Your Gay Real Estate

Trials of a first time home buyer.

When I purchased a home as  a first-time homeowner last year, my enthusiasm was tempered with dread. There were so many things to take care of, from mortgage financing to home maintenance, and I just knew I would forget or overlook something.

 During the intimidating process of buying my condo in New Jersey, I read plenty of online articles, but they never seemed to give enough helpful information that made sence to me. It was like cramming for a final exam in college, only there were major dollars involved. What was most helpful in the process was talking to other first-time homeowners and the Gay Realtor who was able to sit down with me and my partner and help us to understand that we did not have to know everything before starting the process. Their advice often reassured and guided us, allowing us to learn from their mistakes. And, of course, we continue to learn from our own. In the interest of passing on some of that wisdom to other new home buyers, here’s a general — and probably obvious — tip: You can never be too detail-oriented. “Why didn’t we think to lift the wood blinds?” asked a friend, who owns a house in Chatham NJ. “The window treatments were so lovely and in such good shape. I saw the windows from the outside and they looked great, especially for a house built in 1949. After we moved in, I lifted the blinds in the kitchen to find rotting window panes and warping so severe the windows would not open. The windows in the adjacent breakfast room were disfigured as well.”  Steve was finally able to replace the windows. “I love them, but it took me three years to be able to afford to have them installed. If I’d known ahead of time, I’d have been able to roll the money for new windows into my loan. I learned a valuable lesson: Lift the blinds and try all the windows.”  Tipically a home insectore will find such a issue but in this case that did not happen. Another friend, In Maplewood NJ., recommended a professional inspection of the plumbing.“My boyfriend and I bought a house that had just been renovated to include a brand new second bathroom with a shower,” he said. The previous owners “had done such a great job with the entire home renovation that we were dazzled by how shiny and sparkly clean everything was. We rushed through the home inspection, and we didn’t run the new shower for very long.” John believed everything was fine, but sparkly appearances can be deceiving.  “Once we moved in and took our first showers in our master bathroom, we discovered that the drainage had been done incorrectly and that a solid drip of water was draining into our first-floor hallway,” she said. “Next time around I will follow the inspector around, and you can bet that I will be running all of the faucets for a good long time and trying to imagine where a leak might show its not-so-pretty little head.”  I tried to be similarly thorough when inspecting my place, but I had never owned a dishwasher or washer/dryer before. What was I to look for? It’s not like I could launder my undies during an open house.  Fortunately, my Realtor offered an insurance policy that covered all the major appliances in my condo. I bought the one-year policy during escrow, and am I glad I did.The night before Christmas Eve, when I was scheduled to have my first real dinner party, my oven started beeping and flashing lights for no reason. It woke me up in the middle of the night, and it was a little too much like that ghost trying to ruin Christmas. I was able to call the hotline listed on my insurance policy, and later a technician replaced the computer that runs the oven controls. All I had to pay was the deductible — $40.  A month later, I discovered that items in the top rack of my dishwasher weren’t getting cleaned. I called the hotline again; a repairman came out, ordered replacement parts totaling hundreds of dollars, and fixed the machine. My price — $40.  The total on those two repairs was more than double what I paid for the insurance. That policy was one of the best investments of my home purchase, and now I’m wishing I bought a two-year policy instead! I’m convinced that buying your first home is never a mistake-free experience. So don’t ignore the mistakes of your friends, family and associates, learn from them.