Ugh no house. Lost it to someone else willing to pay cash. We were in the midst of doing some due diligence and someone else just came in and got it done.
Oh well. Time to keep on looking. I keep telling myself that spring is the time when more inventory comes on the market. Patience will be rewarded. We had hoped to find something but nothing is really what we want.
It's really hard to bet on finding a house we like and passing on so many we don't. We probably could settle but I find that I don't want to pay a lot of money for something I really don't love or like. That I'm taking the "safe" bet. But at the same time I also think if we bought a house now in desperation there is a great possibility we'd regret it.
I think all financial decisions made out of desperation are bad ones. They cause someone to act irrationally, justify bad decisions instead of actually thinking logically and reasoning out a decision. Or at least that's my justification for not jumping on a house I don't like but should probably buy because it's "good" enough.
But I guess it's like marriage. Should we settle for someone who is "good enough" and the "right" person you should marry but you don't love them? You just like them and it's the right decision? I think no. Because marriage is tough enough that you should really be sure. I do think people need common values but settling can cause people to compromise on those values. Hence I don't want to compromise on a house right now. Or at least these are compromises I don't want to make.
FWIW I feel that some realtors are definitely not working for our best interest. I have one non-stop pressuring me to buy at the top of our budget. That they'll take an offer at the top of our budget since it's been sitting. My response has been I don't love the house and I don't want to spend to the top of our budget if it's not something I really love. But hey it's in her best interest to sell me something.
no house
December 13th, 2016 at 05:31 pm
December 13th, 2016 at 07:01 pm 1481655672
December 13th, 2016 at 07:28 pm 1481657309
I almost settled on the guy front. The only guy I dated treated me terribly, but I went along with it worried that that may be my only shot. When it ended, I was devastated and started online dating. That's when my amazing, wonderful husband came along and made me realize just how much I would have been settling. Relationships and a home are definitely 2 life decisions that shouldn't be rushed, and ultimately, you and your family should be the only ones to make that decision. Ditch the realtor if you feel like they aren't working for you.
December 13th, 2016 at 09:39 pm 1481665173
December 13th, 2016 at 11:51 pm 1481673074
You'll know it when the right house comes along. It took me 6 months to find one that really excited me, and I'm still in it 21 years later.
December 14th, 2016 at 01:20 am 1481678444
Get rid of the agent that is pressuring you. They work for you.
December 14th, 2016 at 02:40 am 1481683204
Keep looking, be patient, and most importantly stick to your budget no matter what.
December 14th, 2016 at 05:21 am 1481692880
I think I may have to fire yet another agent. I've found that there are many agents who pressure you. I've fired 3 who kept pushing. I also found that no one cares about your budget but you.
December 14th, 2016 at 06:14 am 1481696076
My agent worked with me that whole time - never pressuring me, only telling me things to consider about the areas I found houses. She was a god send and I have recommended her to multiple people - several who bought with her when I had the salary reduction!
December 14th, 2016 at 03:32 pm 1481729534
LAL - It's just going to take time. I can't even imagine how picky we will be when we buy our next home. I think it was nice to buy our homes in our 20s. We did really well with a good realtor and trusting our intuition. I even had a realtor tell me once in my 20s that he had never taken anyone to so many houses. (HA! It wasn't that many, but he was rather green and had only sold during the bubble. In the end we decided not to buy. It just wasn't in the cards for us). That was like 10 years ago?? I think we are probably 100 times more picky now. I expect that comes with means and wisdom.
December 14th, 2016 at 04:33 pm 1481733225
I agree buying our old townhouse had a lot of compromises which we didn't care because we were only planning on staying 5-7 years. We ended up staying 10. We thought only 1 kid and had 2. Thankfully it worked. But had I carefully thought more we'd have gotten something perhaps different in a different area.
Anyway this time I an compromising in different ways. And willing too.
December 14th, 2016 at 10:28 pm 1481754535