Adventures In Home-Buying: Making An Offer

Last we left off, we were looking, looking and looking some more.  And we were straight up sick of it!

So, we took a month off.

Yep, a whole month.  We just needed a break, so we stopped looking for awhile.  We went to Florida, and were pretty focused on other things.  And it was sooooo nice.

Once we got back from our trip, we were ready to start looking again.  We made an appointment with our realtor to go out on a Friday night and see three houses. 

The first house we saw was a nice size, but it was a bit older and definitely needed some updating.  [Alas, I couldn’t find a picture of it.  It must have sold since then!] It was also on a really quiet cul-de-sac…but at the end of a kind of sketchy street.  Overall, it was nice, but we moved on.

The second house we saw was awesome.  Great room sizes, a wonderful kitchen, everything updated.  I actually said to our realtor, “There isn’t one thing I would change about this house.”

The third house we saw has been on the market for over a year (and STILL is!). They made some really nice updates to the front section of the house, but the back section (kitchen, bedrooms, family room) was really dismal compared to the front of the house.  It was seriously almost like looking at two different houses.  Plus, there was clutter EVERYWHERE.  The house was clean, but they had knick knacks and kids stuff covering every surface.  It’s too bad, because it could be a nice house for someone.  But until they clean up their junk and get the back of the house to match the front, I doubt this house will sell.

So, after seeing all three houses, we decided right then and there to take the plunge!  We went ahead and put an offer in on the second house we saw.  Go figure.  We look at a gazillion homes (ok, like over 25), take a month off, come back, and put an offer in on the second house we see on our “return” trip to house hunting.  But when you know, you know!

The offer process was really easy—we actually did everything online the very next day.  Then, we waited.  And received a counter-offer!  Which we then countered (accepting all of the buyer’s counters save for the price).  And then, we waited again…

And the owner accepted!  Huzzah!

I suppose you want to see an un-edited photo of the front of our house, no?

(Yes, this is the same photo I posted last week.  I promise, I will post a ton of new photos for you to see soon!)

The whole thing took about five days (we put an offer in on Saturday, and by Wednesday, we had an accepted offer back).

Next up, the nitty gritty:  aka the home inspection, appraisal, and loan process.

See all my Adventures in Home-Buying posts here:
The Pre-Approval Process
The Beginning Stages of the House Hunt
Finding a Realtor
Dealing with Disappointment
Looking, Looking, Looking…