Question of the Day: Tuesday, November 13

We have been looking at houses like crazy this last week as we are moving closer to my husband's job!! When I drive up to a house as a potential home to purchase the first thing I look for is windows!!! :lol3: I love windows and that seems to be the most important thing about a house to me. Mostly because the house we live in now has lots of windows and my cats just love that. So a house with floor to ceiling windows is a must!! :lovegrin: So my question to you is:

[COLOR=#BLUE]If you were to have to move and find another home, apartment, condo, etc., what is the first thing you look for when you walk in the front door?[/COLOR]

Congrats on the move - always nice when life gets a little easier.

I was going to say a working fireplace because it's a deal-breaker for me - but yeah windows are even more important! I have to have windows (or at least a door like a french door) in every room of the house. I get cagey and trapped-feeling even in a bathroom with no windows.

It might have something to do with the fact when I was growing up my bedroom had no windows! My mother refused to get me a night light so was pitch black at night like being in a cave. I remember some nights desperately trying to find a door to go to the bathroom but I'd be turned around and couldn't find one! It wasn't too bad, though, since I didn't sleep much at all as a child and usually was in the living room watching tv most of the night.

Room size so I know I have enough space for the cats and a christmas tree, then a fire place its a focal point and I love my fireplace and luckily I could have it changed before I moved in here 

Wood or hard floors of any kind but NO carpet please!  Light is important too-so miss our apartment that was always so sunny and warm

A huge window that I could put the cat condo and tree in front of! :lol3:

Floor plan.  I studied Interior Design in college so I look at everything down to where outlets for the cable are located and everything.  

I bought my first house because there was a striped cat sleeping on a chair in the living room.  Tried to get them to include the cat with the sale but they refused.
 

Kitchen with lots of counter space! That's my only issue with my apartment.. tiny galley kitchen

A house is financially out of the question right now, but if we had to get a new apartment it must be cat friendly (obviously), and it must come with a washer and dryer. Needing nice "teacher clothes," preferably without cat hair, means we do a lot of laundry.

I would find my way to the kitchen first. If that's OK, then I'd look at the rest of the house. If not, no need to continue looking.

(And at this point, if I had to move out of my house, I'd probably cry.)

I really good, big yoga room 

And natural ventilation.

We had an issue with bad neighbors in the past, so we thoroughly check out the neighbors and neighborhood first.

The thing is with neighbors- is that they can change.  Especially if you put down roots and stay a while. 

In the 20 years we've been at this house- we've had neighbor issues 3x.And it was hard to sit here and ride through the rough times, but all 3 situations eventually worked themselves out.

  One was the guy across the street- they wanted to be "friends" to their kids- and the kids would have these parites with 30+ kids, loud and obnoxious and the parents would just STAND THERE and let the cops come.  Sigh.  The situation did eventually work itself out.  Then the guy had a stroke and died and the house went into foreclosure

Second was a house with the renters from heck.  Bunch of college kids- they had the lights/ water cut off b/c of non-payment.  The kids got thrown out and the couple that owned the house put it on the market the next day.  Said they were DONE with renting it out.

And the third was my neighbor.  They had out-of-control kids.  The parents were going through drama of their own- so the kids were basically raising themselves.    Made me so mad- a group of us tried.  Parents divorced- mom and the kids left.  The guy still lives next door to us.  We don't see a whole lot of the kids- the oldest one had issues in HS and the last time I talked to him he was working on his GED.  I have no idea how the youngest is doing- we never see her.  She's a year younger than my dd, and my dd wanted nothing to do with her. 

Cheryl