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A house can have integrity, just like a person. ~ Ayn Rand
I’m on the hunt for a new home in a new town and since I’m thousands of miles away, I’m burning up the laptop conducting this search in what can only be called an extremely obsessive compulsive version of let your fingers do the walking. Meanwhile, back at my final destination my folks are burning up the tires on their cars driving by home after home, picking up brochures and marking the deserving with hearts and stars.
Occasionally I get a Eureka this is the one call, but ultimately I won’t make this purchase without walking through the home. Until then, it’s such a delight to get these calls and to view the homes, rooms, and neighborhood maps even using the yellow Google man to zoom up close and personal into the yards of the homes practically peering through the windows. Once the internet offers scent technology, I could almost buy a home sight unseen. Almost.
I want to buy a house based upon price, location and how the house feels. Because nothing can replace actually walking in a home and letting it speak to you. Like the P. D. Eastman book, “Are you my Mommy?” I enter a house and ask “Are you my home?” and then listen for the answer.
Homes are where memories are stored. Whether in plain sight or hidden, the lives of the dwelling’s inhabitants are forever engraved in the soul of the home. There are the little gnaw marks on the windowsill leftover from the first puppy and the pencil lines on the doorjam leading to the garage marking the heights of the children at various ages. Deeper stories emerge as layers of wall-paper provide a history into changing decorating choices and styles, usually followed by a what were they thinking? You’ll see the concrete path leading to the backyard embedded with tiny foot and hand prints. A walk through the yard at dawn illuminates trees and shrubs which were carefully selected, planted, watered and pruned. The gourmet kitchens left by a family of chefs is indicative of large happy family meals and holiday gatherings. The repairs, both done and undone tell a story of the family’s priorities. But perhaps I’m only projecting.
Right now there are a gazillion houses on the market, many of which are foreclosures and short sales and these represent one third of the homes sold in the past year. The families leaving these homes are being forced out, either through folly, or through no fault of their own. Day after day I spend time talking to unemployed people who are either on the verge of, or who have just lost their homes. Today I learned of a very successful corporate Vice President who gave away her two dogs who were not only her pets but her best friends and companions, as well as her four prized horses as she walked away from the home of her dreams since she’s now been without a job for over a year. Like so many, she’s living with a friend, sleeping on the couch and longs for the day that can put her life back together once she finds a job. Tomorrow I will hear another tale of woe.
I would not buy the VP’s home knowing the story that preceded her departure. At any price. But I know her and her story. What about houses whose story is not known to me?
Not only do I want to buy a happy house that was loved and cared for by its former occupants, I want to buy a home that was willingly sold as part of the ebb and flow of a family’s life. Maybe the family was transferred with the company, or they needed a larger home to accommodate the birth of a child. Maybe they needed a home without stairs or one with a different yard. Maybe they were now empty nesters and looking to downsize their life and move into a townhome. You know, reasonable reasons for selling a home.
With the incredible values foreclosed and short sale houses offer, is this the right financial decision? Maybe not. Do I really want to know the family saga of the sellers and all who have lived in the house since it was built? Probably not. I know that a house becomes a home because of the love brought to the dwelling and yet I will rely heavily on my intuition when touring a new home and will quietly listen to the messages the house sends. And again I will ask “Are you my home?”
If it says yes I will buy it.
A comfortable house is a great source of happiness. It ranks immediately after health and a good conscience. ~Sydney Smith.
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