Curb Appeal: Pre-Approval is a Loaded Gun

Positive news (not from our landlord, unfortunately, but no news is good news on that front) -- we got our mortgage pre-approval! I guess now that we at least know we could buy real estate should we need or want to, a little stress is removed from the whole situation. That last sentence aside, I'm still hoping to stay in our current place.

This week, I'm actually bringing the search into MA and a bit north of downtown: Stoneham. There on a corner lot with plenty of grassy lawn, sits 16 Whipple Street, a cute bungalow on a street with an adorable name ("Please don't squeeze the Charmin." Tee hee.) Plus, the ChoBos and downtown Melrose are just a hop, skip, and jump away!

The house itself is only 1,134 square feet with the bedrooms looking pretty small, but the requisite dining, living, and bathroom are all present. Plus, there is an eat-in kitchen and two pantries. With a 10,000 square foot lot, the house offers a possibility for expansion, if you have any money left for renovations after purchase.

I've accepted -- and maybe even prefer -- that any house we can afford will be small, so we'll need to embrace a cozy, minimal homeowners' lifestyle. When I think about how much I loved my old, tiny, apartment, I'm pretty ok with that idea. Besides, Decor8 had  a great post about German interiors today that made me realize it's how you shake your chicken that matters, not its size.

Comments

[aclassicgirl]

small is good, if you have some land, that's right. we're enjoying our 1079 sq ft house with the lovely yard. we saw some deer early yesterday morning.

my only unsolicited advice is: do lots of research on neighborhoods and take your time looking and deciding!