Welcome Home

Mike and I have been home hunting for about two years now. When we first started, we found that a condo was the only type of property within our limited financial reach. Even that was a stretch. There was always the question of the down payment, and then the ongoing fees of homeowners association. Oh, and outdoor space. You see, I love me some gardening, big time. So we searched, and saved, and put the search on hold, and saved some more, and payed off debt, until finally it looked like a home purchase was a possibility. The possibility was made into the reality by all of our saving and debt reduction, but also by the collapse of the credit and housing markets. Or, dare I say that the bubble burst? I guess this was our silver lining to that nasty cloud.



As I said, two years ago our market search was limited to one and two bedroom condominiums. As the market shifted, so did the properties we could afford . At first they were little, dirty, unloved homes that needed so much work. As things continued to shift we began to see more homes that actually looked inhabitable. And these were single family homes! With a yard! And then we began to see 3 bedroom condos and townhouses within our budget. With yards! The places we could potentially afford were a bit bigger and a bit nicer. I could see us settling in and raising a family, not to mention tending to crops of tomatoes and trying to beat our 70+ lb pumpkin record.



So, here we are after many years of planning, hunting, and preparing. We are homeowners. Mike & I owe many thanks to Nathan Norberg, our ever so patient real estate agent. He drove us all over the South Bay, on both weekends and weeknights. He answered all of our questions, even when we asked them multiple times. He even brought us a copy of the Sunset Western Gardening book and three tomato plants when we met up to get the keys! Tomatoes! Gardening Books! Does he know us, or what?!



The other acknowledgement I'd like to make is to Linda Tumas, our mortgage broker. She sent us countless estimates of mortgages as we bit our fingernails, wondering, can we really afford this?? How much will this really cost us, when all is said & done?? Linda succeeded in getting us a very manageable fixed-rate mortgage, just weeks before the rates began to rise.



Both Linda and Nathan made the process so easy and helped walk us through all the steps along the way.



So now, here we are. Mike and I have been home owners for 6 days. We have succeeded in painting the entire interior of the house, with the help of both of our families. Mike's mom brought us fully home-cooked dinners at the house, so we could all continue working well into the night without losing momentum. My parents drove up from Southern California to stay for nearly a week. They taped, painted, caulked, gardened, and met with Joe, the technician we found to inspect the spa in the backyard (you see where our priorities are). All this while Mike and I continued to work throughout the week. This weekend is the big move. Saturday we vacate the storage facility, and Sunday we begin to unpack all that has been tucked away neatly in boxes and bags for the past four months.



When we moved our belongings into the storage facility, one of the items was a chalkboard from our kitchen. As I packed it, I wrote a note on it. The note went something like this: "The next time I see you will be in our own home, a place where we get to set down some roots for a while. Welcome Home!" I can't wait to proudly hang that chalkboard in our new little kitchen.