The Greenwich House

I am creating this blog to document the construction of my new townhouse. My brother created a blog when he and his wife built their beautiful new home in Pennsylvania, and it was a great way for his family and friends to keep up with the process--especially for those of us who live far away.

I have had some ups and downs with real estate over the years. The first house I got serious about buying was in Lyons Station, Pennsylvania. It was a six bedroom townhouse in pretty bad shape, but it was only $19,000. I was talked out of buying it by people with good sense. A few years later, it was destroyed in a tornado.

Last year I entered into a lease-purchase agreement for a large home in Oviedo, Florida. During the course of the lease, the housing market took such a downturn that it became obvious I would be better off getting out of the deal. The property manager was amenable to this. It was a big disappointment for me on some levels, but in the time I lived there I realized I do not enjoy lawn work or exterior maintenance at all. Like, not even a little. I work long days and often long nights, and when I'm home I just want to relax.

Thanks to President Obama, working in cooperation with Aunt Linda, I have found a beautiful townhouse I can afford. The current stimulus plan includes an $8000 tax credit for first time home buyers. Aunt Linda encouraged me to start looking at some of the local deals, and together we found a great place being built in the Legacy Park subdivision of Casselberry, Florida. Once we were both in agreement that it was the best deal we had seen so far, Uncle Dave gave the place a thorough investigation and gave the thumbs up.

The style off the townhouse I am buying is called Greenwich because it is designed to be reminiscent of a Greenwich Village brownstone. Usually I find that kind of nomenclature to be hollow and irritating, but having been inside many brownstones in New York, I have to say that they did a great job recreating that kind of space.

I qualified for the mortgage yesterday, and today I placed a hold on the property by paying half of my down-payment. We are signing the contract on Monday and then I'll pay the remainder of the down-payment. The builder is paying my closing costs, so once the down-payment is in, I'll be all set. The building is scheduled to be done on August 30th.



My brother was able to document his home's creation starting with the ground-clearing. Because I'm joining things a little bit later in the game, mine will start with much of the building already up. I think it will still be interesting to watch as it develops. Also it will give me something to do while I wait to move into my brand new home!