House Hunting

When we bought our first home back in 1996 it was a whirlwind that came unexpectedly. We were renting a 3 bedroom apartment in Nashville, Tennessee and we had just made the decision to call Nashville 'home' and go house hunting in the area. As a matter of fact we got a babysitter for the following Monday night and had an appointment with a realtor. That very day (Friday) we were sitting down

Both Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae have gotten quite a bit of media attention on their recent bailout, a la Bear Stearns.  While the consequences for this hasn’t been felt yet (and I am pretty sure that we as tax payers are going to be integral in footing the bill) the ramifications of them going [...]

Nicole Richie and Joel Madden were spied house hunting in Beverly Hills Wednesday. One option the couple visited, according to a source, was a $1.6 million Beverly Hills house that is described as a Cape Cod mini-estate. It has three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a Jacuzzi tub, pool and a kitchen outfitted with state-of-the-art Viking and Sub-Zero [...]

Thought this was a good article from FreddieMac. Note link below. you know how much money you can borrow and have an estimate of your closing costs, you'll know the price range you can afford. You might already have your "dream home" in mind. Perhaps you want to settle down in a particular neighborhood, or maybe you just need more space for your growing family.Even if you know exactly what you're

     A few years ago a client said he thought that house hunting was a lot like speed dating. ….and at the time I imagined opening the passenger door and pushing him out onto the street…end of that date! Fortunately we kept on with the search and found a beautiful home for his family.  Looking back I chuckle at how accurate the speed dating [...]

Are you looking to rent a house? The whole thing can be a big pain. Double check with our guide below to ensure that you have covered the important bases before you actually make up your mind and put down a deposit. 1. Plan you budget. Find out how much you are able to spend on utilities, rent, and also on transportation to work or college. Then it will be easier for you to narrow down which housing area to consider. 2. Confirming the location Choose a safe neighborhood that is not too far from your workplace or college and it is easily accessible to public transport, especially if you don’t have a transport on your own. 3. Shop around. Look at plenty of houses on the condition of the houses and also to compare rental rates. Compare the cost of the furnished and unfurnis

Yesterday was spent almost entirely in Jonesboro. We left the in-laws’ house [where we’re currently living] around 9:30 and dropped the rugrat off at my mom’s house. Much fun was had by all, I am sure. We spent the next three hours at ASU trying to get Tucker enrolled back into classes and many hoops were [...]

Apparently we’ve had more snow this December in Concord that we’ve had in years. It’s very pretty and . . . very cold. All of this has gotten me thinking that this is really the perfect time to buy a house. For one thing, you can check out how well the town you’re [...]

What do you think of our new house? I kid.  I kid. This isn’t our house.  Actually, it’s someone else’s house but it’s for sale.  How weird would it be to be surfing the internet and find a picture of your house on someone’s blog. Hi, house owners!  I like your house! *** OK.  Now that that is out of the way.  Random note.  I really hate writing “that that”.  It looks stupid.  But, I really can’t think of any other way to say that.  Damn you, that!  I’m better now. *** Our neighbors upstairs were a skoach quieter last night.  I only heard them once or twice and it was before 9 pm.  Everytime I see them, I want to ask when they’re moving out.  They haven’t seemed any more unpleasant that normal.  And even though my apartment manager said last week that she was giving them a 7 day notice, I have no idea if #1 she’s gonna do it and #2 when she did [or will do] it. *** I know I’ve bitched about the

Vanessa Hudgens was spotted looking at 5 houses yesterday in the Hollywood Hills. Now eyebrows are raised, speculations abound on whether her Gorgeousness is getting ready to leave the nest, on her own or with a particular someone (you know – a roommate, what else did you think I was trying to say?). Homeownership is a major step for anyone, but most especially for someone who has admitted to be

It’s getting to be that time of year.  Do You want to buy a house but you’re scared by all the house hunting horror stories your friends have told you?  Have a Story or Two yourself to tell?  I can take it.  Were the Sellers crazy?  The buyers nuts?  The contract poorly written? Email me your mishaps, mistakes and missteps along the road to fulfilling your American Dream.  I’ll impartially judge them and print the best here on the blog.  Deadline is October 30, 2007.  Winners will be announced on Halloween Day and will receive a one year subscription to Columbus Monthly, courtesy of Columbus Homes Blog.   add to:

Subjectivity and Objectivity occur all the time when buyers are house hunting. I regularly used these two  literary terms  in graduate school, in my literature studies. I had to apply these terms to my literary research of novels, and essays. I had to determine which characters or heroes represented subjectivity and which, objectivity, and I had to prove my findings. How to be subjective and object in when house hunting: Every time we view a structure, or a lot that we like, we get emotional, and desirous of having that property. We view things subjectively, from the “me now” perspective. We think we have to have that. Much of what we buy is an emotional and therefore, a subjective experience. I remember when I was a school teacher, I often graded the kids subjectively, not just objectively. I did this because each student to me, to my viewpoint, is not a number, a rating, a grade, but instead, a human being with a unique way of learning  and viewing the world. There

Would you every buy a home without looking at it in person? I actually have clients that have done just that.Thanks to the Internet, you can be anywhere in the world and search homes that are for sale in Portland. For me, California just happens to be the origin of these homebuyers.In 2005, there was a couple from Sacramento, California who I had been helping relocate. One day, they called with interest in a home in SW Portland near Tryon Creek State Park. The house had just come on the market and they asked me if I could go see it for them. I did and took lots of extra pictures that I emailed to them. Next thing you know, an offer, a counter, and an acceptance.In 2006, I was providing real estate information, stats, & numbers to first time homebuyers from San Diego. One morning I checked my email and it read more or less, “We found our house. It’s in West Linn and it’s gorgeous. Can you help?” Again, this house had just hit the market. It was a Renaissance home bui

"Am I forgetting anything? What do I need to know?"These are two common questions that homebuyers ask, even those that have plenty of experience in real estate. And since I've always stressed that real estate is local, there's a great resource available to you if you're in the market to buy a home in Portland.The Oregon Real Estate Agency created The Oregon Buyer Advisory. It's a publication designed to help buyers better understand the scope of their relationship with real estate agents.It's also a source for information on environmental hazards, title insurance, underground oil storage tanks, etc. This is also helpful if you're relocating to Portland because it may include issues that are relevant to buying real estate in Portland that don't exist where you live today.Here is a link to the Oregon Buyer Advisory.

                                                                                                                 Jessica Alba is looking to buy a new home with her boyfriend Cash Warren. The "Sin City" star has been house-hunting in New York area with including Chelsea, SoHo and the West Village.

New Delhi, July 11 (IANS) After finding a post-retirement residence in the capital for President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, the government might soon find itself looking for a house for Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat - a task it will be doing after almost three decades. (more…)

This is St Bees head the view from the hill near the caravan park where we stayed whilst house hunting.St Bees is about 10-15 minutes from the town where we are planning on moving to and as you can see it's a beautiful coastline.What you can't see is Sellafield nuclear power station, it's just on that bit of land that is cut off in the picture to the upper right. Still it doesn't seem to have done much harm to the area and I'm told that research shows very little change to the marine life in the area.So the house hunting; we viewed a fair few houses, getting into double figures. I'm close to being sick of looking now, some were nasty and smelt of the old people who I'm sure must have died in the house, others were really nice and we did see a few that were high on our list, only to be told later that offers had been put in and accepted or offers higher than the asking price had already been put in.One house which was fire damaged and the first we looked at was actually my favour

We saw one house today. We also made an appointment to see two more. The house that we saw today, I thought it was cute when we drove by it days ago. It had a carport and a large backyard, but no fence. Now, to the inside. It smelled like HOT a** basement! I cannot put it any other way than that. The whole house smelled like that. The reason for that is because of the basement, it had a few moist spots here a there. The entrance to it was so weird. At first I thought it was a pantry. The door was like 5.6ft x 2.5ft, so we had to kinda be careful walking down there as it was so narrow. The basement was a nice size, it was def a basement, unfinished and moist. The kitchen was cute but seriously outdated, like 1950’s outdated. The kitchen will be renovated before August, new cabinets, floors and sink, etc. The thing that I did like, was that it had a window over the sink that looks out into the backyard. The bathroom was decent, that will be renovated as well. The sink and tub were

A few paparazzi can't keep Victoria Beckham from continuing her search for a house in L.A. on Thursday afternoon. Vix, 32, ate at the Ivy for lunch and spent the afternoon house hunting. Looking hot in them jeans and red high heels…Victoria Beckham clearly has fashion in her jeans. This just in from Women's Wear Daily: Beckham is expanding her budding DVB lifestyle brand, which is currently launching at retail with a collection of sunglasses, by adding denim to the mix. Beckham has inked a manufacturing deal with Western Glove Works to develop and distribute a denim collection, according to a statement by 19 Entertainment Ltd., the London-based media and branded entertainment firm that manages David and Victoria Beckham.And why not, Vix wears her jeans well! And who wouldn't want to own a pair of Beckham-branded jeans?!And remember that awesome photo of David Beckham as Prince Phillip? Well, if you haven't seen it yet, check out the great interview below of Becks talking a