Just wanted to share the news with everyone. Since I am a single, first time homebuyer, I’m rather excited and pretty terrified. I’ve been looking since March and strange stuff has happened to keep me from getting a couple of other places, so I think this one is meant to be. If all goes well, I’ll be closing on September 15.
So any great words of wisdom from you homeowners out there?
Congrats, first of all.
My prediction: you will spend the first two years making it livable to your standards. Brace yourself for a lot of Home Depot visits. No matter how decent a house seems, there are always a series of things you find unacceptable about it.
And, capitalize on that energy you have, because after a while, you get tired of doing all that work.
Remember to distinguish between maintenance and improvement. Maintenance comes first but the two get blurred at first.
Whatever you paid for your house, expect to pay as much to furnish/decorate it. Whatever you paid for your house, expect to pay half as much again in the next ten years on maintenance/disasters. And now the bad news …
Just kidding! Enjoy!
djm
Congratulations! 
Now, say goodbye to your spare time. (I’m only half kidding. Home ownership is very time-consuming, but worth it, IMO.)
Congrats!
Big scary step, I know. I went from a single renter to a married homeowner in under a year, and kept having moments when I felt like a total imposter - I knew I wasn’t really grown up enough and was afraid people would find out. 
Still not grown up enough, but I’m better at hiding it these days. 
Of course, now I’m boggling because daughter #1 will be heading to a university 400 miles away from home in a couple of months. If I’m not really grown up I know that she isn’t! 
More seriously - yes, a home will eat your time and money - but the payback, both emotional and monetary, can be enormous.
.
Congrats. 
Learn to do plumbing. Hire roofers.
Good luck getting out of there for less than $100.00 per visit! 
That’s the thing, you know. You buy a house and then you turn it into a home. Weeks is right too. It takes about 2 years. Congratulations on your 1st house, rebel rn.
Oh, and here’s a housewarming cheese for you!
Congratulations! That’s really exciting for you.
(Me…I’m ready for a condo.)
A housewarming gift for you . . . no home should be without them!
ENJOY IT!!! Don’t let what you haven’t yet got, of haven’t yet done to the house rob you of enjoying it now. You dont need the best of everything to make a home (only to make a show home). Make your house inviting, do plenty of entertaining and you will love it.
Congrats big time! Yeah, the house never stops asking and demanding money, but there is a definite sense of ‘home’. . .not just a place to rest your head at the end of the day.
We bought into the home ownership 13 years ago, and its been a ceaseless round of tending the yard (who knew I would care about outdoor plantings!), painting, crap there goes the water heater, drat this room is dingy, gotta shovel gotta mow gotta do the roof.
Expect major buyer’s remorse. . .and also expect the very sweetest holiday season you ever imagined come December!
OH BOY!!! What FUN!!!
But those who said it will take 2 years…they are wrong…you will never get done with what you WANT to do. That’s the fun part, getting to make those little(or big) changes eventually.
My house is my other obsession, besides music. We live in the house my husband was born in, his grandparents built it. This year we have begun major restoration work and I’m in hog heaven. Except for the little irritation of major surgery which has but a hold on my work for a couple of months. But I can still boss, much to my husbands sorrow, and today I was able to weld my trusty paintbrush. Tomorrow they will be moving the 5 1/2 foot long kitchen sink to it’s new home on a brand new ca.1930 sink base!!!
Here’s a link to pics of what we’ve been up to-
http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/drumnacoub/album?.dir=/4c2a
If you want to know how to do anything to your house, check out
http://americanbungalowmagazine.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php?
This is an entire forum of bungalow addicts who have done everykind of work on a house that could be imagined.
Post pics. We want to see 
Houses are wonderful!!!
CONGRATULATIONS!!
home ownership is a learning experience! your learn to sew, carpent, plumb, electric, garden, cement, fence, landscape, negotiate . . .
Thanks everyone! It’s going to take a long time for it all to sink in. The house is in great shape, so hopefully it won’t need TOO much work at the beginning - although I know there’s always something that will need to be done!
Here’s a few pics - the house is a zero-lot line (in other words, half of a duplex). Obviously, the furniture isn’t mine!
Paint. It allows you to make a big impact on a room for a very small amount of money.
Congratulations! I hope you have fun making it the home you want it to be!
First, Congratulations!!!
Second, Invest in a good set of tools, a couple of good used do-it-yourself books, make friends with a plumber, and prepare for an exciting ride!
Thanks for the photos. Your house looks great!
Congrats on the house, it looks great from the pictures. I have to agree on many of the suggestions listed . . . and you will get to know the local Home Depot very well. Make sure to have some down time after you move in . . . moving in and fixing up a home can drive you CRAZY.
It does get better in a couple months.
Congratulations on the new house! Take your time and enjoy it. I just painted my kitchen this weekend after living in my house for 3.5 years–no need to do it all right away.
Also, start doing finger flexibility exercises to keep your hands from cramping during the closing. You’ll only sign about 319 documents…
Congratulations on the new house and thanks for the pics.
I found out last week that I will never sell my condo to a Muslim person. Why? Because the toilet in my place faces East! and there ain’t much that I can do about it, outside of replumbing the whole one side of a 31 story building.
On the other hand I also found out after having my place assessed, that the current market price is $35,000 more than when I purchased it fourteen years ago!! And it is only a 750 square feet.
MarkB
