November YP Connector
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Know your local market. Do your own research on<br />
what other homes sold for in your area. Having a good<br />
understanding of the comp set helps you know what is<br />
a good price to offer and what you could sell the home<br />
for in the future. With the home I bought, I researched<br />
the local area to know what the highest price a home<br />
sold for within the last year. This way, I was very<br />
conscious of how much money we would put into the<br />
home. One thing I wish I knew was that the area<br />
around my home is mostly rental homes, that could<br />
help or hurt me depending on what we decide to do<br />
once we move.<br />
There will always be things you want to change.<br />
Unless you are building a house, there will always be<br />
things you want to change. I would recommend you<br />
really know what you want to change or what you<br />
could live with if you can’t change it. Also, if you are<br />
renovating you have a little more freedom of what you<br />
can and can’t change.<br />
Always sample. Buy the paint sample. Buy the carpet<br />
sample. Buy any other sample you can. It is not a<br />
waste. Put it in the room you are thinking of changing<br />
and watch it. For example, if you are choosing<br />
between paint colors - paint the wall and check on it<br />
multiple times a day. The sunlight will be different in<br />
the room at different points of the day. Believe me,<br />
this matters.<br />
for my house, I just wanted furniture. Taking the time<br />
will also help you realize what you can buy on the<br />
cheap or what pieces you want to really invest in.<br />
Some furniture is not meant to last forever.<br />
Always have an emergency fund. There will always be<br />
something that will break unexpectedly or will need to<br />
be replaced in the future. We’ve had our dishwasher<br />
leak, our water line to the fridge split, our basement<br />
flood. For the most part these were minimal costs, but<br />
if we have to replace an appliance it will be easier to<br />
have an emergency fund to pay for. You will need to<br />
replace a roof, a water heater, or any of the large items<br />
if you stay in your home long enough.<br />
During this adventure, I learned that I don’t think I will<br />
ever buy a completely finished home. I truly enjoy the<br />
projects (thinking of them, not the labor part) and<br />
making the home ours. It has been a lot of work, but<br />
extremely rewarding. There was a lot of stress and<br />
long nights the first few months, but our home is<br />
exactly how I want it to look. *wink* The biggest thing<br />
for me is it helps me build equity and build wealth.<br />
Don’t buy all your furniture at once. This was my<br />
biggest struggle and still continues to be to this day. I<br />
want to buy all the furniture at once and have a<br />
completely finished home. Nice furniture is an investment.<br />
Make sure you love it. I have already gotten rid<br />
of a TV stand, two coffee tables, and dining chairs. I<br />
didn’t take time to really settle into the look I wanted