buy an apartment

it’s not quite over yet – but the offer made has been accepted – so now it’s just a matter of waiting, get the legals done, check out the place again (2 br 2nd story apartment) and look forward to getting into copious debt. it’s tenanted – so they’re staying until the end of this year or early next.
i learnt a lot about real estate agents and trusting myself.

blue isn’t really my thing, but i might just make an exception.

put my first offer in today – the thing that suckered me into the place was the tiniest of details – light fitting and a door number from the 60’s. fingers crossed

i’m not that fussed if i get a courtyard, but definitely finding myself one of these seats if i do (or if i don’t could you imagine how cosy one of these would be with a sheepskin rug thrown over the top?)

it’s weird – in the space of a week, i’ve found a couple of groovy retro places, and hopefully another one to be seen on friday.
in the meantime, retro dreaming of furnishings, and want to get my hands on the following book “modern retro”
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1841721034/ref=sib_rdr_dp/
i’ve had a bit of a thing for the tongue chair.

i think i’ve found a place…the downsides are:
3 floors of stairs to access
a little further out than what i currently am = longer walk to work
the carpet – however, that’s also a bonus, as i get to choose the new floor – maybe i can get polished wood after all!

here’s the living room with the carpet – i love the bookshelving:

there’s certain things that i get suckered into when looking at apartments, and i was totally in love with the pink bathroom.
however, the place was only 30m2, wouldn’t be a walk to work, and wasn’t strata title. bummer that. pity i can’t just buy the bathroom…

what i want:

a decent size (ie 50+ meters square)
bathtub
gas stove
room for a fridge, washing machine + hanging space
no ensuite bathroom (must be accessible for visitors staying over)
ability to walk to work in the city
strata title
“flow” to the space – ie walk in and feel comfortable there
within my budget

added extras:

polished wood floors
retro finishes
balcony

what i’ve done:

contacted 4 mortgage brokers, and found a deal that i’m happy with for the meantime (methinks a quick review of loans before i purchase is going to be a good idea).
loan with ING is preapproved.
mortgage broker suggested conveyancer (who happens to be next door to the broker – handy, eh?) whom i’ve spoken to about what i need to do.
savings – i’ve opened an ING account some time ago, and there’s a decent amount in there, and the interest is around $120 a month, which is handy…

i’ve started looking for a place (in melbourne, carlton, carlton north, abbotsford, fitzroy, fitzroy north, east melbourne, brunswick, brunswick east, parkville, north melbourne)around 3 months ago – holidays and finding 2 flatmates for the current house have eaten into time a little.

there’s a couple of books that i’ve bought about buying a place – anita bells “your mortgage” (http://www.anitabell.com/xtractymortgage.htm ) has been the most useful.