We bought a house!!

I actually can't believe I'm writing this but yes we bought a house!!

Well technically speaking we are in the process of buying a house, but we have paid a booking deposit on one.

So let me tell you how it happened :)

Myself and Dean had gone looking at a few different houses, but with the relief available from the Help To Buy Scheme a new house seemed the most suitable for us.

A couple of months ago we first went to the show houses from this new estate just to have a look, but kinda fobbed off the idea of us being able to buy a new house. After we had been approved for the Help To Buy scheme we went back a second time and after crunching the numbers we realised one of these houses were an option. We then went back a third time with our parents and got their seal of approval. 

Side note: My mam went on and on about how I shouldn't be fooled by a show house but she wasn't even 2ft in the door when she was declaring her love for the place! 😂😂

We spoke briefly with the estate agent (who was at the show house) and found out that all the built houses were sold and we could put our names on a list for the next phase to be built & released. We were told a very vague release date for these, I'm pretty sure they talk in seasons, not months! But we were happy to wait. The location was perfect, the houses were lovely and it meant we had a few more months to save. It also meant we had to buy our house off plans, a scary concept but it seems to be the only way with new builds!

A few weeks went past and we didn't hear anything so I gave the estate agent a call. I naively asked what position I was on 'the list' as there are a few different types of houses being built and I wanted to know how likely I was to get my preference. Unfortunately there is no list. We were told everyone who had registered their interest in the new phase would be notified when the houses go on sale and it's a first come first served kinda situation. This news caused me to have a mini meltdown. I had images of me and Dean sleeping in our car so we'd be first in the queue so we could secure our dream home!

Thankfully this was not the case - for me anyway. Twenty-four hours after my inquiry re 'the list' I got a call from the estate agent to say a house had come available. This house was from the current phase (so on sale but not built) and we went through the specs. This house wasn't the same as the show house but it did have what I was looking for - three beds, a south facing garden, a side entrance and a hot press 😁😁 So it was either go for this house at the given price or wait for new houses to be released, which could be more expensive and I wouldn't be guaranteed my preference. 

It was a major freak out moment, I wasn't with Dean and we didn't really know what this house looked like! It's not far off from the show house but I haven't physically seen it, and I won't see it until it's built! I was frantically ringing my Mam, while Fiona, who I work with, was pulling out and analysing site maps and floor plans! 

But as you can tell we went for it! The house is slightly different than our original preference but for me it wasn't worth the risk to pass on this and hope that when the next phase is released, the house I want is available and within my price range.

To reserve the house we had to pay a €5,000 refundable booking deposit immediately but I'll fill you's in with the rest of the process in another post :) We were told the house will be built by July, but I won't hold my breath!

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