Finding The Perfect House & Free Press Release

I want to live here! Really, I do. And it would be easy to say this is the perfect house. Let's assume this baby got foreclosed on and because of that was in a price range a middle class engineer and his freelance writer wife could afford. This beautiful, luxury home still would not be a good house for my family. Why? Can you imagine what it would cost to keep that massive beast cool in a Texas July? Yeah. If we want things like electricity, a house this size is a no-go. And there is another problem. No way is this one woman show cleaning more than 2400 square feet without a maid. It just won't happen. Beautiful but not perfect.

The house to the right might be perfect for me. Every square inch of it (interior included) is my favorite color,and it's a regal style that I like. With all that purple, I bet the law school drop out in me could negotiate a heck of a deal. It wouldn't be perfect for my family though, because my husband would refuse to live there. What's my point? There is no perfect house. But there is a perfect home for your family. And here is how you find it. You sit down with your spouse--and your kids if they're old enough--and you make a list of what you really need. You talk about why you really need it to make it's a need not a want. Then you make a list of what you really want. You review the list of what you really, really want and you think of new ways to get it. We wanted a pool, but finding a house with yard space to add a pool was sufficient. We could wait to add the pool until the baby wasn't a baby and alleviate some fear from life. We could get the pool we wanted. We needed hardwood floors because I refuse to clean tile grout! Some of our primary concerns were that the property be a good investment and budget. (Of course--I'm a writer--budget is always a concern). We bought our first house in an expensive suburb, but it's where my husband worked and it didn't make sense to move into the city. Everyone--including three real estate agents--told me I wasn't going to find what I was looking for at the price point I wanted but I did. Because I knew what I needed. I bought a house with crummy white 90s appliances. They were horrible. Looking at the kitchen made me want to die! But for $3000 new appliances made the whole house look different, and it's how I bought a recently built house in a very popular subdivision for under 150!

What tips do you have for finding the perfect home? And what's on your list? I want to hear about it. Don't forget I'm giving one lucky winner a free press release. Sign up using the rafflecopter below.

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