Thanks to the economy...

I remember sifting through my grandma’s button tin filled old worn fasteners of every size and color, some with thread still peeking through the holes. I marveled at their uniqueness and charm. I envisioned their journey: Who wore them? Where did they wear them? What was their story?

That was 25 years ago. Yet, I still marvel at old things. Only now, my marveling is at old homes.

This happened quite by accident, but if I look back over my life, it was probably destined to happen.

New isn’t something I was accustomed to. I wore used clothes, lived in a used house, drove used cars and bought used furniture.  And at first I hated it. I wanted NEW things. But over time, I began to appreciate the value of something old. I began to see that by reusing, not only was I lessening my burden on our beautiful planet, but I was saving money too.

I currently live in a used house. I didn’t buy an old home on purpose. In fact, if it were up to me, I would have built a brand new home with all the amenities I desired. But when I bought a home with my fiance late in 2007, the only thing we could afford in the area we wanted to live in was a flipped 1938 Cape Cod. We offered the full asking price and moved in without much more thought.   

To quote a great friend of mine, “I was wearing beer goggles when I bought my house.”

And, I am sure this happens to so many people. I mean, at the ripe and impressionable age of 26, what did I know about homeownership? It’s like parenthood, you can do all the research and prep work you want, but nothing is going to prepare you for poop explosions and shrill cries at 11 p.m., 2 a.m., 4 a.m. and 6 a.m. until you have lived through it. That is home ownership. It looks glamorous. But it’s a whole heck of a lot of work.

You love your huge front and back porches until the wood starts to rot and the 8 layers of paint start to chip. You love the detached garage until it starts profusely leaking every time it rains. You love the recently replaced modern stand up shower in the bathroom until you have babies who need a bathtub.

But really, most houses need work, right?

For us, we just thought we would be in this house a lot less time. We were told we could live in this house a few years, build some equity and sell it for more than we bought it for.

Well, no one knew the market was going to tank. No one knew that our home values would drop drastically. No one knew that we would be in our starter home years past when we had anticipated.

So here we are. 6.5 years into home ownership without much equity in our house thanks to the great 2008 crash. We’ve done everything right, yet are still not able to quite get to our dream. Realistically, we are looking to move in two years. By spring 2016, we would like to sell our house. I am prepared to take a hit on the profit from this house. In fact, I am afraid we actually might lose money on it…however, I am thankful it isn’t hundreds of thousands of dollars like other stories I have read.

So, why this blog?

I am certain I am not the only one in my shoes. If one person finds inspiration from my blog, I will be thrilled. However, it’s also for me. It’s to document my journey and to show myself that I am capable of feats I never knew possible. You see, I watch HGTV with extreme admiration and am sure I could never tackle half of what they do. But, I have. And each new project I take on, the more confident I get. My before and after shots are shocking to me and I think, “Did I really do that?”

This blog will be about my journey to prepare one old house for sale to buy a bigger old house for sale. While I love this house, it’s only on .25 acres. We want space for our children to play, for our dog to run and for us to enjoy nature and a little quiet. So while there is absolutely nothing wrong with our nearly 1,200 square foot home, it’s just not in the location that we would like. And we want to save something. We want to save a farm house from excessive paint, shoddy workmanship and cheap materials. Besides, how else can we afford to buy a small farm?

In truth, after 6.5 years with my 76-year-old abode, I would miss projects. I would miss painting and sanding and planning new spaces. So although we toyed with that idea of me planning out that perfect house and building it…it’s just not our style. We are on the lookout for a 10 plus acre farm to raise our young family. Will it happen? I can’t predict the future, but I hope this blog helps me chronicle my journey so when it finally is realized, I will know what seems impossible, really isn’t all that far out of reach.

Meet our old home

Let me introduce you to our 1938ish beauty. This is a picture of the house right when we bought it in October of 2007. Over the next two years, I hope to highlight how we have transformed this home into a space we love, but will likely outgrow. Our plan is to sell this home (God and real estate market willing) for a small farm. I am dreading this process, for it seems so daunting in this economy. We can afford a much higher mortgage, but can we get out of this house without a huge loss? Especially with the repairs and maintenance an old home requires.
It seems an insurmountable task. Yet, I know with a little hard work, sweat equity and lots of saving and planning, we will meet our goal. I hope you join me on this journey and learn something along the way.