Budget & Eco Friendly Cleaning Basics

So as you may or may not know, I really like having a clean house. However, I don’t like to clean. I also don’t like to spend money, and the smell of most cleaners makes me want to barf, because I have an absurdly strong sense of smell (like seriously, it’s strong to the point of being weird).

I also have a science background and feel sort of obligated to be nice to nature, especially since most of my free time involves hiking, fishing, camping, and otherwise using nature as my personal playground.

This creates a problem – I want a clean house, but I don’t want to use harsh cleaners because of the smell and the fact that they’re bad for the environment. But I also don’t want to spend money on the super expensive eco-friendly cleaners because I’m poor. I also don’t really want to clean, so easy is automatically the best choice.

My solution? Lots and lots of home-made, extremely cheap, all-purpose cleaners.

You may have heard the usual baking-soda-and-vinegar-are-amazing stuff, and I am going to reiterate that stuff, but I’m also going to add a few other things that have made their way into my cleaning cabinet.

1. Vinegar: If you’ve ever read a budget or eco blog post about cleaning, you know vinegar is awesome. I use diluted vinegar (1:1 vinegar and water) to clean my kitchen counters, my kitchen table, my bathroom, windows, blinds, and…well…everything. It’s the ideal all-purpose cleaner because a gallon of vinegar only costs about $2, and it’s super easy to have one spray bottle that you can use for nearly everything. Vinegar does smell, but not as bad as commercial cleaners, and the smell dissipates very fast
2. Baking Soda: Again, baking soda is, like, the King of Cleaners. Well, maybe the Queen – I personally like vinegar better because (surprise!) it’s easier to use. Still, I use baking soda to get caked gunk off the bottoms of my pots, to shine my kitchen sink, and as a deodorizer in my garbage can or in funky smelling places. When I clean my fridge I also make a baking soda & water solution, because I find that spraying vinegar in your fridge makes your fridge smell funky. A large box of baking soda is usually only $3-4.
3. Salt: Yes, salt. I’m a big fan of cast iron, which is a pain in the butt to clean properly. I find that sprinkling salt on the pan and scrubbing it helps get all the food stuff off without using soap (which you’re not supposed to use on cast iron). I also scrub my wood cutting boards with salt and lemon juice once in awhile. Salt costs almost nothing.
4. Borax: Borax is found in the laundry aisle, and it is good at help your laundry detergent get your clothes clean if you have particularly nasty stuff in there. However, borax is also good at repelling ants and whitening surfaces. A large box costs about $5.
5. Hydrogen Peroxide: I use this to clean cuts and injuries (well…sometimes. I usually just ignore cuts and injuries), but it is also the BEST stain remover I have ever seen. I accidentally dropped a mulberry into my apartment and stepped on it, leaving a giant purplish stain on the white carpet of my apartment. I actually did this when I was leaving for vacation, and failed to notice the stain until I got back…but even so, I just dribbled some hydrogen peroxide on it and blotted it dry, and you literally can’t tell that the stain was ever there. A large bottle of this stuff costs about $2.
6. Rubbing Alcohol: I have this for home-pharmacy purposes as well, but use it to clean my glasses and my electronic screens. You don’t want to get screens very wet, and alcohol dries super fast, so it’s perfect. I get my alcohol in large bottles when it goes on sale for 99 cents.
7. Distilled Water: Water, obviously, doesn’t clean anything. BUT…I have a steam mop. And I highly recommend buying a steam mop. It comes with these Velcro microfiber cloths, and a vial that you fill up with distilled water. The mop heats up the water and emits it as steam … and it is the greatest thing over for cleaning and sanitizing kitchen and bathroom floors! No string mop, bucket, or floor cleaner required. A gallon of distilled water is $1

There’s also combinations of ingredients that create specialty cleaners. For example, I have recipes for grout cleaner, soap scum cleaner, and stove cleaner, but they all basically use different combinations of the above ingredients and/or dish soap.

So my entire home-made cleaning cabinet costs about…$15. And this stuff lasts me a super long time – for reference, I buy baking soda and distilled water about once a year, vinegar about twice a year and the other stuff…well…I bought it all 3 years ago and haven’t run out yet.

Stuff I still buy commercially:

1. Toilet Bowl Cleaner: The toilet is gross. I’m not going to mess with home-made stuff here
2. Dish soap: But I do favor the Bon Ami brand, which works well and is more eco-friendly. Fun fact: dish soap is an awesome degreaser, so I’ll mix this with my vinegar water to get grease off of stuff.
3. Laundry Soap: I’d like to try making my own laundry soap, but I haven’t tried it yet. Maybe eventually

Other Budget Cleaning Tips:

1. Avoid paper towels: Paper towels are weirdly expensive considering they’re just…paper. I have a bunch of cleaning cloths, and use a combination of microfiber and cotton, depending on what I’m trying to do. I also dust with microfiber, for example (because it works better and I’m definitely not buying expensive duster refills), but I use cotton rags for wiping up spills and other messier messes. In terms of cleaning, pretty much only use paper towel in the bathroom because toilets and sinks get gross and I don’t want to reuse those cloths.
2. Clotheslines are Awesome.  I line dry most of my clothes because it makes your stuff last longer (especially bras. Don’t put your bras in the dryer, ever), it doesn’t make cotton clothes shrink, and it’s…free. I got a clothesline at the dollar store and a drying rack at a garage sale for a quarter, and have everything hanging up in my basement. I only use a clothes dryer for sheets and towels, because they will get stiff if they hang on the line. I usually put underwear and socks in the dryer as well because it’s easier, although I’m considering putting them on the line as well.
3. Don’t Use Too Much Cleaner. A little goes a long way. This is true of laundry soap especially – you need very little soap to get your clothes clean. My dad sold appliances, and he discovered that you usually need about half the recommended amount of laundry soap unless your clothes are especially soiled. Dish soap also can go really far – I put the soap on the sponge instead of on the dish, and then I can generally wash several plates and/or forks before I run out of soap. Remember, more cleaner generally doesn’t mean more clean, it just means more rinsing and wasted water.

I kind of like this topic, because I’m super proud of how clean my house is…and how little I actually spend on cleaners…so I might make in depth posts about each cleaner at some point. Like, maybe a post on all the ways I use vinegar, or the details of my steam mop – we’ll see! For now, use this as a stepping stone to decreasing the money you spend on cleaning your house or apartment, while making it presentable to your mom when she comes to visit.

Cutting the Grass - Surprisingly Hard the First Time

Cutting the lawn is a fairly easy task. You just pour some gas in the gas thingy, start the engine, and walk back and forth across the lawn until the grass is cut, empty the bag of grass clippings, and put the lawnmower away. Sure, you might have to empty the bag a couple of times, and it might be hard to get around trees, but it’s still a fairly simple process…and one that I had done intermittently for my parents for years.

Of course, I haven’t touched a lawn since moving out, since I’ve been living in an apartment. But now that I am a homeowner (a fact that still makes me squeal and jump up and down until I remember that I’m supposed to be an adult), I get to cut the grass again!

 Or you know…I have to cut the grass again. Because unfortunately, grass grows continuously, and needs to be cut continuously. And unlike when you shove the overflowing laundry basket in the closet, or when you quickly vacuum the center of the room and hope that no one notices the corners…you can’t let cutting the grass go, even for a week.

 But that’s okay! I like being outside and I like owning a home! Cutting the grass! Whoo!

 Oh wait, that means I need to buy a lawnmower doesn’t it?

 So I did some research and guys…there are so many types of lawnmowers!

 Self-driving vs. push: Self-driving mowers have an extra bar that you hold down while the engine is running to make the lawnmower wheels turn by themselves – you don’t have to push, you just have to steer. With push mowers, you do all the work of…pushing…the lawnmower forward, as well as steering it. According to my research, push mowers were about $50 cheaper for comparative self-driving mowers, and I decided that I was perfectly capable of pushing a lawnmower around…given that my yard is basically a flat square.

 Gas vs. Electric: Electric mowers tend to be cheaper than gas mowers, but gas is a way cheaper commodity than electricity. I also don’t know how to use an electric lawnmower, and didn’t want to deal with learning. I read mixed reviews on which was better for the environment, and decided to just get a gas.

 Engine and Model Types: Apparently, Honda makes the best, most long-lasting lawnmowers. These are also the more expensive lawnmowers. I opted for a cheaper model because it should still last 10-15 years (with the proper care), and by that time I’ll probably want to get a nicer, fancier mower anyway.

 Size: Bigger lawnmowers are…bigger…and so they let you cut the lawn faster. Bigger lawnmowers are…bigger…so they cost more money.

 My Lawnmower Purchase: A $199, 21”, gas-fueled, push lawnmower.

 So, I went to Lowes (because I had a 10% coupon to Lowes) and grabbed the lawnmower that I had picked out online. Then, thinking I was smart, I picked up a bottle of motor oil that said it was designed for small engines, like lawnmowers. I had never actually put motor oil in a lawnmower before, but I knew that they needed oil to work, just like a car. Perfect!

 When I got home, I excitedly opened the box and set about putting the lawnmower together. The instructions were terrible and poorly labeled, but thankfully I was able to figure it out – you had to raise the handle, thread the pull-start string through some hooky-things, and adjust the cutting blade to the proper height. It wasn’t too hard.

 I also found that the lawnmower came with a small bottle of motor oil, so I used the oil I was given to fill up the oil compartment, and set the oil that I bought on a shelf for future use.

 Now it was time to cut my grass!

 Okay, I just needed to gas up the mower…wait. I didn’t have any gas. At my parents house, there had always been several cans of gas sitting in the corner of the garage. But I didn’t have a gas can. Crap.

 So I drove to Home Depot (the closest hardware-type store), and bought a gas can. And then I drove to a gas station and filled it up.

 Okay, NOW I could cut my grass!

 Oh wait. I hadn’t attached the bag to catch the grass clippings. I pulled a bizarre looking metal frame out of the mower box, along with a loose cloth bag and could not for the life of my figure out how to put it together. There were no instructions, and I fumbled around for about 30 minutes before I sort of attached the bag to the metal frame (there was no way to secure it, so I just slid the back over the piece of metal) and set it on the grass-dispensing part of the lawnmower.

 Now I was going to cut the friggen grass. I started the lawnmower, pleased that it started on my second pull…and the grass clipping bag promptly blew off.

 I turned off the mower, got the bag back in, and tucked it in as thoroughly as a possibly could. And then, finally, I cut the grass in my backyard.

 The mower worked reasonably well. My backyard’s lawn is pretty patchy and ugly looking from the giant dogs that the previous owner let run back there, so the mower did get caught on a lot of holes and dips in the ground…but it wasn’t too bad. The bag, however, was an issue….there was a gap between the bag and mower, so although some of the clippings went into the bag, some of them ended up on my lawn. I messed with it for another 30 minutes, but couldn’t figure it out. I eventually gave up and finishing cutting the backyard.

 By the time I was done, I could tell that the bag was pretty full, so I figured I should empty it before cutting the front grass.

 Wait. I didn’t have a trash can to put the grass in.

 I had a trash can, of course, but in my city the yard waste trash goes in separate barrels that you are supposed to mark with an X, and are picked up by a different garbage truck that takes it to some kind of compost center. And….I had no such trash barrel.

 So it was off to Walmart, to buy a trash can.

 And then back to my lawnmower, where the bag blew off TWO MORE TIMES before I managed to finish cutting the front lawn. A 30 minute chore had become a four hour activity.

 When I was talking to my dad a few days later, I mentioned the issue of the bag not staying secured on the lawnmower, and he promised to stop by and take a look at it while I was at work (he has a key to my house). He texted me the next day, saying that I hadn’t put the bag together correctly and he had fixed it. And sure enough, when I got home, the bag was somehow securely attached to the frame, and the mower. And no, I don’t actually know how he did it (he is supposed to show me next week).

Morale of the story:

1)      Make sure you have all the things you need to cut the grass: These include a mower, motor oil, gas, a gas can, and a place to dump the lawn clippings.

2)      If the bag isn’t working, you don’t have it on correctly. Don’t stubbornly refuse to google the problem or ask for help.

3)      Try to buy and set up a lawnmower BEFORE your grass desperately needs to be cut, so that if you run into any issues, it’s not the end of the world.

 It’s okay though! It was a learning experience! And when I cut the lawn yesterday (for the second time), everything went smoothly and it really did only take me thirty minutes. 😊

Moving Part 3 - Unpacking

Unpacking is simultaneously the best and worst part of moving. It’s the worst because it is a never-ending pain in the butt…but it’s the best because you get to set up your new home, and that’s super fun!

Maybe I’m just weird.

EITHER WAY, there are some simple steps you can take to make the process better:

1. Go Room by Room. If you followed my moving advice, you should have most of your stuff pre-sorted into the correct rooms. Now, you can turn on some music and settle in to unpack one room at a time, without running back and forth between 1000 different tasks. Focusing on one thing at a time, you will be more efficient – and else overwhelmed.
2. Start with the Bedroom. This is the easiest room to unpack – it’s mostly clothes and furniture – and you kind of need your bed to function as a human. Plus, when you go to bed, you will feel SO MUCH BETTER when you’re surrounded by you neat, unpacked, and put away room than if you’re in a sea of boxes.
3. Unpack the Kitchen Next. The kitchen might be the biggest, toughest job because there are a lot of cupboards to fill and stuff to arrange – and re-arrange when you don’t like the first arrangement. However, it’s also the most used room in your house, and while you might be able to get away with just plugging in a coffee pot and a toaster for the first morning or two, the sooner you can cook normally, the better. And once the kitchen is done, the rest of the rooms should feel easy.
4. Arrange Furniture First. Your furniture takes up the most space and is the most cumbersome to work around. If you have the space to push your boxes to the center of the room, do that. Otherwise, push everything to one side, arrange the furniture that you can arrange, then switch sides of the room.
5. Don’t Neglect Closets. A lot of stuff tends to go in closets, and by unpacking closets you’ll get a lot of boxes out of the way, so I like to do it early in the unpacking process. However, don’t just shove everything haphazardly into a closet, close the door, and pretend you’re done. Take your time to organize the closets from the get-go – you’ll thank yourself later.
6. Create Oops Bins. You were supposed to pack and move your stuff in an organized way, but nobody is perfect, and you might have used some towels to cushion your casserole dishes or thrown a few books into a blanket box because it had extra space. Repurpose a big empty box or bin to collect this misplaced items during unpacking. Then, when you are done unpacking the room you’re working in, you can take this bin and drop off these items where they are supposed to go. Doing this keeps you from running around the house like a crazy person and getting distracted. You might also want a bin for things that don’t have a place at all; you can deal with those items later.
7. Take the Time To Organize. Just like you shouldn’t neglect your closets, you shouldn’t neglect any organization. When you finish a room, the closets, cupboards, drawers, and corners should be neat and orderly. Doing things quickly and haphazardly will just mean that you have to return to the same room again to re-do what you’ve already done – do it right the first time!
8. Keep Cleaning Supplies Handy. Although you should have already cleaned your new home, now is good time to clean any area that you might have missed during the cleaning process. It’s also a good time to clean any of your possessions that you notice are dirty – such as a lamp or the back of a dresser.
9. Don’t Decorate. Unpack all of your usable stuff, but leave your decorating for another day. Let yourself live in your new space for a few weeks before hanging pictures or setting up décor – you might end up wanting to rearrange the furniture or change the way something is organized, and you don’t want to have your favorite painting hung over the couch…and then move your couch and have to move the painting and patch the wall as well.
10. Don’t Buy Stuff. You can buy things you need, like a lawnmower or a vacuum, but don’t buy extra furniture or decorations until you live in the house for a few weeks. Give yourself time to decide what you really want to do with your new space before spending your hard-earned money.
11. Make a Box Zone. A box zone is a designated area to stack your empty boxes. Garages and basements are great for this, as are spare bedrooms. If you’re in a small apartment, you might be stuck using your living room. But either way, pick a specific area. When you finish unpacking a room, take your empty boxes to the Box Zone, DON’T leave them in the room you just unpacked. Trust me, this will make your life better and less stressful because this way, you won’t have empty boxes floating around randomly forever.
12. Empty Your Box Zone. When your box zone gets too full – or when you’re done unpacking – EMPTY IT! Don’t fall victim to letting them sit there for months. Oh and hey, remember how you weren’t supposed to buy moving boxes? Well, now that you’re done with them, pass them on so that other people don’t have to buy moving boxes either! You can see if there is anybody else who wants your boxes – friends, family, neighbors, or internet sites like FreeCycle. I gave most of mine to a neighbor in my old apartment and am giving the rest to a friend who is moving next week. If you can’t find anybody to take them off your hands, flatten them and recycle them. But whatever you do, get them out of your house so that they’re not your problem anymore.

Unpacking is a LOT of work, but it’s SO rewarding when you’re done, and you can look around your home knowing that it’s yours and everything is where it should be. I’m FINALLY done unpacking myself, except for the basement, and am getting ready to decorate soon!

Moving Tips Part 3 - Actually Moving

Okay, so you’ve packed your boxes, you’ve cleaned you new house (or apartment), and it’s time for the big day – actually moving.

You have a few options…

• Hire movers. This is the easiest, the most expensive, and I’ve never done it, so have no further comments
• Rent a moving truck – bigger trucks are more expensive. You usually pay a flat rental fee + mileage/gas. This is kind of a pain because you have to return the truck to the store, but it allows you to move more stuff in one trip so is you only real option for long distance moving
• Use your own vehicle – this requires multiple trips, which takes more time…but costs less money. This only works if you have a pick-up truck or SUV big enough to fit your stuff (of if you can borrow a car like this). This works BEST if you have help – and multiple cars to fill up at once – but it can work if you only have one vehicle, it’s just a pain
• Use your own vehicle for most of your stuff and rent a small truck for your sofa, bed, and other large items. This can be a good compromise between cost and convenience.
• Carry all of your stuff on your back – this may take about a year. And you might die.

Hint: I used my parents small SUV for my whole move, and had a friend borrow his mom’s pickup truck to my couch and bed. It was a pain. But it cost me nothing. Since I was moving a limited amount of large furniture, it was definitely worth it.

Since there are so many options I’ll make TWO lists – one with general moving tips, and one for how to move without a moving truck.

List #1 – Moving Day for Everyone

1. Bring toilet paper in your first load! Also beverages and/or cups for water. I also like to bring a few lawn chairs and set them up in the living room so that people have somewhere to sit and have lunch or take a break.
2. If possible, make sure everybody puts the correct boxes in the correct room. Your boxes should all be clearly labeled, so this won’t even be that bad – kitchen stuff should get dropped in the kitchen, clothes in the bedroom, etc. This will make unpacking way easier.
3. If it’s rainy/snowy, bring some mats or rugs to put down to avoid tracking in tons of mud. If it’s really bad, one person could take off their shoes and deliver the boxes to their appropriate rooms, while another person brings the boxes from the car/truck to the house. My boyfriend and I did this for a lot of the boxes when I moved, because it was snowy.
4. Don’t move in snow. Just…don’t.
5. Allow more time than you expect to need – it takes a stupid amount of time to move stuff. Always allow extra time to account for issues like boxes breaking open, getting stuck in traffic, and taking a break for lunch.
6. Pack an overnight bag with basic toiletries, sheets, and a set of clothes and make sure you know where it is – you can put it in a weird spot, like in the bathroom, if necessary. This way, no matter how not-unpacked you might be, you’ll be OK the next day.
7. Be gentle when you unload. Not only do you want to avoid damaging your stuff, but you also want to avoid damaging your new walls. The last thing you want is to move into a new house and then discover all the extra patching and painting you need to do (especially if you just painted your new home!)
8. Take breakables last. Even if you hire movers, I would feel uncomfortable letting them handle fragile decorations and pictures. Take these yourself, and take them last, to prevent breakage. Additionally, store them gently in a box or carton somewhere safe, like a basement or corner of a bedroom. Although you probably don’t want to decorate until you’ve unpacked fully – and made a final determination on where your furniture will go – if you can hang up pictures immediately, you should. If you buy a house, there should be hooks and nails all over, so just take advantage of those (if you aren’t planning to patch/paint right away). My pictures are still hung up in odd places.
9. Thank your helpers – whether it’s family, friends, or coworkers who are helping you move…buy them pizza and beer (or something else) for lunch, and thank them profusely. Moving kills a weekend day, and it’s awesome of them to give up a weekend day (rare and to be treasured) to help you lug boxes and furniture around.

List #2 – Moving Without a Moving Truck

This method is also helpful if you are moving slowly, over the course of a few weeks – you may rent a small truck for your large items, but want to move a lot of the stuff in your own vehicle as you go back and forth between residences doing the necessary cleaning and maintenance prior to move-in.

1. Always fill your car. Going over to get the keys? Bring a car full of stuff. Going to clean? Bring a car full of stuff.
2. By ‘fill your car’, I mean fill your car. You can fit an insane amount of stuff in a car, even if a little car like my Buick Century. Stuff the trunk, pile large items (like end tables, file cabinets, big boxes, or chairs) in the backseat, then put small things on the floor of the backseat (lamps, small boxes, totes, large pots, etc). And don’t forget the front seat if there are no passengers!  
3. Take advantage of soft items. After your car looks full, you can also usually stuff pillows, blankets, jackets, and dresses on top of all of your stuff or in cracks. Just make sure that any linen you put in your car has a garment bag or other plastic covering to protect it from dirt, and remove these items first when you unload your car to avoid damaging stuff.
4. Always measure large items. You don’t want to finagle your armchair around the corner, through the door, and down the stairs of your apartment complex only to discover that it doesn’t fit in your car, and now you need to drag it back into your apartment. Measuring will only take a few seconds – just keep a small tape measure in your pocket, and it’ll be the easiest step ever.
5. Caravan multiple cars. If you have people to help you, you should all drive separately, at least for the first few trips. With this method of moving, the drive-time is awful, and a huge waste of time, so minimizing that is always a good idea – even if some of the cars are small. Once you run out of small stuff, then you (obviously) only use the larger vehicles. If you get enough of your friends to help, this method of moving can actually be very easy!
6. Put down old blankets to protect furniture – and to protect your vehicle! You can drape cloth over table tops and furniture corners to prevent scratching, and you can also lay tarps or thick blankets over tailgates to prevent your stuff from damaging the car. Be extra careful if you are borrowing someone’s car.

Moving is a giant pain…but once you ACTUALLY move your stuff, the fun part (unpacking!) can begin. 😊

Moving Tips Part 2 - Prepping Your New Home for the Move

As I go through the process of moving from my first solo-apartment to my first (solo) house, I am covering some tips for people who are, well, moving! On Monday I talked about packing, and today I’m going to talk about prepping your new home or apartment for your move. Sometimes, due to timing of lease or the distance of your move, it’s not possible to prep the new place…but if it is possible, it’s absolutely something you should do.

We’ll make a list. I like lists. Actually we’ll make a couple of lists.

First, you’re going to want to walk through the new house/apartment while it is empty and catalogue anything that is wrong with it. If you are moving into an apartment, this is critical because you will be asked to turn in a checklist where you list the existing damages. If you’re moving into a house, you should do this during the inspection, and again during the final walkthrough. You can use this information to ask for money off the house price, make sure nothing changes between the inspection and final walk through, and to make a To Fix List for yourself.

Things to Look For:

1. Open all of the windows to make sure the open correctly. Look for rips in the screens as well. You also may want to check for broken seals and drafts – those things will jack up your heating bill in the winter.
   
2. If possible, run the furnace and/or AC. You can mess with the thermostat to make these things turn on during the off-season.
   
3. Run all faucets and flush all toilets. Look for water that doesn’t drain correctly and faucets that don’t run well or drip.
4. Run all appliances (if they are included with the apartment/house). Stove, laundry machines, dishwasher, garbage disposal, oven, fridge (don’t forget any automatic ice makers or electronic garage doors!)
   
5. Examine shower grout and caulk. Shower tile should be properly grouted and a bead of caulk should run between the tub and shower walls, and around the edges of the shower. These sealants prevent moisture from getting into the wall and causing mold. If it’s a house, you can easily (and inexpensively) fix this, and you’ll want to do so right away. If it’s an apartment, you can ask them to fix this.
6. Examine all heat vents. Look for broken stuff.
7. Look for water damage. Namely, check ceilings and basements. You want to make sure that your place doesn’t leak. If you’re in a lower story apartment, still check – I had a leak on the first floor because the complex never cleaned the gutters. In a house, you’ll want to make sure the ground slopes down from the house; if it doesn’t, you can re-grate the yard to prevent possible leaks.
8. Check gutters. This is only relevant in a house, but make sure these aren’t broken. You’ll want to clean them when you move in, so don’t worry about that, but make sure all the pieces are there.
9. Check locks – make sure locks and keys work. Sometimes they don’t.
10. Look for bug or rodent problems – look for bed bugs, roaches, and mouse turds. This is important in a house or apartment -  the last thing you want is to move n somewhere with an infestation problem…and even clean places can have these issues. For apartments, check online reviews to investigate this thoroughly, as well as peering into dark crevices and looking for droppings. In a house, you can looks at the peoples’ bed for the bedbugs (they won’t be there during the inspection, so this won’t seem that weird).
11. Examine the exterior for cracks and holes – you can’t get money off your house because of this (unless it’s terrible, but then you might not want to buy that house), but you will want to seal those cracks to keep pests, cold air, and water away.

Once you buy/rent a property, you’ll want to clean it before you move any stuff into it (if you can). It will never be easier to clean the house as it will be now, when there’s no stuff in your way. Apartments generally replace carpet and do a small clean before renting an apartment out, but you still want to deep clean the kitchen and bathroom (because they don’t do that). If you’re getting a house, you will want to thoroughly remove any residual dirt, pet hair, cigarette smoke, or other gunk. The last thing you want is to deal with someone else’s dirt and germs.

Here’s a list of some Important Things to Clean.

1. Kitchen cupboards. Wipe out the cupboards with an all-purpose cleaner. Be mindful of any sticky spots, crumbs, and greasemarks – including the marks on the cupboard doors. I use a mixture of 1:1 vinegar and water. It costs almost nothing. If the cupboard are really bad, you can use a degreaser and paper towels to get the excess crumbs.
2. Closets. Same thing – wipe out with all-purpose cleaner. The degree of scrubbing depends on the dirtiness of the shelves
3. Windows & Blinds – you can wash the windows and clean out the tracks. These are often-neglected jobs in both houses and apartments, but clean windows and tracks makes a huge difference to both your view out the window and the amount of dust in your home.
4. Kitchen Appliances. These will probably be pretty dirty. Apartments don’t clean them, and a lot of people don’t clean them. If you have a self-cleaning oven, run that – warning: it will take about 4-5 hours. You can scrub of a cooktop or range with degreaser, all-purpose cleaner, or special cooktop cleaner (if you have a cooktop), depending on how bad the range is. Cooked on food can sometimes come out with baking soda and brush. The fridge can be cleaned out with all-purpose cleaner as well, or degreaser if it’s terrible.
5. Laundry Machines. Make sure the washing machine doesn’t smell – if it does, run it on the cleaning cycle, and wipe the rubber gasket with vinegar or all purpose cleaner. Vacuum the vents of your dryer (can disassemble the back of the machine) and clean out the lint trap. This will improve the efficiency of the machine and prevent fires.
6. Vents. Vacuum your heat vents and the vent fans in the bathroom(s). These are huge contributors to inefficiency and dust.
7. Carpet. In an apartment, hopefully they cleaned this professionally or replaced it. In a house, you may want to hire carpet cleaners, especially if the previous owners had pets. There are also DIY methods you can look up – I only have carpet on my stairs and in the closets, so I used Rosenthal to clean up stains. Since carpet has to dry after being cleaned, you do it before you move in. If you don’t need to clean the carpet beyond a quick vacuum, don’t worry about it before you move. You will track in dirt during the moving process anyway.
   
8. Walls. Hopefully you won’t need to do this, but check and see if the walls are super dusty or stained. You should be able to just spot clean marks and grease spots, unless the house is filthy.
9. Basement & Garage Ceilings. Vacuum these, preferably with a shop-vac. They collect spider webs and dust, and it’s an easy thing you can do to start your new residence in cleanliness
10. Upholstery. Sometimes apartments are furnished and house-sellers leave you stuff. If the upholstery is in good shape and the place seems clean, just vacuum it. If the place isn’t real clean or it has spots, you can use upholstery cleaner.
11. Bathroom Tile. Get some good grout cleaner and scrub that grout! This job sucks, but it’s worth it when your grout returns from dingy brownish-gray to white. And no, most apartments and homeowners do not do this.
12. Bathrooms In General. Bathrooms are gross and you don’t want to leave this uncleaned. Clean the toilet, shower, and sink as you normally would, but be attentive to detail. You should probably do this first so you can use the bathroom while you are working. You can also wipe out vanity cabinets.

***Notice that I didn't include floors. If they're bad, you may want to clean them - especially before you put heavy furniture in a room - but otherwise, you might as well vacuum after you track in all the dirt during your move***

These lists are, sadly, not fully comprehensive. Clean anything that is dirty and catalogue anything that is broken. But they are a good starting place!

Whew! Tired yet? Getting a place prepped for move-in is a lot of work, but it’s worth it once you’re done!

Apartments tend to be easier to deal with than houses, since they’re usually semi-clean and they’re a lot smaller, but don’t neglect this task in either type of property. And this will prevent you from going to put away towels and finding grease or crumbs in the linen closet, touching something gross on the stove, or having other unpleasant surprises when you’re first moved in. You can do these jobs after you move in, if you have to move right away due to an ending lease or if you’re moving several hours away…it’s just way easier to clean an empty house.

Stay tuned for Part 3 – Actually Moving Stuff.

Moving Tips Part 1 - Packing

I am officially moved into my new home! And I can attest…moving sucks.

I’ve moved A LOT in the past five years (since going to college), but this was the hardest. For one thing, my apartment entrance isn’t close to a parking lot or driveway, so things had to be carried down a super long sidewalk, past two other apartment buildings, to reach a vehicle. To make matters worse, I only had my boyfriend to help – my dad (usually the MVP of moving my stuff) just had foot surgery and was down for the count. Unlike all of my college moves, I also had ALL of my stuff – nothing was with my parents, nothing belonged to my roommates (because I don’t have any), and lots of things had been collected over the past year of living alone.

Now I will be unpacking. But, in the midst of the Crazy, I’m going to do a series on moving tips and tricks – maybe you can avoid some of the mistakes that I made, either during this move or during a previous move (there have been.. at least 12. *sigh*).

Moving Tips – The Packing Part

1. Label your boxes. Everyone will tell you this, because it’s true – and it’s also not very hard. Label the top and sides of the boxes so that the writing is easy to see from any angle. You should definitely give it a general label, so you (and your helpers) can put it directly into the correct room. That will make unpacking infinitely easier.
2. Don’t overweight your boxes. Cardboard may seem heavy duty, but when you have a big cardboard box full of textbooks, the bottom will probably split open at some point. And drop your books into the snow (because yes, I was moving in snow).
3. Don’t move in snow. If at all possible, move when the ground isn’t covered with wet, slippery, cold mush. This has nothing to do with packing, but it seems appropriate.
4. Pack slowly if you can. Packing all at once can be overwhelming, and you inevitably will be more disorganized than you will be if you pack slowly. You’ll be surprised at how much of your stuff you don’t really need for the weeks before you move –guest towels, unseasonal clothes and dresses, most of your shoes, books and movies, extra pans and cookware, blankets, many toiletries….pack your least-likely-to-use stuff first, and go from there.
5. Don’t buy moving boxes. Why on earth would you spend money on boxes, that you will be throwing away in a few months? Ask your friends and family to save their boxes from online orders for a few months before your move, and then – to get more boxes – either ask your local grocery stores and warehouses (Costco is great) to give you some of their empty boxes. A lot of stores also just dump their boxes in cardboard-specific dumpsters that you can scavenge from (it’s not as gross at is sounds – it’s just cardboard). If your work gets a lot of boxes, you can probably take those too.
6. Don’t scrimp on your packing material. Bubble wrap, packing peanuts, and even tissue paper are critical if you don’t want your stuff to break. I have broken far too many things moving, and finally learned my lesson…although on this move I broke a mixing bowl and a plate because I slipped on ice and dropped a box (again, don’t move in snow!).
7. But don’t buy packing material. Bubble wrap is stupid expensive and again, a lot of online orders will come with bubble wrap or packing peanuts that can be saved by your and your friends/family. Another great option that I use all the time is to wrap your breakables in dishcloths, towels, and clothes. These make great cushions that you already have, and need to move anyway. Just be mindful of your box labeling – you don’t want to be searching for the box with the bath towels your first night in the new house.
8. Don’t make your boxes too ginormous. Huge boxes are heavier, more likely to break, and harder to pack into your vehicle. This might be alright if you rent a moving truck, but you’ll actually be able to pack your car more efficiently with smaller boxes (that can fit in the trunk and on the floor). You can always stack boxes when carrying them, but you can’t cut giant boxes in half to make them fit
9. Don’t make your boxes too small. A box that hold JUST your plates is basically useless. Your best bet to try and have boxes of varying sizes, without any that are super small or super large.
10. Store your packed boxes neatly in the room they came from. This way, if you do suddenly need something that was packed, it’ll be easy to find it again. Plus, it’ll make maintaining your current house/apartment easier in the weeks leading up to the move. I stored a lot of boxes in my linen closet, my bedroom closet, and stacked inside of bookshelves that had the shelves removed.

Good luck! Moving Post #2 will be Prepping Your New Home for the Move

Top 5 Ways to Save Gas

You know sucks? Paying for gas. It’s this thing that you absolutely have to have in order to, you know, go places, but when you swipe your card or hand your hard-earned cash over to the attendant it feels like you’re just tossing money away. And sure, if you live in an urban area, maybe you can use public transit and just not have a car…but most of us don’t have that luxury.

So here’s 5 little things you can do to save a little gas – not much, but little things do add up!

1. Carpool! Going out with your friends? Why drive separate? Just carpool! This one is obvious.
2. Grocery shop on your way home from work. My favorite grocery store is only 2 miles out of my way if I stop on the way home from work…but it’s five miles from my house (ten miles round trip!). If I go there once a week (and let’s be real, sometimes it’s twice), that’s an extra 8 miles every week of sitting at lights. Over the course of a year, that’s 416 miles, or about $46 based on my car’s mpg and gas costs in my area. And it’s no extra effort – in fact, it’s a little easier to convince me to go the store if I’m not already on my couch.
3. Walk or jog to the corner store. If you’re like me, you live pretty close to plenty of drug stores, markets, and specialty stores, like bakeries. Instead of hitting this places in your car, incorporate them into your daily walk or your run. It’s good exercise, and it’ll keep you from wasting gas on little trips to get super specific items.
4. Try to get all of your big shopping done on the same day. You don’t need a big Meijer run, a clothing run, and a drug store run all on separate Saturdays. Combine your trips for one Saturday, and plan your route to be a big circle. You’ll end up saving yourself gas, as well as time and hassle.
5. Fill Your Tires. Low-pressure tires decreases fuel efficiency on your vehicle. Keep them filled (but don’t overfill) to avoid this.

Wisdom Teeth Surgery - as an adult.

So I got my wisdom teeth out on Friday…I know, I know, I’m a bit late to the party, at the age of 22, but my dentist didn’t recommend getting them out in high school because they were still underdeveloped…and in college I was too busy/broke/dumb to care about getting them out.

Still, when I got an infection in one of them a few months ago, I realized that they needed to go, especially since they get increasingly difficult to remove as you get older.

My appointment was scheduled for 9:45 on Friday, and I was freaking out about the idea of being tied to my couch for the entire weekend. I am one of the most active, crazy, hyper people in the world, and sitting for 3 days was not something I was looking forward to. So, of course, it seemed like a good idea to get up at 6am, go to the gym and work out super hard, and then have a fantastic (and enormous) breakfast of bacon, waffles, and orange slices to prepare for days of cabbage soup and mashed potatoes.

“Wait,” you say, having had your own wisdom teeth removed. “You can’t eat before surgery!”

That’s…true. If you get anesthetic. And I was opting NOT to get anesthetic.

No, that doesn’t mean I just went and let people rip teeth out of my mouth without any painkillers. Instead of getting sedated (aka put to sleep) I asked for a local anesthetic. The dentist gave me 2-3 shots of novocaine in each of my gums, which hurt a little – but not too bad. It was basically a prick and some uncomfortable pressure. That created a lot of numbness in my lips, tongue, and jaw, which allowed the dentist to then remove my wisdom teeth without me feeling any pain. However, I could hear the crunching bone and feel a lot of pressure and grinding as they chunked out the impacted teeth.

Why did I do this? Multiple reasons…most of which some young adults may relate to:

1. It cost $500 less to get local anesthetic as opposed to sedation. Since I was paying for the procedure and don’t have dental insurance, this was a big deal.
2. I could eat/work out/etc beforehand. This was a nice bonus – I seriously enjoyed my breakfast more than I’ve enjoyed any food since the surgery (I’M SO SICK OF SOUP).
3. I wasn’t groggy afterwards. This was a big deal because…I live alone. I cant afford to be completely out of it for hours – I needed to go to Meijer and get my antibiotic prescription, get ice packs into the freezer and prepare homemade ice packs to start icing my mouth, and get myself situated on the couch. Without anesthetic, you’re good to drive! With anesthetic…well, you’re supposed to have somebody stay with you for at least 12 hours.
4. I get freaked out by the idea of being put to sleep. This is a personal thing, but the whole idea skeeves me out really bad

Honestly? The procedure wasn’t that bad. I had my headphones on, and they gave me a breathing tube with a minor dose of laughing gas to help me stay calm (this was free). It unpleasant, of course, but it wasn’t painful or anything like that. I basically just closed my eyes and zoned out, except to tilt my head or open my mouth wider or whatever requests they had for me at different points in the procedure. And then, when I was done (and had massive chipmunk cheeks), I was able to enjoy a solid five hours of being numb and painfree…and completely mentally alert and fine.

I spent most of the day hanging with my boyfriend, watching TV, and icing my face (to reduce later swelling), and I’m happy to report that I really didn’t have much pain. My jaw was a little sore the first night, and I took an extra strength ibuprofen before I went to sleep to ensure that it didn’t’ get worse and wake me up during the night…and that’s the only pain medication I took the entire time! I don’t know if it just went stupid well, or if being awake was helpful, or some combination of the two, but I’m not complaining.

However, it still sucked. And I realized something…

When you’re sick or hurt or something…living alone really sucks.

I had to clean up after myself, get myself everything I needed, and entertain myself for an entire weekend. Sure, I wasn’t in much pain…but I still didn’t exactly feel great. So kiddies, here’s the top five things you need to do to prepare for Adulting a surgery:

1. Prep food ahead of time. I made a pot of cabbage soup before the surgery and I was SO GLAD I did.
2. Tell friends/family to visit you. My boyfriend brought me lentil soup on the second day, and this was good because by that time I didn’t want ANY MORE cabbage soup. I was also super cranky, but thankfully he rolled with it.
3. Clean your house ahead of time. You’re not doing anything while you’re laid up.
4. Think about your situation before getting sedated. I get it, sometimes you can’t help it, you have to anesthesia. But if you can avoid it, and you live alone….don’t do it. Things would’ve been so much worse if I had been woozy, unable to drive, and generally incompetent for the first day.
5. Set phone alarms to make sure you follow the doctor’s instructions. Your mom isn’t there to remind you to ice your face, take your antibiotics, or drink plenty of fluids. You have to do it.
6. *BONUS* Suck it up and do it. It sucks, but then it’s over. I’m reintroducing bread into my diet today, and a large part of my swelling is gone. By the weekend, things should be back to normal. And you’re an adult now, you can handle it!

House Closing

Well, I did it. As of 4pm yesterday afternoon, I became a real, live, actual HOMEOWNER. I own a house. I’m not a renter, I’m an owner.

This is surreal.

So yes, I closed on my house yesterday. It was actually really easy – I left work a little early to go to the title company, where I arrived exactly five minutes before the closing appointment (3:30). The title place was located in this tucked away business complex that I had never noticed before, even though it was on a road I had driven and walked down a million times growing up. I’d had a knot in my gut most of the day, but it was a small knot, and at least 80% excitement and only 20% fear. That ratio tipped a little closer to 50:50 as I walked in the door of the title company. I had never been to a title company before – what should I even expect?

When I entered the door, a long hallway with doors on either side stretched out in front of me. A man – probably in his early 30s – was leaving the hallway and heading toward what appeared to be a bathroom. I smiled automatically at him, and he smiled back. He didn’t look like he worked there; he must have been here for a closing. My closing? To my left was a small waiting room. Where the heck do I go? Turning to the right, I saw the receptionist’s desk, hidden by the foyer. A smiling lady noticed me before I could say anything, and asked if I was here for the Sunset house. It took me a minute to respond. House? I don’t own a house. Oh, wait, yes I do. Or I will. Whoa. “Yes,” I said, more calmly than I felt.

“The first room on your right – the Lake Room.” Dudeeee they name their rooms like a fancy motel or conference center or something.

“Thank you,” I said. I turned into the Lake Room to see a large table dominating the small space. A blonde woman who appeared to be extremely pregnant was seated one side of the table, with the selling agent – who I had met at the open house – seated at the far end, and a middle-aged woman in dress clothes at the near end. “Where should I sit?” I asked, suddenly cognizant of how young I must look with my ragged backpack strung over one shoulder and my admittedly younger-than-my-age-looking features.

“Right over there,” the woman in dress clothes said, pointing to the opposite side of the table from the pregnant woman.

“Nice to see you again,” the selling agent said, standing to shake my hand.

“You too.” I awkwardly sat down, then realized I still had my bulky coat on and the room was rather warm. I stood up again to take my coat off and almost tripped over my backpack, like a total idiot. Thankfully, I recovered quickly and sat down again, hopefully with some degree of poise.

“Will your agent be joining us?” the middle-aged woman asked. She must be from the title company.

“…I think so. Yes.” I hadn’t confirmed with my realtor, but I was pretty sure he’d show up. I noticed the selling agent pouring himself coffee from a karafe in the center of the table and I perked up suddenly. “That’s coffee?” I asked.

“Yeah. Oh, sorry, I should’ve offered you some. Cream and sugar?”

“No thanks, I like it black. And no worries, haha. Caffeine would be good though.” I poured myself a cup and held it tightly, instantly calmer.

Just then, the man I had seen going to the bathroom came into the room. He grinned at me. “So you’re the buyer? I’m Bill.” He extended his hand. I shook it, and introduced myself. His wife – the pregnant lady – introduced herself as well, and suddenly everything felt less nerve-wracking.

The title agent collected the drivers licenses of myself and the sellers and briskly started rifling through a thick stack of papers. “There’s a request for 60 days occupancy – do you know when you will be moving out?” she asked the sellers.

“No,” Bill answered. “Not yet. We haven’t closed on our other house yet.”

“Where are you guys moving?” I asked curiously as the title lady started writing furiously.

“We’re moving out to the South Lyon. We bought a big farmhouse – 30,000 square feet – on a few acres.”

“Oh, wow, that’s awesome!” I said. Oh my God, can I BE these people?

“Yeah,” the wife – Anne – answered. “But we’re a little sad to leave. We had a lot of really good memories in our house, but we needed the extra space. Once you have kids…”

“Besides,” Bill added, “we’re from that area originally. This was our first house; we couldn’t afford out there. And it’s been a great house. We love the neighbor behind us!”

I laughed – the joke was that the house backs up to a school park, so there was no neighbor behind them. “I know! That’s fantastic! I was very excited when I saw that.”

“That’s what sold you, huh?”

“Yeah, kind of.” I grinned.

“Yeah, it’s hard to find that in Livonia.”

“It really is!”

“Well, all the neighbors are fantastic,” Anne broke in. “Two of them are cops.”

“Oh, cool!” I exclaimed. I like cops.

Bill grinned. “Yeah, and you know the side of the house with the privacy fence? The previous owners were really annoying, but the people who live there now are great – they’re really quiet. They do have a dog, but they’re super nice. And then both people next to you on the open side of the yard are cops. The first house, Ron and Sarah, he’s a Belleville cop and they have a daughter – 7 months old. Then then next to him, is David; he’s a Canton cop. And the people across the street are great too.”

“Everyone’s great,” Anne added. “We’re going to miss them.”

“Yeah, we will,” Bill said. “The cops moved in at the same time we did and we’re all similar age – they’re in their early 30s – so we hung out together and stuff. They’re wonderful people, plus they add some extra safety to the neighborhood. Good mechanics too, if you ever need a jump or anything like that, they’d be happy to help you out.”

As all of this conversation was going on, my realtor had arrived and the title lady was passing around papers for us to sign. They had already sent out the documents we’d be signing via email, so I had already read through everything, making the signing process merely a formality.

Some more chitchat was exchanged, as the papers flew. The title lady explained how occupancy rent would be determined, water and taxes would be pro-rated, and a certain portion of the money would held in escrow. The sellers talked a little bit about their four-year-old daughter, and I learned that my realtor has five daughters between the ages of 6-15.

Suddenly, maybe fifteen minutes later, we were done. The title lady went to make copies of everything, gave us back our driver’s licenses, and told us that we needed to go to city hall to file our tax papers with the assessor’s office. Then she handed the seller’s a check for $150,000.

“Whoa,” Bill said. “This is a lot of money.”

“Well, I guess we’re officially homeless,” Anne said disbelievingly.

The selling agent laughed. “That’s the difference between men and women right there – the guy thinks about what he can do with the money and the woman thinks about how she’s losing her home!” Everyone laughed. Suddenly, we were done. I grabbed my papers, a nice congratulations packet from my realtor – which contained a notepad, magnet, journal, pen, and stack of new address labels – and walked out to my car.

In a state of disbelief, I drove to City Hall and walked in. Once again, I was faced with not knowing where the heck to go, but some worker pointed me in the direction of the assessor’s office, and within minutes my papers were stamped and I was officially responsible for a piece of property.

I ran into Bill and Anne again on my way out of City Hall, and laughed at having beat them there. Outside of the title company and the watchful eyes of professionals, we chatted a bit more. Bill offered to leave some of the rugs in the basement if I wanted them, and I gave him my cell phone number and said that if there was anything they wanted to a) leave or b) sell, to text me and I’d let them know if I wanted it. They both said how glad they were that a young person was getting it, and said that they hoped the house would be a great of a home to me as it was to them. I agreed that it seemed like a great starter home, and explained that the plan was to live there for 5-10 years until I had some kids – kind of them like they did.

Then I waved goodbye, thanked them for everything, and got in my car. I called my mom and my boyfriend to tell them that everything went okay, and then it was over, only 45 minutes after I had shown up at the title company. I was a homeowner.

In the evening, after I had worked out and eaten dinner, I packed my first box. The work has begun – and I can’t WAIT to move in!

My only tips from this experience?

1) Don't be afraid to ask the sellers questions - they should be happy to tell you all about the house and neighborhood, and the realtors can explain all the money things.

2) Read all your papers ahead of time - the actually signing process goes super fast.

3) Don't be nervous - it's not bad at all!

Quick note: My closing would have been 20-30 minutes longer if I had used a mortgage company instead of a private loan. You're supposed to allow about an hour.

I Organized My Dresser

Happy MLK Day (well, happy day-after-MLK-Day)! I hope lots of you enjoyed a day off…I had to work, but then again, I’m an hourly employee, so that’s not a bad thing (yes, an office with hourly employees. My job sucks. But I get paid, so oh well).

Last weekend, I went on an organize-my-dresser-drawers kick. I’ve been getting really excited about getting a house, and for some reason I feel a lot more driven to keep my future house neat, clean, and organized than my apartment. After all, I’m used to moving every year (or twice a year in college), so although I’ve kept things relatively clean, I haven’t worried about keep things super organized.

Well, that all is going to change when I move into my house, and I decided to start getting ideas now. This is partially because waiting is hard, and also because moving will probably be fairly overwhelming (it usually is), so I’d like to get as much done ahead of time as I can.

 Now, I generally fold things haphazardly and toss them in a drawer with somewhat similar items, but I’ve decided that should probably stop if I’m going to be a motherfranking adult homeowner. I don’t like digging through heaps of semi-folded clothes, nor do I like the veritable junk drawer in my night table that seems to collect all of the odds and ends that don’t have a place when I initially move…and then never get removed.

My mom’s dresser drawers, conversely, always looked like they belonged in a Better Homes and Gardens catalog. And although I'll never be as good at cleaning and organizing as my mother, I'd like my drawers to at least be passable.

A common theme on the internet is the use of bins and baskets to organize stuff. I hope to implement some of these ideas in my new home, but bins and baskets cost money, and drawer organizers seem weirdly expensive. And, as we already established, my budget is, um, a bit strict. I saw that some people make these things out of cardboard boxes (i.e. cereal boxes) covered in wrapping paper, which I thought was a great idea. However, I’m not crafty and I didn’t want to spend ANY dollars on this project…so I just cut up an old (and large) tea box and made dividers for my socks & underwear drawer. And oh my gosh, it worked incredibly well! I also changed how I fold my socks (I actually folded them instead of balling them up) and arranged my bras in a way that WOULDN’T damage them…and a previously overflowing mess is now pretty!

I also cut up an old electronics box to organize my night table drawer, and although it’s not quite as pretty, it’s at least somewhat organized. Whoo!

Making the drawer dividers took about 10 minutes, and refolding all my clothes and stuff only took about an hour…and that was a distracted hour since I was simultaneously watching football. Of course, I’ll have to give it a few weeks to see if this organization actually LASTS…but I think it will; it should be fairly easy to maintain.

Although I was out of cardboard, I did re-do my workout clothes & tank top drawer and my jeans and dress pants drawers. It freed up a lot of space (believe it or not, all of these drawers were stuffed and overflowing before I did this), and made it so that I can actually SEE everything I own. I took folding tips from Melissa Maker, a cleaning guru on Youtube (search cleanmyspace to find her videos).

And the beauty of it all? When I move, I’ll move each drawer individually, without removing any of the contents…and the drawer dividers should keep everything arranged properly in transit. So organizing my dresser should just be one less thing to do when I actually get my house!

PS. My closing is on Thursday, so expect a Housing Part 4 post on Friday as I describe the process!

House Buying Part 3 - Parental Advice

After determining that this house thing might actually be possible, and obtaining a general understanding of how houses work, my next step was to talk to the people who I assume know everything…my parents.

My (retired) parents live about an hour away in a lovely farmhouse on a huge field. Basically, they live in the place and house that I wish I could live in, but can’t because there aren’t many jobs in the country. Gathering my financial information and the sum of my research, I headed out to their home for dinner – and a little consultation. After a delicious meal of pot roast, potatoes, green beans, and salad (why do moms always make way too much food when people come over for dinner?), I pulled out my papers and brought up the idea.

The Conversation:

I started by telling them that I wasn’t sure if this was something I was ready to do, but I wanted their input on the financial situation, as well as the practical aspects of owning versus renting.

My dad highlighted the difference as being a lifestyle choice. He told me that in terms of cost, the two things are similar – a house involves repairs and maintenance, all of which costs money. It’s impossible to really predict the cost…you could pay very little or quite a bit, depending on chance, but overall it averages out. The difference, according to my dad, is that owning a house makes you responsible for upkeep. You have to maintain the lawn, the structure, and the integrity of the building. You can be creative and flexible with your furnishings, but are responsible for their upkeep. If you don’t want a lot of work, he said, don’t buy a house. Then again, if you enjoy the feeling of ownership and the pride of a job well done…a house is for you.

I liked this advice. I genuinely enjoy a lot of yard-tasks (I actually miss shoveling snow!), and I like fixing things myself. I’m the person who wants to own the DVD instead of streaming it, own the book instead of borrowing it, and fix the leak in my room myself without waiting for anybody.

They also emphasized the importance of re-sale. Location, they said, was critical – I would want a neighborhood with long-term value, not too close to the city (Detroit – not a good place), and not on top of the freeway or a main road. They also stressed the important of getting a three bedroom house, and avoiding trilevels and bilevels for the purpose of selling the house later.

The Finances: My parents were more hesitant about the financial side of things. They told me that I wasn’t really any worse off than they were when they bought their first house…but that age had taught them caution. My mom said she really couldn’t advise me not to try to buy property now – since I wouldn’t exactly be saving very much after all of my apartment costs (particularly with rent increasing by at least $100/mo when my lease is up) – but she’d recommend a larger down payment and more emergency money if at all possible. But if that wasn’t possible…well, she figured it was a toss up, but I could probably manage it if I really wanted to (and really watched my spending for a while).

My Thoughts: I chewed on this information for about a week, and couldn’t really make up my mind what to do. I started tossing around the idea of trying to find a roommate, but I didn’t really want that…I either want to live alone or with a significant other in a permanent partnership (even scarier than buying a house!)…I’m done with roommates. Unless they’re of the feline variety. Then I tossed around the idea of getting a second job, but I didn’t want that either. Then I spent some time on Zillow and thought that if I bought a house in a less-than-ideal location (closer to Detroit but still in safe neighborhood), I could definitely afford it…but resale would be harder.

Magical Phone Call:

I was walking to the grocery store after work on a Thursday, enjoying the fall sunshine in the lull before the darkness of winter begin, intending to pick up some apples. I was cheerfully oblivious to all thoughts of houses, apartments, rent, mortgages, or anything else, instead paying attention to the red leaves, warm sun, and great music playing through my headphones…and then my phone rang.

“Hello?” I said, pausing the music and lifting the phone to my ear without checking the caller ID.

“Hey, Jess?” my mom asked. “Do you have a few minutes?”

“Sure. I’m just out taking a walk.”

“Your dad and I were talking, and you know your sister is selling her house, right?”

“...yes…”

“Well, what you may not know is that we actually loaned her the money to buy that house. It was a good investment for us, because we barely make anything on our retirement investments with the interest rate being what it is. We basically sold it to her on a land contract, and she’s been paying us every month instead of the mortgage company. Since she’s selling her house, we will be getting all of our money back and were wondering if you’d be interested in a similar arrangement.”

“…are you serious?” I struggled to process this.

“Yes. We could lend you a maximum of $200,000 – preferably more like $180,000 – and the house would be in your name. You would have to show proof of homeowners insurance and tax payments, and would pay us the current market interest rate – I think it’s around 4% right now – for five years. Then we would update the interest rate to whatever it is in 2022. The advantage is that if something disastrous happens, you can skip a payment if you absolutely have to, and we’ll make a lot more interest on our money than we would otherwise. 4% is also probably less interest than you would pay on a loan, since you’re young and don’t have much credit yet. We’ve actually done this for two of your siblings now. What do you think?”

“Well…that sounds awesome. I don’t know though, are you sure you don’t need that money?” I have something of an independent streak and wasn’t sure I liked the idea of help.

“It would help us, actually. We’d be getting your payments every month on top of the social security, so it’d be easier to budget. Plus, like I said, we’ll make more money on it in the long run.”

“It sounds great,” I said. “I’ve been thinking, and I definitely want to buy instead of rent; I just hadn’t ironed out exactly how or when that could happen.”

And with that, I established that I would be obtaining a personal loan (see the part 2 post) at 4% interest with an arm of five years. The process had begun!