We have found a house. I should say, we have bought a house.
Am I excited about it? Yes…and no.
House hunting is stressful. House hunting is even more stressful when you are living on one income. House hunting is even more stressful when you are living on one income and have to move out within seven weeks. We looked, we stressed, we looked some more, we stressed much more. Something had to give.
The problem was our last home. Well, the last home we owned at least, not the one we are currently squatting in. It was a gorgeous, modern apartment, walking distance from Bondi Beach. Heaven for the pair of DINKs we were when we bought it. No yard, no kids, no problem. Mortgage payments? No sweat on two reasonable incomes.
Now here we are in Perth. After the mining boom.
Close to the city where we preferred to stay, did I mention the one income? Sure you can have a ramshackle townhouse with an envelope of sand for a yard or live under the flight path for Perth’s international and domestic airports or, “You’d like a yard, no problems, look we will throw in an uninhabitable cottage for you to knock down too.” All this as you beat back the other 45 couples lining up to view the place and the 25 developers with plans to divide and conquer at the expense of ordinary house hunters (what is with every reasonable sized block being subdivided anyway? Don’t families want space for kids to play outside and be kids anymore?)
And then there is the fact that we love the location we are living in now. Immy and I have discovered so many great toddler friendly activities like toddler dance and toddler gym which offer casual classes (I love the flexibility of casual classes), we are part of a lovely playgroup, we live walking distance from two lakes with reserves and wetlands to explore. Spotlight is round the corner. Ikea just down the road.
Choices, decisions, COMPROMISES. And the clock is ticking. Where are Phil and Kirsty when you need them?
In the end it came down to something small and depressing in the right location (which Dad 101 was against). Or a bigger house and big backyard further from the city (which I was less keen on). Or I could go back to work (which we were both against). And still the clock was ticking…
So we broadened our search area and found our own little patch of nirvana, correction, our own little patch of “suburbia.” Further away from the city than we wished (in fact, miles away) but nonetheless a nice big house on a good sized block of land with the potential for updating (*rubs hands in glee* at the thought of a little interior decoration). It is exciting. And daunting. Okay, I’ll admit, I am downright petrified.
But at least I don’t have to go back to work. Yet.
Image courtesy of August Rush.
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Christie Burnett is a teacher, presenter, writer and the mother of two. She created Childhood 101 as a place for teachers and parents to access engaging, high quality learning ideas.
Love the new look too - very stylish!
Good luck for you move, very exciting!
We are facing the very same house hunting dilemma, small and unsuitable in the area we want or move away from the area and our friends to get a house with a backyard. One income, me going to work is not an option right now.
I'm very surprised at what real estate agents and developers call backyards, most of them are smaller than a pocket handkerchief. Kids need room to run and play and be kids.
It is reassuring to hear that other families have had success in house hunting. We thankfully don't have such a limited time frame because there is just nothing in the areas of Melbourne we like that we can afford.
Nat (Idibidi Kids)
We're looking now too, although we're going the opposite direction. Now that we have a teenager, we're leaving the yard behind and thinking condominium or townhouse right in the heart of the city where we can walk and take buses to get around. We feel like it will give our young woman more independence.
In the end, we sacrificed a little indoor space for more outdoor space, with a suburban house with a big backyard. And we're so glad. I'm sure it's hard to be leaving the city and all that easy access to things, but I hope the new house makes it all worth it!
(And I love the new layout. Very simple and attractive. Did you have the subtitle before? I don't remember, but I like that too)
And great new look!