The Goldilocks Conundrum

One week in. Searching for our first property in Manchester and the principle that you can't have it all.

After receiving the green light from our mortgage advisor that we can indeed borrow money, we started lining up house viewings. A week in, with five viewings under our belt, it is becoming obvious we may have been spoilt with our lovely and spacious rented home. The first two houses we viewed were auction houses with great bones but no central heating and no functioning showers so they were a no-go, though a good practice run. Next, we joined a block viewing that honestly felt like we were intruding on a safe house, complete with patchwork window coverings, once inside other potential buyers were chasing us down the hallway and knocking on walls to check for hidden cash - I mean, studs. It was pretty comical and all parties took their shoes off before entering the house which I’m sure the tenants appreciated.

We also viewed a cosy-looking house that felt like an Airbnb but sadly, we can’t quite imagine living there for more than a weekend. Besides, they already have one offer in but the current owners want to see if you can help their dreams come true and upsize for their next home. Tempting, but how about you help us buy our first home first?

An observation I have made so far is perhaps you cannot have it all or be too picky like Goldilocks; there is always going to be something a little off which can hopefully be fixed to your own taste and liking as you settle in to make a new home. In the meantime, I will keep dreaming about a butter yellow kitchen and zellige tiles like the kitchens in Gilmore Girls and cosy homes as perfectly depicted in Baby Boom and The Holiday.

I suppose the next step is to start readjusting our expectations. This made me think of a concept in project management where you have three pillars to consider: time, quality, and cost. You can only prioritise two items and learn to let go of the third. Replacing “time” with “location” in this house-hunting exercise, do we want the perfect location and a gorgeously made two-bedroom house? Sure, but the cost will be eye-watering. Alternatively, do we go for a lovely location paired with a decent and fair asking price, though the catch is you have to adapt to camping in your new home for at least three months because it is a fixer-upper? Probably not. This then leaves us to focus on the outskirts of our favourite locations where the cost and quality of the houses are frankly very appealing. Feel free to impart wisdom and tips for first-time buyers like me. I would love to know how you did it.