Confessions of a Home Owner: What I wish I would have known before buying a home

This last year has gone by crazy fast. A little over a year ago we had put in a pending offer on our home, the offer had been accepted AND 2 1/2 weeks later we took possession of our house! To celebrate our one-year anniversary of being home owners (and our Blogiversary!), I have teamed up with some fabulous bloggers to share some of the things we maybe had to learn the hard way or in retrospect, wish we would have known BEFORE we purchased our homes. 

Personally, the best piece of advice I received: "Wait six months to renovate or paint or change anything. Just live in your house and get to know it". Wait......whaaaat??!!! This sage adage actually came from our reputable home inspector.   He of course meant in regards to things like painting or expansions, certainly not necessary repairs like plumbing, electrical or anything necessary for the house to be liveable. In our home inspectors experience, often priorities change once settled in and in retrospect I am glad we listened. My decorating ideas for my entry way have easily changed at least 5 times! 

"We bought an old farmhouse which was a foreclosure. I wish I knew how stressful the actual home buying process would be and jut come in with my offer. Coming in 5k lower was not worth the back and forth hassle especially since they would not take it anyways. The foreclosure price was a 'sticker price' and not really up for negotiation." - Katrina from TOTS Family

"I wish I had known that home inspections weren't regulated, and usually the inspector cannot be held liable for anything that arises after the new owners have moved in." - Amber from Burlington Parents

"I didn't realize how important it is to know who did/worked on the electrical and plumbing. Often companies have a warranty you can claim under or at the very least, will want to stand by their work. Plumbing and electrical issues can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars and if I were to buy again, I would insist on knowing the contractors." - Melva B

"We are now in our second home but I wish someone had told me how important it is to have your lawyer look over the offer to purchase with a new home build. We honestly thought we only needed the lawyer for the closing, not the offer. Seems so obvious now but we were young and incredibly excited to just sign the papers and pick out cabinet colours. We got so screwed at closing when we found out there was no cap on closing costs (something any lawyer would have added). Closing costs were double what we had been told by the bank to set aside and we had to scramble to get it all worked out in less than 24 hours! It was a nightmare." - Jennifer from That's What She Said

"Always pay extra on your mortgage payments. Round your payments up to the nearest hundred, or nearest 500. Also do the bi-weekly payments. If you start doing this from the beginning you will always be used to paying the higher amounts and you will see your mortgage disappear so quickly. This allowed us to be mortgage free by the time I was 30 years old and was the smartest home ownership thing we ever did." - Shelley from STEAM Powered Family

"I wish I would have known all the work it would take to upkeep a house once we owned it. Making smart decisions on appliances and other home repairs all while still trying to make sure we have enough money for the mortgage. I love being a homeowner and also love not having a land lord. When we bought our first home at the age of 26 it was when I officially felt like a grown up. That was a strange, scary and lovely feeling." - Jessica from featherandmane

What do you wish you would have known before buying a home? Any confessions to share or words of caution to a new buyer?

Hidden Costs When Purchasing a Home

It's been just over a year since we signed the deed to our home; it has truly been one of the biggest blessings in my life! Looking back it's interesting how much I learnt about buying home-buying in such a short amount of time. I owe a huge part of my knowledge to the Home Program Course but also, P and I knew we were about to make probably the biggest investment of our lives. And an expensive investment at that. So. We did tons of research; we did not want to have any regrets or doubts and during that time we learned that there is financially more to buying a home than just a down payment, mortgage. and mortgage interest. I want to share with you some of the lesser-known costs, that maybe not everyone thinks of when they start to consider purchasing a home.

Here are some costs you may not be aware of:

Purchase Costs:

Down payment-- the difference between a property's purchase price and the amount financed. Is paid initially and upfront.

Home Inspection-- although not always necessary, it is often highly recommended. Also, be sure to your research before choosing a home inspector/inspection company. A house is a big investment and a good inspection company will be able to review and inform you of any needed repairs and can be an important element in deciding if the house is right for you.

Renovations-- if the home inspector informs you about needed repairs or you just want to make your new house into your home, it is a good idea to plan for some initial reno costs, even if it is just paint!

Appliances/Furniture/Accessories-- appliances are not always included in the purchase of a home; you may also need to buy maintenance items such as ladders, tools garden hose, lawn mowers, etc.

Adjustment Costs-- As the buyer you will have to reimburse the seller for items he may have pre-paid for (example: mortgage interest, property taxes, garbage/city bills, utility bills such as gas, hydro, water, etc)

Closing Costs-- Expenses in addition to the purchase price: can cover property insurance, mortgage life insurance, registration of the property and property transfer; often includes Lawyer Fees-- the lawyer will complete the transaction on your behalf and pay any taxes or fees to be assessed.

Moving Costs including installation charges for utilities and other amenities (internet, cable, etc.)

Ongoing Costs:

Mortgage and Interest-- Monthly loan payments that essentially buys you a larger portion of an appreciating investment; there are different types of mortgages and they can be paid several different ways (monthly, bi-weekly, bi-weekly accelerated, weekly, etc. )

Taxes including property and school taxes. These taxes pay for municipal services. Property taxes can vary depending on region, and the current value of your home.

Insurance-- This insurance offers protection for your home and personal belongings. There are many different, comprehensive insurance plans out there, a specialist can help find the right package for you and your family.

Utilities-- The cost of usage of utilities such as lighting, water, and heat.
¸
Repair and Maintenance-- in order to keep your new home in pristine condition, regular repair and maintenance is in order. Budgeting will help you plan ahead for these repairs and any renos that may come up.

Did you have any surprise costs when you purchased your home? Do you think this is an accurate list of home ownership costs?

If you rent, were you aware of the fees involved with buying a home? Does this list make you more or less inclined to buy a home?

Our Christmas 2015

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

I can't believe another Christmas has come and gone so fast. It seems like it was just yesterday that I was telling Pier "It's September; we should start Christmas shopping so we're not doing it all last minute...." Sigh. Oh well. There's always 2016, right?

Our Christmas celebrations started Christmas Eve. After I was done working, we quickly got ready, loaded the truck and sped off to my Grandmothers for Christmas dinner with my immediate and extended families. After a lovely meal (mhmm homemade cabbage rolls! and gherkin pickles -- my favourites!), we visited and then opened presents! 

At the end of the evening we headed back home where Colden was allowed to open ONE present

Waiting to open his Christmas Eve present -- pyjamas, slippers, and a new Disney movie!

After a quick bath, Colden put on his new pj's, and set out some cookies and milk for Santa Claus and some carrots for the reindeer

We finished the evening by watching Colden's new movie.

Christmas Morning. I was surprised at how nonchalant Colden was. He woke up shortly after 7:00am, walked into the living room, went to the bathroom, and finally crawled back into bed with Pier and I, where he was content to snuggle for the next half an hour! I think I was more excited and impatient than he was!

Tearing into Christmas Stockings

Colden received everything on his wishlist including a safari train set, hotwheels race tracks and more, along with a special Candylane game from our Elf on the Shelf Sully!

Thanks Sully

We spent the rest of the day relaxing, and cleaning up in our jammies. It was very low key holiday, which suited me perfectly!

On Boxing day we hosted Pier's family, which was soo much fun! We both love entertaining and being able to do it in our new home, is all the more special! It was a wonderful day full of great food, and great company!

Oh my goodness! He was such a baby in 2013!

Although he hasn't changed much in looks, he has gotten so much bigger

It was so wonderful being able to spend time together as a family being able to visit with our loved ones! It was an absolute blessing and from our family to yours Merry Christmas!

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. Luke 2:14

Home Update One

It's been just over 4 months since we've moved into our home and I thought I would share an update. W O W! Does time ever go by fast! 

In some ways it feels as though we have made NO progress in making our house a home but then the little voice in the back of my head says......it was summer, you enjoyed and made memories with your 3 year old......you've both been working fulltime hours......and then there was that flu...and that other bug...and the other....

You get the point!

SO with out further adieu, here is our list of home project accomplishments thus far: 

 

1. My wonderful husband, Pier created a shelving system for our make-shift p a n t r y.

Before

It's a fairly deep cupboard, and while I could fit lots of my baking and pantry items inside, I was really keen on utilizing the vertical space as well. Thankfully, Pier is a jack-of-all-trades handyman and he was able to easily put together some shelves.

Colden helping Pier

While it certainly utilizes otherwise wasted space, the eventual goal is to put some sliding rack drawers in, so that it will be easier to reach items far in the back.

The finished project

2. Pier primed the entryway (which, by the way, I have the most a m a z i n g DIY plans for!), the bathroom and our hallway

 

3. My hubby also painted the exterior of our house. If you recall from the pictures the siding at the bottom of the house used to be a bright, sunny yellow.....well, NO MORE! It is now a elegant and timeless white to match the rest of the siding. Unfortunately, we didn't pick a very good day to paint, it was scorching hot (like +35 degrees Celsius) and Pier ended up with an awful sunburn. There is just a smidgen of yellow left at either end of the house at the very, very top (not visible from the front of the house, thankfully) which will wait until next year, when the season is not winter.

 

4. Pier created a shelving unit for all of his movies (Seriously guys, he is AMAZING.) Sadly, I was a horrible wife and blogger and didn't get O N E single photo of him making it. But, sometime in the near future, I will post a picture of the finished project!

  

5. We have a fence! This is one of the projects I was MOST excited for! I had this vision of Colden frolicking and playing all summer long in our huge yard, while the fence safely secured him from the road. Sadly, our contractor was tied up and was unable to get to our project until later in the fall but we ran and played anyway and we have a fence for next summer!

 

6. We replaced the shingles on our garage and on Colden's playhouse. (Hopefully that will help stop water from getting in to the garage. Fingers crossed.)

 

7. We have two brand new decks!
1) At the front of the house, Pier demolished the concrete steps leading up to our front door and then our wonderful contactor built us a new porch complete with railing (where I can put potted flowers, come spring!) and steps.

2) We also had our contractor build a little deck that we will keep our bbq on and is big enough for a small patio set, if we so wish.

  Notice the last remaining bits of yellow paint!
 

So although we haven't painted the main floor, or unpacked all the boxes or gone shopping crazy (yet!) I am super proud of what we have accomplished and am very excited for the next projects to come!
Hopefully before the New Year we will have:
- finished unpacking ALL the boxes
- painted the upstairs
- my entryway DIY will be started, if not finished
- had a consult with a contractor regarding next years big RENO

What were some of the first projects you tackled when you moved into your home? How long did it take you to make your house a "home"?

 

Possession Day!

July 10th. The date we took possession of our new house.

We woke up about 7:15ish; I had to work that morning at 9:45 so I was busy with my usual routine and I let P worry about getting Colden ready.

We headed out the door around 8:30 to meet with our realtor; the wonderful, Glenda Rott. We completed a final walk-through just to ensure everything was up to par. Everything was perfect and the only thing left to do was wait until 12:00 pm when we could officially take possession. Glenda encouraged us to pick up the keys together, when I had my lunch break. We ended up with a little time to spare so we stopped to look at some washing machines and dryers. We checked out, Home Hardware, Sears and The Brick all very quickly. It ended up working out perfectly because as we pulled up to The Brick it was pretty much time for me to go to work, which just happens to be on the same street.

Shortly after I started my work  day I received a call from the lawyers office asking P and I to run over there ASAP as they still needed O N E more form signed before we could take possession. At noon.
EEK!! Talk about s t r e s s f u l! Thankfully I was able to quickly run down and give one last autograph! Work that day was a blur, I really don't remember much except that I was soo thrilled and happy!

My lunch break came and went, (so quickly).The first thing we noticed when we drove up was this beautiful chalk drawing

And presents! Completely house & heart warming!

Flowers.....a beautiful blanket throw.....personalized business cards with our new address.....gorgeous cards of thanks..... so so sweet

 

But the part that made my heart just melt, were the gifts for Colden. From the previous owners he received a inscribed Berenstain Bears' Moving Day book (so fitting! and truly a book that will hold a lot of wonderful memories for us) and from our wonderful realtor: a paperbag lunch complete with juice-box because as she said she knows what moving is like and although mom and dad would never intentionally forget, somethimes when you're moving lunch gets pushed back. It felt as though she had looked into our morning and week and just knew the craziness surrounding a move. I thought my heart was going to become a gooey, love-filled, melting M E S S! Words cannot even describe how blessed and loved Pier and I felt. Thank you!

P.S. thank you cards are on the way! xoxo

and of course, we can't just let a photo op go to waste!

 Also, a H U G E thank you, to all that helped us move in!

 

Pier and I were so lucky to have the most fantastic professionals helping us and ensuring everything went according to plan!
Mortgage Broker: Phil Larue
Realtor: Glenda Rott as well as, a very special thank you to the Alberta Home Program
Lawyer: Stephen Kambeitz
To entire "team" that made this move possible - THANK YOU!

As I look back, the 15th was a whirlwind but a very happy and exciting time. Definitely a life changer and a day we will always remember!

A new home, a fresh start, and a blog continued

Our house buying journey started t h r e e years ago. It's hard to believe its been that long! When we first started looking at homes my husband, Pier and I made a "must-have" list and a "would be nice" list. Essentially these lists were composed of features we really, really wanted in a home and features that would be nice, but weren't necessarily imperative.
 

Our must-have's:

~ three bedrooms on the same floor

In the beginning this was one feature I could not compromise on. I really wanted the home we purchased to have three bedrooms. In the little city we live in (and where we primarily looked at for-sale homes) it's very trendy for there to be two small bedrooms on the main floor and then a bedroom, sometimes two, in the basement OR the master bedroom and ensuite would be on one floor and two smaller bedrooms on another. When/if we have another little one, I have never loved the idea of Colden's bedroom (or a new baby's room) being on a different floor then ours. I'm not opposed to my littles sharing a room but the bedroom would have to be able to accommodate a crib AND a toddler bed, at the very least. I'm not gonna lie, this must-have and my unwilling to compromise vetoed out a lot of homes. A L O T.

~attached garage
We live in Canada. In our winters a garage is a MUST. Not only does the garage protect vehicles from the snow, wind and other elements but it is a huge time saver. Especially in the morning when we're already pressed for time. And I am ALL about that! Pier is a jack-of-all-trades handyman and I'm quite a pack-rat so it's nice to have that little bit of extra storage and space for his tools and my accumulation of 'treasures'! I would have preferred an attached garage but as you can see in the would be nice list, I would definitly compromise on a detached garage

~a big yard (ideally with a fence)
This pretty much speaks for itself. We both really wanted a huge yard that the kids can run and play and imagine in! But the fence is a must to keep little ones safe and it has the added benefit of privacy.  Plus, a big yard is nice for entertaining and I really love having the freedom to add a deck, or raspberry bush, or garden without compromising play space.

 

Our would be nice list:

~separate garage
This has all the attributes of an attached garage minus the fact that it's detached.

~dishwasher
I hate doing dishes. No seriously. It is my l e a s t favourite chore. I detest washing dishes sooo much that I will willing let my dishes add up so that they take over my sink, the counter, the stove AND the kitchen table before I finally get around to doing them (sans company, of course). By the time I finally HAVE to do dishes, I regret waiting so long because the food and grease is caked on and I've really only made the job I hate harder. Sigh. So anything that saves me the hassle of having to do dishes and from this vicious cycle is a great attribute in my book!

~main-floor laundry
This feature is just personal prefrence. Why truck dirty laundry down a flight (or two!) of stairs just to have to bring it back up when it's clean and repeat a million times?

~in a great school district
The town we live in is quite strict on enforcing school zones and although we are still a little ways from having to worry to much about choosing a school or education system, it was something that we did keep in the back of our minds while looking at properties.

In the end, the home we ended up loving and purchasing is a two bedroom home (+one in the basement). It has a detached garage but a HUGE yard. It's on a double lot so there is tons of space to play (and grass to mow!). I love that the yard is so huge, we could, eventually add an addition which would give me the third bedroom and wouldn't compromise the yard. At all!  It also has the highly-coveted dishwasher and is within walking distance of a fantastic private school. Although it does not have main floor laundry, it did come with an amazing Apple tree which I am L O V I N G! I cannot wait to make apple crisp this fall! Another huge bonus is it's within walking distance to 5 playgrounds and there are 3 more close by!

What's on your must-have and would be nice list when looking for a house?

A new home, a fresh start, and the beginning of a blog?

Welcome!

 

 

We are soo happy you're here :)

Our sidewalk decorated by our lovely realtor

This is our first home. Together, my husband Pier, and I have lived in 3 different houses in 5 years. It was a l o n g journey but it feels so great to be semi-settled and grounded. We just took possession on July 15 and I am so looking forward to making this itty-bitty home cozy and ours <3 and I'm excited to share the good, the bad and the ugly of our diy craft and renovation projects with you.

 

 

  Our new house

 

Besides home reno and DIY, I look forward to sharing our favourite meals, our outings and just everyday, lifestyle posts.

My goal is to try and post 2-3 times a week. Please bear with me, as I figure out all the different gadgets and tricks!

Our Family: myself, my husband, Pier and our son, Colden (3)

 

I would love hear from you and welcome your feedback! You can reach me at jamiepierjuneau@gmail.com or in the comment section
You can also find us at -
Facebook: www.facebook.com/thejuneauhome
Instagram: https://instagram.com/jamiepierjuneau/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JamiePierjuneau

Stay tuned for more on our new home and our possession day!