I purchased my first home!

Some say that...

• Buying a home is the biggest purchase you'll ever make in your lifetime.
• A home is an asset, and some say it is a liability.
• Home is where you hang your hat.
• Home is where your heart is.

No matter what, "home" to me is a place of familiarity and comfort. Some people say, and I say it too, "There is no place like home".

Over the past couple of months, there's been a lot happening at work and it involved me moving in and out of the city/country. I tell my friends with a lot of excitement that I get to travel for work. I tell them, "I'm heading over to Vancouver for a week", or "I'm going to visit Boston next week" (which I all did). While I appreciate the travel, there's been countless times that I said to myself... "I miss home" or "I miss sleeping on my bed". The comfort is just not there... although my company pays some serious bills and gets us into the Hiltons :p But if you've felt the same way with business travels, like I have, now you know you're not alone. And if you are brave enough to admit it, leave a comment and say I agree with you Jackson. Thanks.

So enough said... over the past couple of months, I've been scouting around for a potential property to buy for myself. I've come to realize that I shouldn't need to rely on my parents to take care of me anymore, and that it's time to take a step into the independent life. Most of my life I've been fortunate enough to have had the love and care of my family and friends. It's really been a memorable 24 years of my life :). I'm hoping that by moving out, I will become a more mature and responsible human being. I look forward to the challenges ahead, and it has been one of the reason for my decision to look for a place at such a "young" age.

I finally found a place of my liking and it's taken over 100 e-mails from my real estate agent (Donna Sun of Royal LePage) and some in person open house to get the juice running in me and tell me what I'm about to get myself into. I've visited a few locations around the Billings Bridge area and saw that there's some great things around there that I want to be part of. So I eventually went for one of them, and the next thing you knew, I won the bid and purchased the property! :)

What are some home shopping tips I would give from this experience?

• Do your research ahead of time. Purchasing a condo is very different than purchasing a single,townhouse, etc.
• Ask your parents, family and friends about their experience when they bought their first home. Everyone will give a different perspective, but you don't need to go with everything they say. Take what you can get and make informed decision that you want. Afterall, this is your purchase, not theirs!
• Get qualified to know how much you can afford. There is nothing worst than wasting your precious time looking at properties that you cannot afford. Although I did that at the start, there is no shame admitting it, it's fun shopping but just be cautious about it.
• Start using Microsoft Excel to brainstorm and jot down month expenses and do all your calculations ahead of time so you know what to expect once you move out. This is the part that I think is probably the most important because people can tell you all sorts of things about "we pay this much for this" and it could be better or worst in your situation. Plan for the worst case scenario to ensure that you safety net for any unexpected events.
• Another reason why you want to do your calculations upfront is so you can take those calculations to the bank/lawyer/friends/family and asked them if you are on par with how much each expense are. This shows that you know your stuff and you thoughts things through with out "jumping the gun" (I never got to use that phrase, glad I could use it here :).
• Show no weaknesses when you are talking to your mortgage broker, real estate agent or lawyer. When you've done your research, you will have questions and if you ran them by your friends and family, then go to the specialist and ask them, but it's always good to ask them even if you've asked your friends and family just to confirm as housing markets have probably changed since they went through the process.
• Be confident and read through all documentations before signing any papers. Ultimately, a signed contract is a proof of some transaction. If you solely rely on your broker or agent to tell you want to do, then you could be pushed around if you don't know what it is you are being sold on.
• Don't believe in anything private sellers tell you. Ask lots of questions and take what you've learned from the first encounter to the next. Often the seller will try to use some persuasive words or talk all about benefits but not disclose some things about the unit unless you ask. That is when the lawyer comes in and takes a close look at the terms, but you should probably read it too.

Those are the only tips I can think of right now. I hope they will help you when you're shopping for your place :). But by now, you probably want to know what I bought :p My building is...

• Built in 1975
• Has 2 bedrooms
• Has 1 bathroom
• Has 1 living room, dining room and kitchen
• Has 1 underground parking spot
• Has 1 balcony looking out into the Ottawa River and Landsdown Park (clear view)
• Unit is on the 26th floor (29 floors altogether)
• Literally 10 steps from the lobby to the OC Transpo transit
• Has an exercise room
• Has an indoor swimming pool and sauna
• Has 1 storage locker
• Share laundry with only the same floor people (no more than 8 units per floor)
• Comes with dishwasher, refrigerator and stove
• Comes with window blinds
• Freshly painted
• Newly installed spot lights around the unit
• New cabinets in the kitchen
• Well kept, very clean minus the cat smell (I'm allergic to cats)
• Condo fees include caretaker, heat, hydro, building insurance, management, recreation facilities, and water

Here are some photos of the place (taken by the real estate company)

*I will get post some more pictures once I move in and furnish the place up!

Overall, I think this was an awesome purchase with a sweet deal! At the time, I was looking at another unit in the same building but the guy was asking for 25,000 more... and yes, I got it 25k less for this one I bought :p I'm glad I waited as long as I did. There were 10 others involved in the whole bidding process (this place was apparently in real high demand... :p). In the end, we won but had to dish out an extra $1,000. No loss in my sense, as I was extremely happy to have secured the property with knowledge of everything about the building being sound and "not much to worry about".

I think that is it for now... I will absolutely be available for any questions if you have any for me. If possible, ask it here as I think there will be some good knowledge sharing between everyone who comes here to read this :). But if needed, you can email me jackson.lo87@gmail.com your questions and I'll try my best to answer with what I know. I will be adding more tips as I move through the process.

But current state... The condo is BOUGHT! Now it's all paperwork...

Wish me luck :p ... oh and the closing date (when I get my keys) is on September 1, 2011! Until next time thanks for stopping by! :)