So we might be buying a place...

Inspection went ok. There were a few minor things the inspector found. Our agent is going back to their guy with some counters. Thanks for all of the advice. I really appreciate it, because I have no clue what I'm doing.

 

This. 1,000 times this. You will save many thousands of dollars learning to fix or improve things yourself. A lot of it is easier than you think. YouTube is your friend here. There is not a repair or renovation task under the sun that does not have at least one YouTube video showing how it's done.

 

Approves of getting a new place.

 

This is a deep pull that I appreciate fully. "Do you got a place in New Orleans, Geoff?"

 

“You should come visit!”

 

Title insurance should cover you there. For what you pay, it better.

 

Try to be around when the mailman / mailwoman comes along one day. Ask him/her about neighborhood: Crime? Traffic? Whack jobs?

 

Yeah, with the new standard deductions, I don't see how most people would ever need to do that anymore. We would need more than $24,000 in itemized deductions in one year to make it worth doing. I barely paid that over the life of my 10-year mortgage.

The first HOA that bans rap music, we're buying in a heartbeat. Neighbor always turns into the street with his windows down and the garbage playing full blast. Always wakes up the wife (who goes to bed early because she often works graveyard shift). And it's not even the noise. It's the infernal base that you can feel shaking the house.

 

I always thought it would be a good idea to hang out in the neighborhood for a few minutes at various times during the day. My street is as quiet as it could be. So if you come by around 10 a.m. or 4 p.m. it is peaceful. But there is an elementary school in the tract and around 8 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. the traffic is pretty bad.

 

Just got the purchase and sale. I read it over and it seems pretty boilerplate, but also definitely getting a lawyer to give it a glance.

 

You are right, Ragu. We landed a pretty good lawyer who's been responsive and patient with us. I feel like a hayseed when it comes to this stuff, so it's been worth the money.

I just cut the check for the down payment today. I didn't put down anywhere near what Dave Ramsay suggests, but it was still a chunk of change I didn't want to part with.

I really appreciate all the advice here. As always.