Real Estate

Jon and I are looking for a house. To buy. Our first real estate purchase. The next 30 years of paychecks. Woah.

We have both lived in rented houses for the past decade or so, and as such we have a good list of things we want (and do not want) in a home. Three bedrooms. Walkability. Young families and lots of kids. Good schools. Cooling system. Storage. Separate space for "hanging out" (whether it be a second living room, a finished/finishable basement, loft area, something). Bathroom off the master bedroom. Small yard. Safe area. Sense of community. A good flow. A good vibe.

We have a price range and a mortgage dude and a real estate lady. What we don't have is a location.

Scratch that. We actually have two locations: Old Town Littleton and Stapleton. However, the two areas could not be farther apart or more different.

Old Town Littleton:

• + Bigger houses, around 2,300 sq ft (- Bigger utility bills)
• - Bigger yards (- Bigger water bills)
• + Lower property taxes
• + Great schools
• +/- Older neighborhood
• - Fewer young families and kids
• + Our existing neighborhood, so we know the area well
• + Short commute for me, medium commute for Jon
• - Farther from existing friends and family
• - Neighborhood is where it is going to be--not "up and coming" or growing or improving
• + Safe
• + Walkable to Old Town
• + Close to Light Rail
• + No covenant control
• - Unclear backyard chicken situation
• - Could end up with "fixer upper"

Stapleton:

• + Small yards (+ Very low water usage)
• - Some yards tiny to non-existent
• + Very walkable
• + Tons of young families and kids
• + Very up-and-coming neighborhood
• - Neighborhood can get a little sketchy if you go a mile in any direction
• - Much longer commute for me, a little longer for Jon
• + Lots and lots of parks
• + Strong community vibe
• + Shared yard space with nearby houses, kind of a communal yard between houses
• - Much smaller house square footage, more like 1,700 sq ft (+ Much lower utility bills)
• + Houses built with eco-friendly design in mind
• +/- Decent schools, improving significantly
• - Higher property taxes (includes trash service)
• - HOA fee (includes shoveling sidewalks, maintaining communal grass areas/parks, and water bill)
• - Lots of covenant control
• - No chance for backyard chickens
• +/- New home construction

So you see they are totally different, both have a lot of pros and cons, and we can't decide which we would prefer. We likely will look at houses in both areas, but the houses are so different that it could be hard to compare them to each other.

One thing I do know, though, is that I am totally ready to be a homeowner. Bring on the do-it-yourself projects and mystery breakdowns. Bring on the mortgage. Just so long as you also bring on the paintable walls, self-determination, and NO MORE MOVING FOR YEARS AND YEARS.