Homefinding

We have entered a new phase in our lives. It's more than that. I could even venture so far as to audauciously suggest that America herself has entered into a new phase in her life. Real estate is finally affordable.

So with much kerfuffle and perplexity, Delta and I have launched on our mission to buy a house.

I always knew that home-buying would be complicated. I just didn't know how mind-consumingly, mind-bogglingly, mind-swimmingly confusing it would be.

First, we had to find a broker. We side-sweeped that step, of course, by latching ourselves on to the first broker we met (nice elderly fella with a trustable-looking face, what more could one want).

Then, we have to identify the apartments we want to see. Now, that's the fun part for sure. Floorplans, pictures, little spreadsheets comparing price-square-footage ratios. Well, for the first ten apartments anyway. And then suddenly, by your hundredth apartment, the floorplans merge into a blur of contorted black and white boxes, like some kind of surreal real estate version of tetris.

Today, we decided to get pre-qualified for a mortgage. "Delta, would you please take care of that for us?" I asked.
My forte lies in persusing floorplans. Finances will need to fall to someone else, I'm afraid. So Delta got volunteered for the task, and I sat finger-nail-bitingly by until he called me back.
"Okay, we're set, I got us the pre-qual letter."
"Really? it was that easy as that? We are pre-qualified for a mortgage that will get us the apts we want?"
"Sure, of course. What did you think would happen?!"

So apparently Delta had been less mentally ruffled than yours truly.

And now, the funnest part. This weekend, we meander aimlessly (well, in reality, it's a rather ardent stride through an ambitious list of apartments in 2 hrs) through the Upper East Side, and perhaps we find that place we can call home.

Or perhaps not, and it's back to real-estate tetris.