For a while now we've been contemplating a move. We love the DC area, but it has become too crowded for our taste. Our beloved Loudoun County is becoming so developed now that is bears almost no resemblance to the semi-rural oasis we grew up in. Not to mention that homes are so expensive here. So we've been planning to eventually move to the Raleigh area in North Carolina. Eric's family lives there now, and we love it whenever we go to visit. It is a smaller city with lots of IT work and some great neighborhoods, and most of all, incredibly low real estate prices. The downside would be leaving DC, and leaving behind my sister and her family, and my dad, since he lives here about half of the year.
My sister happens to be a realtor, and in what I'm sure was not a completely altruistic move, she sent me a listing for a gorgeous house in the next county over that had just been dramatically reduced in price. It's a 4 bedroom/3 bath cape cod on two acres in a beautiful rural setting. She took me out to see it on Tuesday and I loved it. Eric hasn't seen it yet but we're going out there again on Saturday. If he likes it we might make an offer.
This would be a complete departure from our plans of moving to NC, and we'd have to rethink a lot of things. I'm pretty stressed out about it - I do not do well with big decisions and big changes. But I feel like this would be a really good move for our family. Eric would have a longer commute (right now he's 10 minutes from the office) and I'd have a longer drive to Target (which would probably save us a lot of money). We'd be farther from church too. But we'd also have a big yard for Sawyer (and any future kids) to run around and play, and quiet evenings without having to smell the neighbors' cigarette smoke or hear their parties. I would have enough space to have as many gardens as I want, and my own soap room. The thought of having a mortgage is scary (we've always rented), but I know we have to take the plunge eventually and this might be a great time to do so. We'll see what happens.
Last. Week. Of. School.
5 years ago
NOVA real estate is horribly expensive. It's such a deterrent to people starting out. I'm sure part of the problem is all of the duel-income-no-kids until their 40 couples. At least housing prices are finally falling. Best of luck in your decision! And good job Megan for finding you such a great place. Must be nice to have a real estate agent who knows and loves you.
ReplyDelete