Bricks and Mortar

So, we have had an offer on a house accepted! He has no chain and we are first time buyers so hopefully we will be able to move in around about the time we start work in four weeks. Hopelessly naive, I know.

I have had to learn a lot about mortgages and types of insurance that I never knew I didn't need. Money Saving Expert has saved the day again though.

Regular readers will be unsurprised to hear that I still don't know where I am working in four weeks time. I don't know if I start on nights or weekends or what I will earn. Mr JD knows which hospital he will be working in, in Acute Medicine. Rotas and pay remain a dream. He is unlikely to find out prior to his first day.

The process of moving is proving to be both stressful and therapeutic. Lots of unused items have been freecycled or have gone to the charity shop. Others have been unceremoniously dumped. The remainder are being stored in my dad's garage. We don't own much as we've been renting furnished for the past 7 years. A few electrical items, a bed and a bookshelf - so it'll be an expensive few months whilst we 'make house'.

House Hunting

Mr JD and I are staying at my father's house whilst we hunt for a home in the new Deanery.

We are hoping to buy somewhere and the estate agents are foaming at the mouths like rabid dogs when they hear that we are first time buyers and want to move asap. We have trawled round 25 properties in three days (and many more on the internet). We have established that we don't like cat pee or cigarette smoke. We are not prepared to move into a new home and spend 25k modernising, whilst working 56hr weeks in the new jobs.

So, it is very stressful. We have possibly found a suitable place. It's nice. It's affordable and we can get to the far flung reaches of the Deanery within an hour. However, the house seems more expensive than it should be. We need to make an offer that is appropriate but we can't work out a suitable amount.

Difficult times.