Allis, not Alice

I just found out that I had been spelling the name of Dave’s dog Allis wrong the whole time I’ve been writing this blog.  It’s Allis, not Alice.  Come to think of it, I’ve been thinking of Allis as an Alice the whole time I’ve known her too. Turns out she is named after Dave’s Allis Chalmers WD45 tractor.  Great name.  I’ve since corrected it on the blog.

Incidentally, the spelling and pronunciation of a name go a long way in helping me associate and remember a person and their personality.  In other words, I think of people (and animals) in terms of how their names are spelled and pronounced.  For example Katie is completely different from Katy or Kady, just as Zach is different from Zac or Zak. Even though those sets of names are technically pronounced the same, they’re just not the same to me.

Which is why my Alice mistake is such a bummer.  It’s almost as if I’ll need to spend more time with Allis so I can get to know her as an Allis and not an Alice.  I guess I’ll have to find something else for Dave to do at my house once those donations to the “Tile Thomas’ Kitchen and Den Fund” come rolling in.

How I became a homeowner

I guess I never really told you how it happened that I became a homeowner.  Perhaps I got a little ahead of myself by jumping straight to the fun stuff.  I should have told you how I made it to the point of owning a house to renovate in the first place.  So, let’s start at the very beginning, a very good place to start.

I’ve lived in the Fountain Apartments for right at two years with my wonderful cousin Malone.  This has been the perfect situation for me as my apartment is exactly two blocks from City Hall, my place of business.  Each weekday morning I commute to work on my two feet in less than two minutes.  In fact, my morning commute is arguably my favorite part of the day.  There’s just something peaceful about an empty downtown street early in the morning.

Nevertheless, as I’ve gotten settled in Greenwood and warmed up to the idea of sticking around for the long term, I began to get the itch to buy a house.  Now, I’ve already told you how and why I decided to buy.  What I didn’t tell you was how I landed at 402.

House Hunting

I started looking pretty seriously at houses in March of this year with my realtor, Tish Goodman of Bowie Realty.  The first house I became interested in was actually a house my dad lived in years ago.  It was small at 1,200 square feet, but was big enough for me.  It needed some work to both bathrooms, along with a general overall freshening up.  With that in mind, I made what I thought was a reasonable offer, which was quickly rejected.  Although I felt a bit defeated, I didn’t let it get me down.

From the get-go, I decided that I wasn’t going to get desperate and buy something that wasn’t right for me.  And with my sweet setup downtown, I had no incentive to settle.  I kept telling myself that the right house would come along at the right price at the right time for me.

The next house I really liked was owned by friends of mine.  It was an older home with all the charm in the world.  Three bedrooms, two baths, an updated kitchen, a beautiful back yard, and a front porch to die for.  I knew that I was looking at it alongside others, so I tried to make my decision quick and put my offer together, but in the end I was too slow moving.  It turns out that the other party made an offer and it was accepted before I could pull the trigger.  This also turned out to be a blessing in disguise.  The house was really too big for just me, and as it turns out, it is the perfect size for the couple that bought it.  In fact, I am happy that the couple that bought the house are friends of mine, so I can go and sit on their awesome porch!

The third house I really liked was also owned by friends of mine.  It was really a great house for me, with three bedrooms, 1.5 baths, a nice kitchen, a double carport, and a huge back yard.  It just happened to be slightly out of my price range and we weren’t able to reach a price point that worked for them and for me.  No hard feelings.  They ended up selling it a week or so after I first made my offer.

The Road Home

Finally, feeling a little worn out from the stress of looking and thinking and offering and starting the process over and over again, I got a glimpse of hope.

One afternoon, I was texting my friend Brett, who had talked to our friend Patrick, who had told him I had been looking at houses.  I told him about the tough time I’d had finding something and then, out of the blue, mentioned that if his family ever got to the point of selling his grandmother Lucy’s home to let me know.  As it turns out, Brett’s mom was in the process of finding a place for Lucy to live closer to them in Florida and was considering putting the house on the market.

A few days later, I spoke with Mrs. Person on the phone, met her over at the house, and made an offer, all before she ever listed the house with a realtor.  After looking at every home in my price range in Greenwood, I knew the moment I walked in that it was perfect for me.  With two large bedrooms, two baths, a large living room and dining room with a den and a kitchen, all it needed was an update. Before she left town that day, we signed a contract on a coffee table in the lobby of The Alluvian Hotel.

It was then that I knew that I would be the proud owner of 402 East Monroe.

To buy, or not to buy

I own a home.  Well, technically Trustmark Bank owns the home; I just make monthly payments for the privilege of living there.  Until yesterday, though, even that was something I could not say with a straight face.

Don’t ask me why I decided to buy.  I’ve lived in Greenwood for two years now.  I have a stable job and a great living situation with my cousin in the nicest apartment building in town.  I’m talking New York-style loft apartment nice.  I don’t have to cut the grass, fix the leaky toilet, or take the trash to the street.  I split my bills.  So why buy?

I guess the decision was part financial and part hopeful.  First things first.  I’m a real estate guy.  I know why it makes good financial sense to buy a home versus renting (equity, tax deductions, return on investment, blah blah blah).  All it took, I guess, was for me to decide that Greenwood was going to work out for me long-term.  And it has.

The second reason is a bit more vague.  The hope I have in buying my first home is that I will set roots of my own in my hometown and open future possibilities that are unknown to me at this point in time.  I hope that my house will turn out to be a blessing in my life and in some shape, form, or fashion, a blessing in the lives of others as well.

So let’s get this thing started.  Hopefully, if I don’t flake out, I’ll fill the pages of Four Zero Two with before and after photos, design inspirations, and ramblings that reveal how it feels to buy, renovate, move into, and live in the first place where I get to make all the decisions.