I'm a homeowner now...

[ibneko]

I got my keys yesterday.

2 bedroom, 1100-ish sq.ft., annoying hardwood floor (I think I really like carpet better. With carpet, you can just lie down and fall asleep. Hardwood floors are kinda hard and cold.), a kitchen that needs remodeling, windows that don't stay open (and could use replacing), and a lot of room for me to fill with all sorts of junk.

I still need to post pictures from Japan. Also need to post pictures of the new place.

And now to make myself some food, then look around for boxes. And maybe take a look at furniture pads to stick underneath my furniture. Man, I need pads with wings. That would make moving things so much easier.

Uggggh, I don't want to move again. It's only 1.4 miles away from my apartment. I could theoretically move everything myself, without using a car. It'll take several days though. But I do have 30 days to leave my apartment (30-day notice to terminate apartment given today). Thank goodness for my short, usual 5-month lease.

Caaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrpeeeeeet...

Oh yeah. And since I own the place, I could get a kitty! Or several kitties! I want kitties! I'd feel kinda bad about leaving them alone all day though...

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

sweet. a house for me? ;)
you could get a dog and a cat. the dog can watch out for the cat =P

[allandaros.livejournal.com]

Dude. Congratulations!

(holyshit people I know are buying homes that is freakin' me out)

[shanrina.livejournal.com]

Congratulations!

[ibneko.livejournal.com]

I agree.

But uh... who are you? XD I suspect you found your way here via the facebook post. But I'm having trouble figuring out which of my friends live in "Auckland, New Zealand (Aotearoa)".

[10101.livejournal.com]

congrats, Ben :)

[p-trekkie.livejournal.com]

Congrats!! And on the bright side, you can always get rid of the hardwood floors if you are so inclined, although they do have the advantage of being easy to clean....

[evrdream33.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I agree. The one thing that nice about hardwood is that it's easier to clean. I wanna see pics of your shiny new place. :) Good luck with the move, and congratulations! You're a homeowner! =D

[starkravingsane.livejournal.com]

First off, congrats!

Second, you really ought to rent a U-Haul truck to move. It's only about $30 (including gas, etc.), and believe me, it's worth the hassle you'll save. Get everything packed up, load it up all at once - just trust me.

Third, if you have the room, I'd recommend getting two kittens. Cats are pretty self-sufficient, so I wouldn't worry too much about leaving them home alone (especially if you get them toys and scratching posts), but they'll do better if they have a companion. :-)

Again, congrats!

PS: I like hardwood. It looks prettier, and is easier to clean. You're right, though, not as comfortable for sleeping - I'd keep an air mattress around for guests.

[p-trekkie.livejournal.com]

Oh, I forgot to mention, you should go to at least one annual condo association meeting. Because 1.) they vote on things that actually will matter to you and 2.) they are the best source of juicy gossip, history of the complex, and references for people to fix/renovate things. Just don't come too often, or else you'll end up like me and get put on the Board of directors....

[ibneko.livejournal.com]

"Just don't come too often, or else you'll end up like me and get put on the Board of directors...."
Oooh, that's important, thanks. (I'd probably have gone to every meeting...)

But yeah, definitely attending the first one. Need to ask on what the policies are for getting the kitchen remodeled. Guy that came by to do final repairs on the shower (paid for by the seller) was like, "Yeah, this shower system is about 40 years old. Oh, and that dishwasher? Get rid of it, please. It's over 30 years old. I'm serious."

[ibneko.livejournal.com]

Hm. I'll think about it. It's true, it would make it much easier, but driving a truck bothers and kinda scares me...

And it might actually be cheaper than my really lame attempt to move by using ZipCar. ($8/hr, racking up at least 8 hours...) Although that was also partially because I didn't really pack things into boxes before I got the zipcar, which was really dumb on my part.

Getting boxes now. This shall be more organized than last time. Hopefully.

[ibneko.livejournal.com]

Think of it more as a really really expensive apartment. With a biiiiig damage deposit and more responsibility attached to it.

[ibneko.livejournal.com]

...I'm not sure who you are... ¬.¬ So no.

[blackenedevn.livejournal.com]

your kitties can torture each others all day long when you're at work.

[starkravingsane.livejournal.com]

Haha, yeah. Moving by car is really only a halfway good idea if you actually OWN a car. (I'll probably be moving stuff by car into storage for the summer, but (1) it's my car, and (2) I'm subletting my place, so I'm leaving a lot of stuff to be used by my subletters.)

I understand being wary of using a truck - my friend Faina drove the truck when we moved out of our dorms last year (she and I lived on the same floor), and even she felt uncomfortable/tiny driving it. She's 5'11".

What I would recommend is finding a U-Haul that has cargo moving vans (http://www.uhaul.com/guide/index.aspx?equipment=truck-cargovan) available. Definitely easier to drive than the trucks. Again, trust me, it will make your life so, so much easier.

[foreveraspiring.livejournal.com]

Congratulations on the home!

You could get two kittens so they can keep each other company.

And carpet is more fun, but hardwood is actually easier to clean.