• General Information

    The Good Fight

    I’m not a very political person. I follow the news and investigate my options before I vote (and I do vote, in nearly every election) but I don’t go out and campaign for anyone, or read a candidates blog or even donate to either party. I am a registered Democrat, because I’m more socially liberal, however I’m in favor of the death penalty and a government that doesn’t regulate my personal life, which are more Republican attributes. I voted for Bush in 2000. I voted Libertarian in 2004 because I was not a fan of either candidate. Why am I saying all this? Because I don’t want anyone to misunderstand…

  • General Information

    Back in the saddle? What’s a saddle?

    Why don’t guys make the first move anymore? It may just be me, but it seems like an awful lot of hints- or more than hints- have to be dropped before anything happens. There used to be a mandate on these things. If it wasn’t a “Sadie Hawkins” thing (and who the hell was she to rock the boat anyway?) then the guy always did the asking. Maybe I’m traditional, or maybe I just have a vibe that says “don’t ask me out” but things seem really difficult these days. My roommate, let’s call her Emily, has just broken up with her boyfriend a month ago and already she’s found…

  • General Information

    The Question that Follows

    Some life events have questions that naturally follow those events. Though it’s really quite rude, people always seem to ask the newly married couple when they’ll be getting married. Even worse (and probably much less welcome) people who have kids always seem to be asked when they’re going to have their next one. These are very personal questions but they seem to be tolerated in our nosy society, and I’ve just found a new circumstance for them: the single girl who owns a house. Since I’ve moved in three weeks ago I have had several friends and coworkers – people who know me and know I’m not dating anyone –…

  • General Information

    Cold Feet

    I really hope that some day I look back through my posts, read this, and laugh. Actually, I doubt I’d ever laugh, but maybe at least breathe a sigh of relief. I close on my townhouse in three days and I am terrified. I am not excited. I am not relieved. I am stressed and tired and I think I have at least the beginnings of an ulcer. I know I’m prone to worry, and I’m sure that’s part of this. Plus work has been seriously high stress lately so the house stuff has almost taken a backseat; perhaps I feel I haven’t been paying enough attention to the details.…

  • General Information

    Make an Offer

    Now here’s an opportunity to show what I know! I do now finally have a place under contract but it was a case of third times a charm. I made offers on two other places before I got this one. So I’ve been through the offer process a few times. A lot of what’s important may be in the negotiation, which is our next section. However, to begin you must make a first offer so:1.) make sure you want this house before you make an offer. When you make an offer you are signing half of a contract and if they sign the other half, it’s going to take some…

  • General Information

    Home Search

    I’m starting to fall behind and I’m literally in the middle of a session at a conference on how to blog right now so… call me inspired. Searching for a home is typically everyone’s favorite part of this process. This is where you wander around and look for “your” home. You’ll learn a lot about what you can afford during this phase. All the photos of places you may have looked at up to this point will be very different in person.You may realize you need to spend a little more money to get what you want (people rarely decide they want less…) but as with my previous post, I…

  • General Information

    Neighborhood Information

    I’ve neglected you, blog. I apologize. Fortunately, since I still have 8 steps to get through, my home search is taking quite a bit longer than anticipated. It’s not that I’m not looking. If you ask my poor, frustrated agent we’ve been out ten times and seen dozens of places. This is an exaggeration, but we have seen a lot. I am picky, but unfortunately I’m also unlucky. I’ve made two offers and both have fallen through for different reasons. But I’ll save those stories for the Make and Offer/Negotiating to Buy sections. I can talk about neighborhood information now though. Since I am single, with no kids and a…

  • General Information

    Movie Love

    In honor of Valentine’s Day I thought I’d ignore the twelve steps and take a moment to discuss love in movies. Movies are largely responsible for our idea of what love should be, despite the fact that they’re rarely accurate to real life. The best example I’ve thus far seen is what I call the “end of movie coupledom moment”. Have you ever noticed that at the end of these romantic movies the couples seem to always end up in the middle of a city, kissing passionately in some public place? It’s almost always outside and everyone stops to smile at them or has to walk around them. I’m not…

  • General Information

    Pre-Approval vs. Pre-Qualification

    Pre-Qualification: Answer some questions online or over the phone about what you make, what you spend, what your credit is like, what you think you can afford/want to spend. You answer as you decide. However you decide.The amount you are “pre-qualified” for depends on what you tell the lender. This will not get you a mortgage, just get you an idea, again, based on what you tell the lender, of what you’ll be able to afford. Pre-Qualification: Fill out lots of forms, give personal and financial details that allow the lender to SEE (vs. hear it from you, you big liar) what you make, what your debts are like, and…