Closing Time

After months of waiting, I finally closed on the house last Thursday! It only took 30 minutes to go over the paperwork and hand over my $$, then they handed me the keys and now I am officially Megan K. HomeOwner!!!!

Yay!

Over the weekend, Mike worked on a few odds and ends -- he traced the circuits back to the empty breaker box (shown below) and figured out where all the duct-work goes.

In order to really start construction, though, I'm going to need electrical and plumbing permits. Unfortunately, the City only gives out permits to licensed contractors...so now I'm on a search to find contractors who are willing to work for very little money.

One would think that by working for an architecture firm, I'd easily be able to find these people, but it's proving more difficult that I had anticipated. I just hope we find someone soon...or someone who can finish the job for CHEAP.

I guess we've hit our first snag. Blarg.

Talk Nerdy to Me

I learned Revit (fancy-schmancy 3d modeling program) in my spare time. By drawing my house. ShaZam!

This is what my kitchen will look like when it's done...except that the drywall will go to the edge of the cabinets, and everything will be a lot nicer. (Stainless appliances, double oven, granite counter tops, oh my!)

This is what the master bathroom will look like when I'm done. Slate tile, jacuzzi tub, double vanity. Heck yeah!

This is the front part of the house. See those dining chairs? Yeah, I made those all by myself.

I'm such a nerd.

Homeless with a Mortgage

So, I've made a preliminary schedule for house construction, which optimistically leaves me with a move-in date of December 25th. (Yeah, Christmas!) It's three months from closing, which seems like a very long time, but considering I only have evenings and weekends to work on this beast, I think it's a fairly aggressive schedule. The scope of work is everything from installing receptacles and light switches to ordering counter tops and appliances.

Here are some photos of the space in it's current state:

The Grand Staircase. Ain't it grand?

Brand new water heater - notice the "Water Heater Goes Here" message, written on the giant cardboard box...very professional!

My stunning hardwood floors! (Those boxes equal approx. 1200 sq ft of flooring.)

Lavish bathroom accommodations! (This is the master bath - complete with incomplete jacuzzi tub and custom shower...it will eventually be tiled out with some wickedly-beautiful slate tile, which is currently stacked in the bedroom, and the hallway, and the foyer...there's tons.)

So anyway, my landlord has rented my apartment as of November 1st, which means I'll have almost two full months where I'll be paying off my loan (not technically a mortgage, since I can't live in the house) and not having a real home to, well, go home to. Luckily, Erin and Ryan (sister and bro-in-law) have agreed to let me and Miles (the cat) crash at their place for a while. It should be fun, as long as the 3 humans and 4 cats that will be occupying the house don't kill one another.

Good luck to us!

Megan K. HomeOwner

"Sucker!"

It's the same thing I said when I graduated college and was handed a diploma, and now I'm saying it again... But this time it's bigger than a diploma, and this time I'm even more incredulous.

"Why?", you ask.

Because some poor schmuck was silly enough to sell me a house.

After nearly 6 months of looking at properties with crazy wood paneling, opium-den/discotheque-inspired "saunas", no A/C, Pit bull-raising neighbors, newspapered walls, mold-spore mountains, and $40k worth of liens, I have found the house of my dreams!

It's a 3 bedroom, 2.5 bath, 2000sq ft, solid brick townhouse in an historic neighborhood near Tower Grove. And better yet, it's not finished - so I get to pick what finishes go where, and what kind of counter tops I want, and all the other fantastic things that I love to do!

Huzzah!



The photo up there is of the entire property. As of September 25th, I will own the left half. (The other half is owned by Pete, a young professional who is the regional clothing-buyer for Banana Republic...)

Needless to say, I'm stoked!