We Bought Our First Home, Sight Unseen!
We bought our first home sight unseen, in Tennessee!
I am writing this post from the dining room table, in our new farmhouse. It’s early August, the sunrise is on the horizon, and the crickets + cicadas are still humming away. There are boxes everywhere, things are a complete mess but, all of us (pets included) couldn’t be happier!
Let me tell you, getting to this point alone took a lot of hard work. The home buying process in this crazy 2022 market was a rollercoaster ride to say the least. And, it was on a complete whim that we found this home to begin with. But, it seems my obsessive Zillow searches paid off. Hold on, let’s rewind a little bit…
We first visited Tennessee back in April. We planned our spring break road trip after Justin and I realized that our plan to move to Colorado was not working out in our favor, So, we decided it was time to bite the bullet and explore another state. And, Tennessee has been on our list for quite some time now, so we booked an AirBnb and hit the road. You can read all about the trip that won us over right here.
Justin and I were smitten with this area; between the natural beauty, friendly (and fewer) people, and affordability. During our trip we even toured a property, and put in an offer on a home with 3 acres of land. But, due to the market, a bidding war ensued and we were outbid (by a lot). Our spirits were low from missing out on what we thought was the perfect house for us but, it turns out we found something even better.
Pausing the home search
While on spring break we decided to pause our home search momentarily, and enjoy our time here in Tennessee. But, when we returned to New York, the search was back on. We found a few homes that caught our eye but ultimately put an offer in on this property during Memorial Day weekend. Our realtor submitted the offer on Friday, and we heard back on Saturday morning that our offer was accepted!
At the time, it was early in the morning, I was out for a run, Justin was in bed and the girls weren’t even up yet. I was making my way back home when I met Justin in our front yard, he asked me if I looked at my phone recently. To be honest, I didn’t even notice the message on my phone until that moment. And, when I looked up from my phone I was in disbelief.
But, I also had a huge smile on my face. Justin did too. If I remember correctly, the words “what did we just do?!” came out of both of our mouths a handful of times.
Over the next few weeks, the rollercoaster ride continued. We had to secure a mortgage, schedule the appraisal, and home inspection. This house is a fixer upper so, there was a lot of back and forth during this time. There was even one instance where we were prepared to just walk away from the deal entirely. But, after weighing the pros and cons, we decided to push forward and make this home our own. So, one day, in late June (my parents wedding anniversary to be exact) we closed on our new home.
Where We Are Moving
We are moving to a small town in Roane County, Tennessee. Our new home is just about 45 minutes south of Knoxville, an hour and fifteen minutes north of Chattanooga, and 2 hours east of Nashville. A fun fact about our new town is that it is one of the last in the Eastern time zone, making for late sunrises and sunsets. All of the conveniences are within a 15 minute drive, and churches are a plenty. Our home is also a short drive to Watts Bar Lake which we can’t wait to explore in the future.
That’s not even our dog….
Why We Are Moving
Here are some of the reasons why we decided to make the move:
1. Leaving the rat race behind – Life in New York is just busy, and most of it centered around work. We lived on the North Shore of Long Island, in Suffolk County and Justin worked in the Bronx. That made for a 4 hour commute each day, Justin would wake up around 5 am and most nights not return home until 5 pm. We chose our home because it was closer to family, and after living in San Diego for a few years we valued the proximity to family. Justin’s new job is just about 2 miles away from home, and it’s the best commute he’s ever had.
2. Community – On Long Island, we lived close to Stony Brook village. There were always concerts and events on the calendar, shops and restaurants within walking distance and people were very friendly. We were blessed to have some pretty amazing neighbors, amazing preserves to hike (within walking distance), and a small beach right around the block. But, even though Stony Brook is a beautiful place to live, and kind of in its own mini bubble based on where it sits on Long Island, it still felt overcrowded. Stony Brook has done a great job at preserving its green spaces, I can’t say the same for the rest of the Island.
3. Political Alignment – It pains me to bring this talking point up in 2022 but, the pandemic put a lot of things in perspective for Justin and I. For me, it took this left leaning independent and thrusted me closer to the conservative side of the aisle. There are a lot of toxic policies in place in New York that were magnified during quarantine. I am not going to get into specifics but, I will say that I want my family to live in a state with conservative values.
4. Affordability – It’s no surprise that (coastal) New York is one of the most expensive areas to live in, in the U.S. Between the taxes, and soaring home values, we would not be able to afford the home we would want to provide for our family. It just wasn’t in the budget.
When We Are MOVING
Well, technically we already have moved! The girls and I arrived here in Tennessee on August 6 but Justin arrived a week earlier with Lola, Roxy and Hammy – our cat, puppy and hamster.
HOME DETAILS
The house we bought is a 3 bedroom, 1940s farmhouse. It’s bigger than our rental home in Stony Brook, which was a 2 bedroom. So, the girls are excited to have their own rooms but also a little nervous to sleep by themselves for the first time.
Oh, and when I said fixer upper, I meant it! There are a ton of projects waiting for us in this new home. But, we are focusing on making it liveable before tackling any of the projects on our list. Just to give you an idea, one of our first projects is to install a bathroom vanity in our only full bath. Like I said, lots to be done.
My favorite part of our new home is the 10 acres of land it sits on. We are surrounded by mature trees, fields of grass, and even have a pond on our property. But, we aren’t even going to touch the outside until the inside has been renovated. However, we will definitely need to purchase a tractor to tame the wilderness that currently sits outside our door.
Porch Swingin’
MOVING IN MINI HOME TOUR
I wish I took pictures of the home before we moved in but, we did purchase the home sight unseen. And, when we visited in mid-July for the first time we ran a lot of errands and were truly only in the house for maybe 10 hours between two days. So, the thought of taking pictures definitely escaped me
LIVING + DINING ROOM
As is, the living and dining room share one big space on the left side of the house. The walls have a dark wood paneling, and a stone wall takes up a significant amount of wall space. This stonewall was the backdrop for a wood stove, which we hope to install once again. On the wall directly across from the stone wall sits an “antique fireplace”. Justin and I are unsure if this fireplace is even connected to the chimney…don’t worry, we will not be using it. If I have my way, this fireplace will be completely removed along with part of the wall it’s attached to. I have a vision for this space that includes a major overhaul but I plan to share those plans a bit later.
Honestly, this room is the most highly trafficked room in the house. And I havent even had the chance to address the left side of this room. Completely unpacked . And behind the frame? Our dining table and buffet in their temporary home.
FRONT BEDROOM 1
Upon entering the house you walk immediately into the living and dining space we just spoke about above. And, to the right of the front door is the first bedroom. Seriously, I am not sure who put together the layout of this house but, I am not a fan of it as it stands today. The front bedroom is pretty basic, four walls, a floor and a couple of windows. One window broke when we tried to open it in mid-July so it’s half open, and the wood paneling is slightly off the wall in this room. Another element that causes serious concern is the closet. It backs up to that antique fireplace I mentioned earlier. All in all, I am not the biggest fan of having a bedroom right off the front door. What are your thoughts?
This room is filled with boxes and suitcases, and apparently chargers and sneakers from my morning run..::oops!::… I have a comforter set I am dying to put on this bed but havent yet because of how muddy everyone has been getting from hanging out in the yard…
Bathroom
The bathroom looked to be in a state of renovation when we took over the home. There is a shower/tub combo but no faucet for the tub. However, the enclosure looks fairly new. The vanity was noticeably missing but the previous owners had two brand new vanities in their boxes just sitting in the living room. This room is the first that needs to be made liveable, and I’m going to share more about the progress of this project next week.
BEDROOM 2
Nora staked her claim on this bedroom from the start, and to be honest I can see why, it was in the best shape, and got the most light with two big windows overlooking the side yard. And, dare I say this bedroom almost has a proper closet…gasp…
BEDROOM 3
Just as soon as Nora staked her claim on bedroom number 2, Sadie staked her claim on the third bedroom. Sadie likes cozy spaces, and with that in mind this bedroom does not disappoint. But, it does disappoint in almost every other regard. The bedroom’s only access door opens to the kitchen. It’s small, has one window which is currently blocked by an awning so, let’s be real,it needs a lot of TLC. Just like the rest of this house.
KITCHEN
Dare I say it? The kitchen in this house is just way too big, and very poorly laid out. Not to mention the countertops are missing in some parts, and all of the cabinet doors are off the hinges. You might have guessed but, the footprint of this kitchen is going to change. On the bright side, the previous owners paid for a countertop upgrade (that they couldn’t refund) so, they became ours. And, while the granite they chose would not be my first choice, its not that bad, we can totally work with it. Did I mention they also purchased a sink and faucet too? Its a good thing because this kitchen needs all the upgrades it can get!
We are still trying to organize this space but, at the time of these pictures we’ve only been here for 1 week. So, I am kind of proud at the progress we’ve made so far…
Laundry + Powder Room
This room was added on by the previous owners. They decided to take away from the third bedroom to add this space. And, when we arrived in mid July for our first visit, the washer + dryer weren’t even hooked up. The toilet and plumbing for the vanity stood as they do right now but hopefully not for long. I got word from a neighbor that this entire space used to be a part of bedroom 3, and truthfully that makes a lot more sense then what it is right now.
If the overall idea of this farmhouse scares you, you are not alone. Justin and I are terrified that we won’t do it justice. We need to find that happy balance, and take my New York expectations out of the mix to make it the gem it truly is. And, I hope you stay tuned for the renovations as they come to fruition because mark my words, this house is going to be spectacular when we are through with it.
