I am in a daze as I start writing this on Tuesday.
I had given up, y'all. I was going to stop looking at houses. I was emotionally exhausted from trying to find an appropriate house in my price range. When you've only got $200k to work with, your options are severely limited these days.
I even made an appointment on Saturday to go look at an RV someone was selling nearby. I was like, “Fuck it. If I can't buy a house, I'll buy a vacation home on wheels.”
But that morning, a house came on the market, and I told my realtor about it immediately. (By the way, my realtor has the easiest job in the world with me as a client. I am on top of everything and research everything. He's really just there to do video walkthroughs with me and process paperwork!)
I have told numerous people on numerous occasions over numerous years that my current apartment is perfect and I wish I could find the same thing in the Northeast.
Well, this house closely resembles my apartment. Same wall color, same trim, same big windows, same open feeling.
Except this house is twice the size of my apartment: a manageable 1000 square feet. (The house I owned in Sarasota, which I loved, was 950 square feet.)
Unlike other houses I've seen, there's nothing overly funky about it. No basement trap door in the bedroom. No weirdly tiny bedroom. No plaster walls.
I thought I was going to tour it the day after it was listed, but my realtor had to put it off until the following day. The moment we were done walking through it, I told him to put an offer in. I offered $5000 above asking because I knew this was MY house, and small houses like this are coveted in the north. There is not a glut of small, efficient houses like Florida has.
Zillow tagged this house as “Likely to sell faster than 94 % nearby.” It was on Zillow for exactly three days when they accepted my offer. 53 people had saved it in their Zillow account. Zillow also says that in this seller's market, the median number of days for a home to go pending is 7 days.
I tend to look up the owners of the houses I’m interested in. This one is owned by a woman near my age who clearly has a cat or two, as evidenced by the listing photos. It seemed meant to be that it would pass from one 50-something cat lady to the next.
My offer was the first offer they got, and my realtor included in the offer a stipulation that they stop showing it to more people. They didn't. They showed it a few more times, but I'm not sure they got another offer before accepting mine.
That's right… This goal that I’ve been trying to accomplish for 4-5 years is finally moving forward. Through the incredible support, guidance, and help from friends and family, I will be moving to my own home in the town of Watervliet, New York.
I knew this house was meant to be because, after I made the offer, I felt excited instead of terrified and anxious. This is the first house in my price range that I've actually wanted and wasn’t just trying to see the potential in. (Because Lord knows I can see the potential in just about anything.)
I'm grateful that we set the closing date at two months out because I need to wrap my head around moving. Luckily, I don't really own that much stuff and don't plan to bring two of my biggest pieces of furniture.
Here are a few interior photos of what will hopefully soon be my new home:
Check out those hardwood floors!
The room below is actually amazing, with a huge bay window. I know it's hard to envision with all the stuff in it. This will be my office and art room (and possibly yoga/meditation). I'm so excited about having this space.
The things I’m most looking forward to are a dedicated work/art space, a dedicated laundry/storage room, and Libby’s litter box not needing to be in my bathroom!
In the midst of the new excitement, I feel extreme gratitude for the apartment I've called home for the past 10 years. This is the most inspiring place I've ever lived, and this is the longest I've lived in one dwelling since my childhood home. It has brought me such peace, calm, and a sense of safety. It's been my sanctuary against all the chaos outside in the world. I’ve experienced pain and joy here, and I will never ever forget the experience of living here.
I'm also incredibly lucky to have landed amazing landlords. I cannot say enough about them. They are good people who take pride in their properties. They answer calls and texts and are fair with the rent. They are the only reason I could still live in my neighborhood during the rising cost of housing these last five years.
I have felt “stuck” here for several years, but I couldn't have been stuck in a lovelier apartment or neighborhood. I will miss my neighborhood so much (and, of course, all my friends in St. Pete).
Now, instead of feeling stuck, I feel a renewed sense of purpose. I feel hopeful and motivated. So many of my friends are experiencing positive shifts of their own. This feels like a moment of celebration during a time when life feels harder in many ways.
I know living in NY and owning my own home will have its challenges, but I'm ready to see them as part of the adventure. That's how I like to approach life. Florida has its issues, and New York will, too. Renting has its problems, and owning a home will, too.
By the way, before I went to bed Tuesday night, I got to thinking about these homes right next to each other with very little dirt between one basement and the next. I'm like, “What is holding these things up?! What if there's an earthquake?” Oh Lord, the things I worry about. I decided that if there was an earthquake in upstate NY big enough for my house to collapse, then it's obviously my time to go!
So, instead of worrying, I'm focusing on how much I've wanted this and how good it feels to have persevered in my pursuit of it. I'm really proud of how I am making the puzzle pieces fit. Life is a big game, and there are multiple ways to win the game, but you won’t “win” (whatever that means) if you’re not looking for all the opportunities (and maybe breaking the rules a little bit).
A note of interest about the Florida real estate market… the house below is a little smaller than the one I’m buying, yet priced $400,000 higher. Even if the interior of mine was new and on a lake, it probably would still be in the $200s in Watervliet, NY.
My house is located in Watervliet, which is a small city just across the Hudson River from Troy (which is where I have been looking). The taxes are lower in Watervliet, but my house is literally 1.3 miles from the Troy farmers market that I wanted to be near. Did I mention there's a nearby bike trail that goes there? It really couldn't have worked out better.
I have SO MUCH GRATITUDE. Once the inspection and financing are worked out, I will begin planning for my move. I feel renewed motivation about my work and am working to secure a project to replace one I missed out on this year.
I’m also hoping my Troy property will sell in the next few months. We have gotten at least one inquiry so far. Fingers crossed that I can unload that and make some money on the deal to put back in the bank.
My mortgage payment should come out to very near my current rent payment. If interest rates ever fall, I can refinance my loan and have a much smaller payment. It’s all a puzzle. You’ve got to keep manipulating the pieces to get a better outcome.
The last beautiful part of this story is that I haven’t spent a penny of the money I inherited from the sale of my late father’s home in 2021. It wasn’t a lot as far as inheritances go, but now I am using that money for the downpayment and closing costs on my own home. My father gave me the ability to buy a home. That makes this whole experience so much more worthwhile and meaningful.
Unfortunately, that's not the end of the story…
Because nothing can be easy… there's been a snag with my financing since I started writing this. When I learned about it, I was devastated. Not to sound dramatic, but at this point, a lot (not the least of which is my mental health) is riding on this transaction. I now need to put down an extra $25,000 to get a loan. I'm already putting down all my liquid cash and don't want to lose money cashing in CDs early, so I will need to get a commitment this week to borrow $25,000 from someone who doesn't need it back soon. The biggest issue is that I was going to be able to pay that $25,000 over 30 years (at around $100/mo) and now will not be able to. So this will be a bigger financial burden than I was prepared for. That’s the irony… they’re making it harder for me to afford to buy a house and less likely that I’ll still have money in the bank. The system is fucking broken.
I do not like feeling vulnerable or having to be rescued. I just want housing security and to be out of Florida. I had a solid plan, and now that plan is no longer valid.
I am trying not to feel discouraged, but this went from an empowering experience that I felt confident about to another frustrating home buying attempt that makes me feel like a loser.
I want to believe that magic can happen to allow me to do this in a sustainable way. I am praying for magic, but I wish I didn't need to rely on magic in the first place.
⏰️ Currently
🌻 Feeling intense gratitude and humility
🏡 Trying to get excited and stay positive about this journey despite the obstacles
🧘♀️ Breathing in and breathing out
I'm so glad that you're on substack now!