Week 4 -- Meeting with Nancy
Monday, February 26, 2007

Today, we met with Taro and Toni's highly recommended Real Estate agent, Nancy Boe. We drove 10 minutes from Joen's office to her CBSHome office. I immediately liked her. She was very pleasant and has lived in Omaha all her life, dealing with real estate since 1986. I could very well understand why Taro and Toni like her. She was professional and explained everything as well as she possibly could. It was obvious that she had had a long day already but she really took the time to see us and sit down with us for almost 2 hours! Even though the meeting was non-committal, she still gave us a lot of details about anything we asked about. We really appreciated it a lot.

We're giving ourselves some time to decide whether or not we're going with her but so far, we've been pleased. Next week, we should already meet with 3 or 4 lenders and get good-faith estimates.

posted by maudester @ 8:50 PM   0 commentus maximus

Week 3 -- House 2 (Black St. in Deerwood)

Last week, Joen and I drove by this house at Deerwood with a "FOR SALE" sign in front. We got the number and was able to set up an appointment with the agent. Her name was Laurie. When we got inside the house, we immediately knew we were in a Roanoke model home. But unlike the info they gave at this 1-800 number, the houses was bare of furniture and some appliances. It had only been lived in for 4 months and it was a brand new purchase. So why price it higher than the brand new model we saw 2 weeks ago? The agent didn't know. Didn't seem like a good price for us so we had to pass.


We rechecked the closet space because we couldn't remember just how small it was. And that's what it was- small. Took pictures just in case.

We liked Laurie a lot but we told her honestly that we're still deciding as to which agent to work with. Although her credentials are impressive, we wanted to check out Taro and Toni's agent first because they really gave her props for their home purchase not too long ago. Laurie gave us her portfolio so we're going to hold on to it until we decide.

posted by maudester @ 12:49 PM   0 commentus maximus

Preferences
Thursday, February 22, 2007

Joen and I joined heads on deciding what things our first house should have:

3 bedrooms
2 or more full bathrooms
2-car garage
At least 1,500 square footage
Huge closet space
Spacious kitchen
Basement big enough for gym equipment
Ample yard space
Finished deck an option
Nice curb appeal

Wish us luck!


posted by maudester @ 12:41 PM   0 commentus maximus

Week 3 -- House 1 (Corby St.)

We went to housesinomaha.com last night and saw a looooot of houses within our price range. We printed out those location which were near the house and Joen scheduled a meeting with this house up at Corby Street. We got there at noon today and realized that this was the house BESIDE the second we checked 2 weeks ago. We were greeted by Marlene, the Sellers' agent who happened to be their cousin.

This 1,500++ sq.ft., split-level house was built on 1984 and has been lived in for almost 2 years by the family. It has 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, a 2-car garage-- all of which we most prefer. The first thing we noticed when we drove up was the really nice brickwork for the steps outside leading to the door. Right when you enter, you can see the stairs leading up to the main floor as well as those leading to the basement. The living room is a bit small and it leads straight to the dining room. The kitchen is quite big but the breakfast bar now looks like a huge partition separating the kitchen from the dining instead of fusing them together. There was no continuity. The appliances didn't match (yes, that does matter) and there were chips on the bar and on the wall. Also, the color was light blue (maybe as influenced by their son). We ventured the hallway where we saw the full bath. The master bedroom was ok in size with a full master shower but the closet space was a bit small. Closet space is important for me and Joen. A lot of it has to do with us being able to enjoy all 4 seasons. The rest of the 2 rooms were bland and it wasn't inviting to the imagination. One room was occupied by their 6-year-old son and the other by their daughter. Her room was too small.We went downstairs to check out the basement and as much as we liked the space, the ceiling was just too low. We've already agreed to get our own gym equipment to save us from gym fees and Joen might just hit his head while running with this ceiling. The furnace and garage space were ok. We then headed to the back where we saw the really lovely and spacious deck. The family built their own playpen with the swings and slides right beside the shed. They built a wooden fence around it rather well. The glitch? The next door neighbor's fencing. Chain links! We don't like chain links at all. Makes the place really look unappealing.

Here are some of the pics.

Nice curb appeal; the stairs leading up from the foyer; living room; kitchen entry; dining room perspective


DR perspective to the kitchen; the kitchen; full bath; master's bedroom; master's full shower; 2nd br; 3rd br


The basement; Furnace/laundry room; the garage; nice deck chairs; playpen within the yard

First off, there were chips here and there on the kitchen bar and on the facade. The basement ceiling again, was too low. The closet space was small and the 2 bedrooms were unappealing. The living room was also too small and the kitchen needed work. The deck was lovely though but the neighbor's fence just killed the view. The time of transfer is perfect though as they are also looking at within May or June.

posted by maudester @ 11:45 AM   0 commentus maximus

Week 2 -- Roanoke and Monticello
Sunday, February 18, 2007

Last Wednesday, I made an appointment with Hearthstone Homes at their Deerwood Location so yesterday, Saturday, we got to meet with one of their agents. Off the bat, we could already tell that the Hearthstone agent was much better than the Celebrity Homes agent. For one, he did not pressure us. Second, they were more updated in terms of documentation. Anyway, since we saw a lot of models online, all we had to do was pick those that were within our budget, suited our timeline (which is July of this year) and were ready for a look-see. He charted our options for us and provided us with a lot of info on how we might possibly be going about things. Theirs was pretty comprehensive and they only sold single detached homes so a lot of it was a no-brainer. As usual, we only get to customize those homes which are still under construction. For those that are done, we'll just have to live with what they have and do the customization ourselves.

After our meeting, we then went to their other site, Arbor Gate, where 4 models were still open for viewing. We saw the Roanoke, Newport, Monticello and Sanford Models. I finally remembered to bring my cam but the batt would only last 6 more minutes so I wasn't able to take good shots. Anyway...

This is the Roanoke.



This is Newport.


Here is Monticello.


And lastly, Sanford.


Right off the bat, we fell in love with the Roanoke and the Monticello! Hoen and I felt the same way right when we walked in the units. I never knew this about myself but I was partial to those houses with all the bedrooms on another or higher level as opposed to the main one. The farther the rooms are from the Great/Living Room, the better for me. And Hoen felt likewise. Of course, I gravitated to the kitchen right away. With the size of the house that's right for us, my dream kitchen is hard to come by and that's the one with an island and a breakfast bar. Sige lang, it's not like we will live here forever. We have to do a lot of compromise without settling for what's inconvenient.

What we loved about the Roanoke and the Monticello is the fact that it's not too big nor is it too small for us. The Roanoke has the bedroom level on top, the main level with the kitchen, the dining room and the Great Room, and then there's the basement which we can turn into a TV / workout room. And right when you enter it, a short set of stairs lead to the main level. The Monticello is very much like the Roanoke except that you walk in straight to the main level, there is an option for a sub-basement, and it is a little bigger in size. The Sanford and the Newport were ok but we weren't as awed as we were with the others. The downside? The location. Arbor Gate iss very near to the commercial/shopping centers but is probably 45 minutes away from Hoen's office. The Deerwood does not have much access to the city's commercial centers. But we'll look into that in greater detail later.

Anyway, Hoen and I, much as we are in love with those 2 Hearthstone models, will still look at other locations and used houses. We still have to keep an open mind. And today, we just realized that we will have a new house in 5 months. FIVE MONTHS! Woohoo!

posted by maudester @ 8:38 PM   0 commentus maximus

Celebrity Townhomes' bad review
Saturday, February 17, 2007

Found this online. I guess it's really true. Sorry, Celebrity. You're not only in the backburner, you're BURNED from our entire list.

http://www.topix.net/forum/city/omaha-ne/T52RGLE49BI9VLDRH

posted by maudester @ 10:28 PM   0 commentus maximus

Week 1 -- Instant Townhome visit

Last Saturday, Hoen and I sought out to survey some areas of those houses we found online. We were able to survey two neighborhoods- one at Corby Street, one I forget. Both neighborhoods were ok. Very peaceful, clean and near the city. But we weren't able to get inside any of the houses until we got to the fourth house. This woman was holding an open house so even though it wasn't on our list, we walked in and checked it. I should've brought my camera! The place was so clean, and you can tell by the furniture that the owner had very good taste. Unfortunately, the price was way above our ceiling so we axed it.

Farther ahead was this townhome which we would've loved to check out but no one was home. So we went around the neighborhood and followed all the "FOR SALE" signs. This made us realize that we were in the middle of a Housing Community called Celebrity Homes. We became walk-in clients to this agent named Gary, who showed us one of their townhome models called the "Weston." We learned a lot about the square footage of the house, about which appliances come with the price and which don't, and a lot of other things. We loved it but after getting rather negative reviews from Hoen's officemates (they said Celebrity Homes builds on the cheap) and after having a broad pro-con list in owning a townhome, we decided to not consider townhomes just yet and prioritize on checking out single detached homes. After all, even though when owning a townhome means somebody else takes entire care of your lawn , garbage disposal and snow shoveling, it comes with a price. AND a townhome is attached to another house so if that neighbor of yours frequently holds parties and holds circus events at their garage, you can't do anything.

Here are Celebrity Homes townhome models. I should've brought my cam!

posted by maudester @ 10:03 PM   0 commentus maximus

Class act
Friday, February 16, 2007

Last January 20, Joen and I attended this free Seminar for first time Homebuyers. I went there expecting a 100-man attendance. Instead, we were the 6th and last couple to arrive. It was an intimate seminar held in a room with one long table sponsored by.... shoot, I forget. Anyway, I had little or no knowledge of what it takes to buy a house here in the US and before we were made to settle in the "class", they had us take this survey to see how much you know about the biggest and most important investment of your life. If not for Joen, I would've flunked it! I had no idea what a PMI was and that's just one of a dozen acronyms and abbreviations I had to learn.

Short story long, it was a whole day thing and I must say I learned a great deal about homebuying in 6 long hours! I learned about how important being and having a good neighbor is, how your credit score dictates your credibility as a homebuyer, how a 20-year-old house here is still considered "young", how a grown tree on your lawn can up the value of your house, what things to look (out) for when surveying a house and most importantly... how EXCITING the whole process was going to be! I learned a million other things and so did Joen. The other participants were helpful as well and they gave us a few tips. There was a speaker there from First National Bank and it was helpful knowing how and where to start assessing ourselves financially.

That was the first thing we ever did in this housebuying process and I am looking forward to more! This buy being our first together, there's bound to be a puddle of feelings involved and we've both set our minds for it. We are going to devote a day each weekend to this process- site visits and such and area "surveillance." Hehe. Sure is helping me be more familiar with my new Homeaha.

posted by maudester @ 2:16 PM   0 commentus maximus

Houseaboutit
Sunday, February 11, 2007

We got engaged, we got married, we rented and now, IT'S TIME FOR US TO BUY OUR FIRST HOUSE!! Getting a house by the age of 35 has always been one of my goals and now... it's going to happen. Ooowu! Ooowu!

My dad made our first and only house from scratch. He helped design it, supervised its construction and bought all the furniture. He was the engineer, inspector and architect all rolled into one. I remember visiting the site and seeing how the foundations were propped up, how what I thought was mud was really cement and how the guys worked their way from the inside out. I remember how we'd have to travel an hour from our apartment at V. Rama to our constructed house at Dona Rosario in Mandaue. I even remember the smell of the earth, the paint and the dry cement. I remember how, on February 11, 1984 when we officially transferred, my sister and I woke up in the middle room and felt for the first time how "nice" it felt to finally have our own house. I am to relive that feeling this year.

Now buying a house, as exciting as it may be, can be the most confusing decision you would ever have to make. Here in the US, middle income earners don't build houses, they BUY ready-made houses, most of them already owned and lived in. Although housing projects always mushroom especially in the midwest, spawning a lot of brand new units, it is not unusual for people here to buy 15 or 25-year-old houses. That's because, depending on the maintenance, the insulation still works, the foundation is still strong, the landscapes always taken care of, the neighborhood safe and clean and the interior still intact. Homeowners really take care of their houses because buying to sell within a couple of years is recommended. Buy your house, maintain it, beautify it, build some equity and then buy another house! That is the way to go and that is exactly what we have in mind. There are many many beautiful houses here in Omaha. My favorites are those brick houses that go way back the late 1800s with the brick chimneys, the wood panelings, the quaint fireplaces and the oldest and biggest trees by the lawn.

For newlyweds like us, buying a starter house is somewhat tricky. We want to buy something not too big (because chances are, only our first born will get to live here with us), we don't want something too small because we want enough room to get started with our things, and we don't want something too pricey because apart from not being able to afford it, it just wouldn't be practical. And, the plan is to live in this house only for a couple of years. If and when we get our green card, we will be handed more options then so that has to factor in. Anyway, thanks for sharing this experience with us. It's going to be a fun and crazy ride! In the meantime, here's one of those houses I really love here in Omaha.

posted by maudester @ 9:56 PM   0 commentus maximus