First-Time Homebuyer
Julie Woodham’s house hunt took a hit when she learned that a home she had under contract had too many problems for her to overcome.
She began searching again, but grew frustrated. She finally asked a friend and co-worker to help her pick out a home, and that top choice ended up being the one Woodham chose.
Woodham, 34, a dental practice management consultant at Gallery 32 Dental Arts who also works for Dr. Amir S. Zeinedini, shared what it took to purchase a renovated home in Marietta.
Q: Did you find homes in good condition?
A: It was massively hard to find something in my price range [$125,000-$175,000] in good condition. There’s a lot of homes in that price range, but [investors] are coming in and beating you to the punch.
Q: Did you put offers on other homes?
A: I got within two days of closing on a home that I loved. It had kind of what my real estate agent called the “eye candy” in it. It was a really good cover up for the fact that it was literally sliding off a cliff. Once that happened, I really started looking at the durability of the home, the way it was built and maintained.
Q: How did you find this home?
A: I would get the update [of 300-plus listings online] every day. I gave the list to one of my girlfriends and I told her to go through it. I told her to pick her top 20 that she liked for me. I told her to put them in order from her favorite to least favorite. The top one on her list was the first one I went with my agent [Shirley House with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage].
Q: Why was it right for you?
A: A lot of the homes I was looking at, I was going to put a lot of work into or either pay to have it done. A gentleman had purchased the home as a foreclosure. He did all the work. It was so lean and fresh. He had pretty much updated it how somebody would want it. He put the eye candy in, but also made it a very sound home.
Q: What features appealed to you?
A: He put the granite countertops in and stainless steel appliances. He put in new garage doors, new hardwood floors and new carpet. He painted the walls a pretty neutral color. I have a stone fireplace from the floor all the way to the vaulted ceiling.
Q: How are you going to use space like the basement?
A: My basement is finished already, and it has a full shower. That’s going to be turned into a home gym. I’ve got a tanning bed, elliptical machine and treadmill.
I have pets and I leave them alone all day long. When I get home, I don’t want to leave them another two hours to go to the gym.
Q: What’s a tip for buyers?
A: Go the extra yard to have the house inspected [by a structural engineer] and look at it because you don’t want to buy a lemon.
At a Glance
Julie Woodham’s home, built in 1985 in Marietta’s Beaver Brook Farms, had four bedrooms, three baths and about 2,250 square feet. She purchased it in November. Homes in Beaver Brook Farms are listed in the $150,000s.
