What convinced you to move into your current home? (hardwood floors, townhouse, furnace)

[phonelady61]

it was the gardens for me and it was the garage for my husband .

[Hemlock140]

Twice as big as our previous house, half the age, 3 times bigger lot, and one long block from a great school for the two younger kids.

[Willamette City]

Location, location, location!
We bought in 2007 while I was still working a job about 75 miles away. We had made good money on our last house, bought for $92,000, sold for $194,000, so we had some money to play with.
We bought a fixer-upper in a small town and neighborhood we loved. We also had 4 years to renovate before moving in so we spent $80,000 on a kitchen/dining room upgrade.
We have great neighbors and a half acre lot to putter around in. I also converted a garage into a music studio and play nearly everyday.
I walk out my back gate and 100 yds away is a trout stream I love to fish. Pretty sweet deal!

[chiluvr1228]

I was living in a rented condo where the rents were going up every year so when my aunt died I had the opportunity to buy her 2 bedroom 2 bath single family house for what was owed on the reverse mortgage which was around $76K. The house appraised for $135K which is what I bought it from my mother, who was the executor. After paying the closing costs, the realtor and giving my mom some of that money I wound up with about $40K. I'm paying $150 less than I was in my rental and I don't have to worry about that going up every year. My taxes are super low because I'm the widow of a career veteran who was 100% military disabled and since I didn't remarry I get that benefit.

It was almost 50 years old and had been sadly neglected so I put on a new roof, new a/c, new water heater, new paint both inside and outside, some new plumbing, new appliances, landscaping, etc. It doesn't even look like the same house and it's a strong, sturdy house.

My kitchen, which has an eat-in area that I turned into my office both overlook the entire back yard. It is perfect for me, bright and cheerful and only 1176 square feet with a 1 car garage in a quiet, safe neighborhood. The back yard is fenced so I was able to adopt a dog. The only downside was that it was 45 minutes from my part time job where I used to be 5 minutes away. Did the commute for 18 months but my boss found a new position for me and now I work from home.

This month I am having new impact windows put in and new interior doors. Still needs the kitchen and bathroom upgraded but I'm doing a little at a time.

[bondaroo]

It was the first acceptable house we found in our price range in a good area of our new city. We were living in a pricey rental a horrible distance from our new jobs, and feeling a little pressured because our teenage daughter was coming soon after spending the summer in our old city. There were bidding wars and no conditions accepted for most houses in this market at the time, so it was like playing an all-consuming competitive sport. Ugh. Fortunately we like the house and the location, and have had no problems.

[Gemini1963]

We needed to be a quick drive from my parents but we couldn't afford to be in their neighborhood (and did not want to be, anyway). We wanted a standalone house and a fenced or easily fence-able yard, and good, safe streets for walking dogs. And we thought we would eventually need a first floor bedroom and full bath for an elderly parent. Those factors plus our price range pretty much narrowed it down to this house!

[possibleyou]

Location, location, location. I moved around quite a bit to several different parts of my state. As a newcomer I was very hesistant to starting over again. However, I met amazing people who became very close friends who were also new to the area as well. I didn't think I would fall so in love with my new area as it was still very unfamiliar to me. However after living here for awhile I realized the beauty and all the benefits my new area has to offer. I realized all the pros compared to my old towns. I learned all the roads and neighboring towns, I explored and discovered numerous stores, restaurants, nightlife, recreational parks, new found hobbies etc. I renovated my house the way I liked and absolutely love it. Tranquility, privacy, and peace yet still within close proximity to the beach and city comes at a priceless cost to me. My house is everything I ever wanted because I designed it. I don't mean to brag but it's truly my dream home and I hope I won't ever have to sell. I bought a large older home in a fantastic neighborhood because I had the vision to create my dream home. Even though I probably don't need all this space it will be so hard going back to living on less.

[possibleyou]

Location, location, location. I moved around quite a bit to several different parts of my state. As a newcomer I was very hesistant to starting over again but the move was inevitable. However, I met amazing people who became very close friends who were also new to the area as well. I didn't think I would fall so in love with my new area as it was still very unfamiliar to me. However after living here for awhile I realized the beauty and all the benefits my new area has to offer. I realized all the pros compared to my old towns. I learned all the roads and neighboring towns, I explored and discovered numerous stores, restaurants, nightlife, recreational parks, new found hobbies etc. I renovated my house the way I liked and absolutely love it. Tranquility and privacy yet still within close proximity to the beach and city comes at a priceless cost to me. My house is everything I ever wanted because I designed it. I don't mean to brag but it's truly my dream home and I hope I won't ever have to sell. I bought a lower priced large older home that needed lots of TLC in a fantastic neighborhood with a great school system because I had the vision to create my dream home. You have to love where you live, if you don't than keep moving.

[Nonesuch]

1. Location
2. Lot size (enough acres for "current use" tax break)
3. Workspace -(huge garage, workshop in walkout basement)
4. House came with the builders' blueprints, including pencilled in change orders.

Originally Posted by goldenlove

We drove into the neighborhood, only about 15 houses, and liked that part, then we pulled up to the house, it was much prettier than the pictures showed. I walked in the front door and was blown away with how light and bright it was. We loved everything about it.

It's amazing how badly some listing agents mess up on things like pictures and coding the features of the house in MLS, especially when it is a "seller's market".

Little things like leaving the "lot size" and year of construction out of the listing, or using under/over exposed photos (or going the other direction and trying to get so artsy with HDR that you can't tell what you're looking at).

[gentlearts]

It was the nicest house in our price range with 2@ 2 car garages. We are really happy with it. The lucky bonuses are it’s on one floor, is well built, the kitchen had been remodeled and there is no HOA.