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Oh boy…have I been waiting a while to write this post! Yes, the title reveals it all….we bought a house!
You guys all know I had some trouble finding a home here in Chicago from this post & then from this post. But I am so happy to announce that our search is finally over! Cue the confetti, happy dancing, and champagne celebration!
Last we chatted, we were still actively searching for a 2 bedroom/2 bath unit in Chicago’s West Town neighborhood. We spent a solid 3 months looking online, going to showings, and even bidding (and losing) on a place we both thought was “the one.” Then in mid-June, we found it. The place had actually been on the market for a few weeks and I had just overlooked it because it was a bit over our budget. It was a light week with few new properties on the market, so we asked our realtor to set up a showing…because why not?
Many of you shared your home buying stories with me, and so many said they walked into their current place and just knew it was the one for them. That’s exactly what happened to us. We walked in, looked at one another, and gave each other the look like…”this could be it!” The pictures online didn’t do the space justice. It was in pristine condition, and totally checked off the “big living space” on our must-have list. I think the property was overlooked by other buyers for a few reasons. 1. It was priced a little too high (more about that in a minute) 2. Some of the walls had some crazy colors on them (lime green master bedroom walls….) 3. The furniture layout in the family room wasn’t doing the space any justice. We were able to overlook these things to see the potential in the home, and ultimately I think that’s why we got it.
We put in an offer the next day and then had quite a few days worth of negotiations. Man oh man, chatting about money is never fun and I was on edge throughout all of those days thinking, “What if they laugh at our offer and say we can’t buy their home?!” Luckily, we were able to negotiate and we reached an agreement where all parties ended up happy. Our realtor was a lifesaver throughout the entire process and never made me feel dumb for emailing her 42 times a day with questions. (Seriously if you’re in the Chicagoland area and need a recommendation, email me. She rocks!)
Fast forward about 45 days, and Friday was our CLOSING DAY! Yep, we’re officially homeowners and got the keys to our new home over the weekend. I didn’t want to fill you guys in until everything was signed, sealed, and delivered…but I’m so happy I can finally spill the beans!
So what now? Well, get ready for a ton of new home posts. From moving, to saying goodbye to our rental, to decorating a much larger space on a dime…we’ve certainly got our work cut out for us. But it’s going to be a ton of fun and I’m so happy you guys will be with me on the journey.
On Thursday, I’ll be back with the before pictures of the space (don’t worry…they’re a coming!) and then we’ll chat about paint colors, and new flooring, and furniture, and home maintenance, and DIY projects…(wow I’m getting overwhelmed thinking about this mile long to-do list!)
And I must end this by saying THANK YOU for all of your support and encouragement throughout this crazy process. So many of you commented and reached out to share your own stories of becoming a homeowner and that made Finn & I feel like a million bucks. Knowing that you all had our backs definitely helped us keep our spirits up when the market was looking dismal. So thank you for being amazing readers and amazing friends to us. We’re lucky to have you and I can’t wait to invite you into our new home (well at least virtually!)
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