Financial Freedumb and Brownie

Yes, I’m a homeowner.  Got my own condo, not far out of town.  I’ve been here for over 2 months now, and it’s been great.  The place didn’t need any major changes, so the biggest tasks I had to do was install some blinds, install a couple window AC units, and clean up.

Oh, on top of buying all the things you need for a home.  WOW.  That ended up being a shocker.  I spent nearly $10k to purchase furniture and all the necessities of a home.  I really didn’t have much before moving in, except for a bed, dresser, and clothes.  So the move in checklist was huge.

Lessons learned:

• If you can afford an interest rate when you go in for your loan, lock it.  Don’t press your luck and hope the rates go down.  When I got my pre-qual, I had the opporunity to lock in a rate of 3.875%.  When I did lock, about 5 days later, I locked in at 4.125% and had to pay 1 more point to get that rate.
• Make sure to put aside a good budget for post-purchase items, more if you need to renovate/change out major items.
• Make sure your loan officer and realtors are on top of things and good communicators.
• I decided not to go with the improved title insurance, although maybe I should’ve.  It would’ve costed me 10% more for the premium title insurance…still not sure if I should’ve gone with it.
• Wait for the right place.  Of course it’s only been 2 months, but I’ve been looking for someplace for over 2 years now.  I’m really happy with the location, price I paid, condition of my home, and the neighbors.  I do have some minor concerns, but the pros heavily outweigh the cons.
• Make sure to run lots of bleach/water in the washer after moving in.  My clothes smelt like mildew because I didn’t, until I realized I needed to clean out the washer.
• Make sure to run the hot water to empty out the tank.
• During the inspection, check everything including the blinds, washer, dryer, windows, stove, fridge, etc.  Try to be thorough.
• During the offer period, the property had 2 additional offers.  I decided to come in at the top of my budget and hope for the best.  I didn’t want to get into a bidding war.  I don’t know what would’ve happened if I came in at the lower offer I had in mind, but I do know I have my place now, and I’m comfortable with the mortgage.

I’ll write more in the future as I think of things, which I’m sure I will as time goes on.