Make it Yours: 3 Steps on How to Make Your House a Home

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Disclaimer: This post was sponsored, and paid for, by SunTrust. However, all opinions are my own.

Have you always wanted to buy your own house, but weren’t sure where to start? Plus, how do you make it feel like your own? Don’t worry, today I’m sharing my own story, and 3 Steps on How to Make Your House a Home. You definitely will not want to miss it!

Just in case you missed it, a few weeks ago I shared how my husband and I recently purchased a new home. Not to mention, in that particular post I promised I’d be sharing more photos of the new place. So, I decided to start with my family’s favorite spot and the first place I decorated as well. Drum roll please…. welcome to our living room!

This beauty makes it our third purchased home together, but overall we’ve lived in five different locations as a family.

Don’t even get me started on how many places we’ve each lived separately during our single, military lives… I’m pretty sure I’ve had over twenty addresses. Yikes!

With that being said, both of us have a wide variety of experience when it comes to renting versus owning. In fact, we’re very familiar with the home buying process. In addition to our current home, we own a rental property in another state.

So, I want to first start off by saying that there is absolutely nothing wrong with renting. There are many reasons why you may consider renting, or even be put in a situation where there is no other option. For instance, you’re overseas for a short period of time during you military tour, or you may even be working on building up your credit score.

HOWEVER, I truly believe with all of my heart and soul that purchasing your own house is the first step towards making your house a home, and creating the foundation to living your desired lifestyle and accomplishing your dreams.

For instance, one of my lifetime goals is to have financial freedom to make decisions that are not based on a regular paycheck.

So, how do you accomplish something like that?

Is buying a home one of the biggest financial investments you’ll ever make? Absolutely. But, you can do it by getting organized and think about your budget.

Just remember, when you are renting you are only investing into your landlord’s future. You’re not building equity into your home, or even creating a nest egg (with that money) for the future.

With that being said, I’m going to go out on a limb and say that I’ve probably convinced you. Right?! You’re ready to purchase your first home and conquer your goals!! So, what’s next?

I’m Ready to Buy a Home!

Buying a home involves quite a few steps, and I will not going into all of them today. However, let’s get you started on the right foot.

First and foremost, know your budget and get a pre-approval letter. You might “think” you know what you can afford, but the bank of your choice might say something completely different.

If you’re unsure how to calculate what you can afford I would highly suggest checking out this article from SunTrust that will give you a lot of great info on where to begin, OR contact an experienced loan officer that can help.

Not to mention, did you know that sellers can deny you a showing to view their home without a pre-approval letter? Trust me. Get that pre-approval letter before shopping around!

Next, find a reputable and licensed realtor. I am all about reading reviews on everything from products to people. I cannot stress to you how important it is for you to find an amazing realtor. You want someone that knows the in’s and out’s of real estate, and will work for you. Our last realtor was phenomenal. He not only did what we asked, but went above and beyond to ensure that everything went smoothly. It made the process darn near flawless, and in return, we were very happy and stress free.

3 Steps on How to Make Your House a Home

Whooaaaaaaa. I know, I know. We were getting pretty deep there for awhile, but I want to stress that creating the best foundation PRIOR to going out to search for your dream home will make the process soooo much easier.

Ok, ok. Let’s talk finding that dream home of yours and decorating. Onward!

1.) Write down everything that is important to you (or even dream of) when it comes to your place of residence.

I’m not sure about you, but I understand a task at hand so much better when I not only visually see the words on the paper, but also as I’m writing it down. Let me give you an example. Here are the requirements that my family and I had for our next house:

A.) We wanted a house in a particular neighborhood because it was close to friends as well as to the school we wanted our daughter to attend.

B.) The house absolutely had-to-have a fence since we have two dogs. Sure, we could always put up a fence, but that would require extra time and money.

C.) We didn’t want a fixer-upper this time around. We both have full-time jobs, and to be honest, we needed a break from intense DIY projects every weekend.

D.) Wasn’t overpriced, and would be a good investment for the future.

NOTE: Make sure to take into consideration that you may need to sell this house in the future. With that being said, you want to make sure you are not overpaying, and will be able to make a profit on it if you sell.

2.) Find a home with a layout that will fit your lifestyle.

For instance, if you love to entertain I’d highly suggest finding a home that has an open layout at least on the main floor. This will provide you with plenty of room for a wide variety of guests, and will also allow for plenty of mingling and extra seating.

Another example, if you love to exercise, but also live in a colder climate it might be wise to have a dedicated gym space somewhere in your home for those ridiculously cold days. Trust me, even if it’s just a corner in your office I bet you’ll appreciate that small slice of heaven when that blizzard rolls in!

3.) Style and decorate your home with a plan in mind.

If you’re purchasing a new home my guess is that you’ll probably want to buy some new furniture, paint, and gorgeous accessories to make it sing your praises. That’s the fun part, right?!

Want to know how to do it seamlessly without worrying if everything will match? Here’s the trick:

Select a color palette for the entire house, and stick with it!

Trust me on this one. Head on over to your favorite paint counter or store, and spend a few hours picking out 8-12 colors. Just make sure to pick out a few neutrals, a few bolds, your second favorites, and then your third favorites. After you’ve finalized these selections you’ll know exactly what colors to use for everything from your trim boards to your walls and which route to take when it comes to furniture and decor.

The only room in my house that doesn’t fall under my color palette is my daughter’s room. She’s on her own artistic path, and I’m definitely ok with that!