If you saw in our baby post that we’re buying a house and you wanted the full story… well, you’re in for a treat.
At the beginning of our pregnancy, really even before we got pregnant, Josh and I were dreaming of an acreage. There was one house that we were both curious about, but we didn’t investigate. We had talked with a realtor, but nothing fit our needs and our budget. So we put the house hunt on the back burner telling ourselves, “it would be crazy to move while pregnant.”
Flash forward to the week of May 8th- I had received an email that one house we were looking at months prior was still on the market. Blown away, since the housing market is currently crazy, I sent the information to Josh. Once again we said to each other, “it would be crazy to move while pregnant.”
Sunday, May 15th we were driving home from church and out of nowhere Josh says “what was the address for that house again? We could drive by it and just check it out.” I pulled up the email and got directions and had to shout “SLOW DOWN! WE HAVE TO TURN IN .1 MILES!”
We were exactly in the house’s neighborhood when Josh had the inspiration to look for that house.
We pull into the neighborhood and then turn on to the house’s lane. As we approached the house, we notice on the for sale sign it says “Open House Today 12” but it was only 11:30. So we crept by the property, looking at the beautiful yard, when the owner walks out with his dog.
He flagged us down and invited us to walk through the home– the realtor had not arrived yet since the open house hadn’t started yet.
This couple was so sweet! We quickly learned that the wife had gotten COVID right after they listed their house months ago and couldn’t show for obvious reasons. They were very close to taking it off the market and waiting for another day. We toured the property and drooled over the land and the unique layout of the home.
about the home
We quickly learned that the 5 beds and 4 baths was split between two separate living quarters: the main house and the “in-law” apartment. The in-law apartment is all on one floor. It has a kitchen, 2 baths, 2 beds, a gas fireplace, a sunroom, balcony, and laundry.
The connection point of the two living spaces is a mudroom that gives both access to the two stall garage. The main house is a ranch with a walk out backyard from the basement. It has 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1 balcony, and a patio. Below the apartment is a cellar perfect for canning and storing produce. (I don’t have photos of inside the main house empty and feel inappropriate posting pictures that include their belongings.)
The street level has 3 bedrooms, 1 bath, and a large living space.
The basement/walk out has the kitchen, dining, 1 bath, laundry, and a large living space. I LOVE this layout! The kitchen and dining AND back patio are perfect for entertaining guests in a private space. The living space also has a wood-burning stove!
what happened next?
Josh and I left the house to get some lunch. I was in love but was uncertain what he thought. We quickly realized we both wanted this house. Monday, we contacted our mortgage company to renew our pre-approval amount that had just expired. Tuesday, we contacted our lawyer about legal stuff connected to selling our home. And by Wednesday we made an offer on the home. After some negotiating we agreed on a purchase agreement.
Next step was for them to find a place to live. It took about a week and they found a home and negotiated their own purchase agreement.
THEN it was time for us to sell our house. We packed up a bunch of stuff to declutter our space. Patched some holes and had a paint debacle (long silly story). Our cleaner got sick and could not come the DAY BEFORE WE WERE SUPPOSED TO LIST! Our friend Katrina came over and helped us clean our house. She was there for 6+ hours; she is the QUEEN of all time! We listed our home Wednesday & accepted an offer on our home Saturday. (5 pets were boarded and two senior pets had to be put down in the same week.)
While this was happening, my parents sold their home for well above asking price but couldn’t find a home here. All the options were either snatched up too fast or didn’t fit their specifications. After discussion and planning, Josh and I invited them to live in the “in-law” apartment as our renters.
moving plans
We close on both homes (selling ours and buying the new one) on June 30th. We still have to make sure all our legal stuff with our lawyer lines up so that this can move forward. Barring any tragedy, this should work!
My parents’ close on their home July 1st and move to Kokomo July 2nd. They’ll live in our camper for the time being. We haven’t talked about if they want to park it in our yard or park it at a campground. Mom will need internet and that’s the key.
Our closing agreement says 25 days to take possession of our new home and 30 days to move out of our current home. When you add that up, it means we move into our new home end of July.
- YES, we’ll have a 1.5-month-old by that time.
- Yes, we’re hiring movers.
- Yes, i’m still anxious about it all but OVERWHELMINGLY excited!
future plans
When we move into the home, there are few projects on the top of the priority list after we get ourselves initially situated. Then there are a few projects & plans that we will delay until a later date.
Top Priority:
- Painting rooms: master, office, tv room, wallpaper in nursery?, “maker space”? (downstairs living room), bathroom?
- Shed for Dad, perhaps a carport by their side of the house for additional protective parking.
- Assess the garden situation and get our transferrable garden plants situated, including rain barrel system connected.
Later Date:
- Garden expansion, taping trees, learning to can
- Animals: Alpacas? Goats? Bees?
- Extension: We dream of eventually adding on 3-4 bedrooms to the side of the house (two upstairs, two downstairs) to increase our ability to accommodate our growing family and guests.
Meriah J Tigner 