We are still happy with the house, though it’s been interesting in the last several months, with the economy and everything else, to continue to reflect on purchasing decisions.

for Meredith a brief details list of the house: it’s a semi fixer upper but we got most of the stuff (appliances, etc) out of the way, and now we are just enjoying it. It’s a duplex so with some good folks renting downstairs it helps with the mortgage a lot. And we are loving our community.

But, it’s still extremely hard and not exciting to have an ever growing list of “To Do’s” to get down around the house. I tend to just avoid them. for better or worse.

If you’re changing carpet colors and faucet styles just for design sake, then, no, you aren’t necessarily adding equity to a home…just making it easier to resell.

If you bought the house at a rock-bottom price that reflected its lack of roofing, water heater and flooring, then adding those things to the “shell of the house” does indeed add equity. The house is worth more in a liveable state than in its former state.

I’m guessing that the Fines bought something like the latter. We’d love the details, though!

First, painting every room. Second, carpet all over and some linoleum where needed. Home inspector failed to mention the lack of insulation in the attic, so insulation came next. The outside trim had to be painted. Light fixtures are hideous but get replaced here and there, IKEA is handy for that. We just had the electrical service upgraded to 200 amp service and put in a new central unit. Replacing all the windows is the next project. Isn’t it fun!!

We’ve had more fun fixing up our homes with yard sale finds and recycled light fixtures than we ever have in a Saturday morning trip to HD.

Once you get past the immediate basics, you’ll enjoy the process of finding just-the-right-thing at just-the-right-price again.

I agree, the volume of new products is so tempting and…easy.