So on the December 17 Derrick and I made the final decision between 2 condos. One of the condo's was about 10 minutes out of the downtown area, 2 bedrooms, 2 full baths, nice updated kitchen, full laundry room, and a study that could easily be converted into a 3rd bedroom by adding a door (it already had a closet and window which justifies it for a bedroom). The other one we were looking at was about 2 minutes from downtown, 1/4 mile from the major park here - Zilker Park, backs up to the greenbelt, had a view of the skyline, 2 bedrooms, 2 full baths, nice kitchen, smaller place. After much debate and back and forth conversation we decided to put in an offer on the one closest to downtown - #128 is what we will call it. We put in a pretty low offer but were prepared for them to counter, us counter, etc. The offer went in on the 19th and I think on the 20th we heard back.
On the 20th we heard that they were not prepared to settle for much below their asking price, which was pretty high considering there were 6 other condos for sale in the complex, and said they were pulling it off the market (liars... it's still up there but whatever - we just screwed them because our offer got accepted 4 condos down).
Derrick and I were in 2 different states at this point so it was hard for us to discuss everything but we managed. We talked about looking at the other condos in the complex and seeing what they had to offer. We LOVED the location - you just can't beat it - and knew that this was where we wanted to be. Although they are on the smaller side, you can't change your location once you buy :)
Back in November when we first started looking at places, the very first day I went out with the realtor we went to 7 condos. The very last one we saw actually ended up being the condo we put the next offer in on. Funny to think back that I could have eliminated over a month of searching if I would've known in the end we would've picked that one. At the time I didn't want it because I felt it was too small -- we thought we wanted a big house. Why? We are only 2 people and half the time it's only me! Plus the houses we would like to buy are currently too far out in areas we don't want to live in so we are taking this as our first place:)
The first time I saw the condo - #124 - it was soo cute from the outside. Adorable entry way and so warm and welcoming. We walked in and everything changed- the kitchen was in desperate need of an update. Old yellowish wallpaper, old cabinets, old counter tops (blue actually), and a pantry that was so odd we just couldn't figure it out. It also was dirty because someone was in the process of moving out and it just didn't feel homey at all. When Derrick and i went back through it on December 29 it was even worse! There was a pile of clothes and junk the size of TX in the middle of living room, cups with water around the place, Christmas presents, and it actually said on the form it was vacant!!! What the heck??
Well we left on the 29th saying no. But... after sitting and taking it all in we thought hey - that crap won't be there. Underneath that junk are nice floors, and the exact same lay out as the other place we wanted. Plus, Derrick is crazy handy and said he could re-do the kitchen. And besides --- you can't beat the location! So we told our realtor to put in an offer.
She put in a super low offer - ready to counter - and on January 3 we got the call --- 1ST OFFER ACCEPTED! They never even countered!! Here are some pics of the place we look forward to calling home when it's all said and done (and boy let me tell you... the experience of buying a house will be blogged about soon and let me just say I cannot wait for this to be over).
Please note --- the pictures below are NOT what we saw when we went to see it. The pictures are what drew us to look at it:)
The adorable entry way:) The window to the left looks out from the kitchen and the window to the right is a guest room bay window.
Back porch area that has 2 entrances - 1 from the living room and 1 from the master. It extends the entire length of our condo and looks out into the greenbelt. We are elevated about 10 feet off the ground so we don't have to worry about people walking around on the same level.
Living room with 1 entrance to the deck. The door to the right enters into the master.
Standing back by where the door to the master was and looking towards the dining room, entry hallway, and through the white doors is the kitchen.
Master bedroom looking out into the greenbelt
Guest bath - we finally have one:) Guests are welcome!!
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