in and knocked the power out! So…we went into the garage and opened it since there was still some daylight, and setup a spot with lawn chairs and set up the Blockbuster game on an empty box. We ended up having a blast, and it’s one of those times I’ll remember for the rest of my life. I remember feeling grateful for an amazing group of friends, and what I didn’t know at the time…an amazing soon-to-be significant other, too! (stay tuned for a future post!)
As you can imagine, with a brand new home comes a lot of blank walls and open spaces. As my boyfriend says, empty spaces drive creativity and he was certainly not wrong. The emptiness recharged the passion I have for building, designing, painting, and transforming spaces!
If you’re interested in DIY projects, and seeing spaces transform within a budget then you’re in the right place! Subscribe to my blog and stay tuned for all of the awesomeness I will achieve in this new space, turning the white walls and blank spaces into little nooks of function and fun.
Until then, if you’ve been thinking about tackling a project but you’re nervous about how it may come out. Just do it. After all, you’ll never know what you can do until you try 😉
Lydia
Lydia Nicole 
What a great story!