Laurel townhouse, $195K.
| Our latest offer.
Since realistically all the single-family homes in our price range are dumps that we just can’t afford to fix up – why else would we constantly be competing with contractors? – we’ve started looking at townhouses, which are generally in better shape. This one’s in Laurel, which cuts Josh’s commute in half but makes mine half an hour instead of ten minutes; with the added complication that we only have one car, and the university shuttle only comes to Laurel twice a day. That, and the fact that the price is right at the top of our budget. Ouch. We can still make payments if I don’t get a summer job, but we’ll have to work at it. |
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| That said, those are the only reasons we’re hesitating. It’s in a really nice neighborhood (sorry, forgot to take pics of that). The inside architecture is a little squirrely, but it’s got plenty of room: two small identical bedrooms upstairs that could serve as offices, and also the master bedroom which looks out on trees (see 2nd pic).
The basement is less attractive visually than the rest of the house, inthat it’s panelled entirely in plastic fake-wood. Easily fixed. Besides,it has a nice full bath and bedroom down there (for guests maybe), inaddition to a wood-burning fireplace. Its big sliding glass doors let inlots of light and lead out to the lower level patio, which is largeenough (and gets enough sun) to fill with flowers and vegetables. |
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Quick videos (taken with a handheld digital camera, so they’re not the greatest, oh well) of each floor, as well as all the rest of the pictures, can be found at my pdfs directory until I take them down around May 12. |