We are buying a house... in Santa Barbara!

Or so we think, hope...

A few months ago we put our names on the affordable housing list here in Santa Barbara. It usually take awhile to get a call, and we were at the bottom of the list. However, due to church connections and the current market, we have had quite a few people contact us about buying their property. This all happened as we were getting ready for Christmas. As you can imagine new baby, toddler, Christmas, and buying a new house combined leads to little to no blogging for almost a month. Perhaps I will find the time to put up some pics of Caleb and Audrey, because they sure were cute over the holiday, but we'll see...

Anyway, after seriously looking at a few places, checking out real estate too, we have come to a decision. The catch? We have to wait for the owners to find a new home. They are looking every week, but haven't found the right place yet. So, we could be moving soon, or not so soon.

I drove by the property on the way home today to take some pics:
View from the street (1st yellow unit you see).

View from the inlet/cul-de-sac


It is a two bedroom (very spacious bedrooms) and 2 1/2 bath. It is two story. Gotta love that the 1/2 bath is downstairs and therefore the only one that I have to keep looking nice all the time. The kitchen has a ton of light, connects to the dining room which connects to the living room and backyard. The backyard is small compared to what we have now, but nice. Patio area and some lawn space, and a storage shed out there. When you walk in the front door, there is an entry way, the 1/2 bath, stairs and then the garage which is a two car garage with space for laundry. We are hoping to use some of the garage space as a playroom. Upstairs to the right is a HUGE master bedroom with a bathroom with 2 sinks (hooray) and a walk in closet. It also has a "secret room" that only kids can stand in that is used for kid hang out/fun sleep space. Caleb loves it and the door is his size. Pretty cute! To the left of the stairs is another bathroom a nook that currently serves as an office space, and the 2nd bedroom. The area has potential to become two bedrooms with some creativity. We think we will do a remodel and turn it into 3 bedrooms if we have another child (hoping to) or when Caleb and Audrey hit puberty, whichever come first. There is a ton of storage space (attic, little nooks, under the stair case, closets, etc.). The property is off the street in a little inlet/cul-de-sac with 5 other units. It is quiet and safe.

We LOVE it and are pretty excited. The ONLY drawback is that it is downtown, and not central, but hey, this is Santa Barbara. From there, I can still drive to most anywhere in town in 10 minutes or less.

Pray that the owners find a house, that interest rates stay low, or go lower, and that we can figure out how to move with a toddler and a baby.