Tons of questions were coming in about the house, process, and more so I figured I’d throw together a little FAQ post about it. BY FAR, the most asked question (probably about 50 times) was ‘what town/where’ and as I shared on stories the other day.. I’m not publicly sharing that just for safety purposes. I know tons of you are asking totally innocently and just out of curiosity (especially all my fellow CT Gals!) but I hope you can understand that it’s just for my own protection because the internet is a crazy place.. ha! The second most asked question was if I bought the house alone, will have roommates, etc.

A lot of these were asked multiple times, so I just condensed the questions and am answering as thoroughly as possible for you guys!

How did you save up + what did that look like?
I worked my butt off! For real – that’s all there is to it. But I’ll be totally transparent here and also say that my job allows me to make ‘as little or as much’ of an income as I’d like. The harder I work the more money I’ll make, but I also balance that and pump the brakes when I need/want to. Entrepreneurship is one of the hardest things (I think) but also one of the most rewarding. Having the ability to say I want to accomplish XYZ in my career, personal life, finances, etc. and have no one give me a ceiling on that is something I do not take for granted nor would ever trade for a 9-5, corporate, or regulated position.
I also have multiple income streams – this blog, I run an oils team of over 5,500 people with Young Living, and my home decor line.
When I knew I was ready for a house I became more conscious of saving for that, but had the flexibility to not really change my lifestyle much. I just increased my cash flow in.
Again, I realize not everyone has this ‘luxury’, but you guys asked so I’m just sharing honestly!

Did you purchase the house alone and will you have roommates?
Yes! I purchased the house alone and that’s something I take extreme pride in – purchasing my dream home before 30 all on my own. There’s a certain pride and satisfaction that comes from being able to say ‘I did this on my own’, especially as a woman. That’s not to say I let it get to me – trust me, I don’t! I am very humbled and truly thank the Lord every day for how He’s blessed me.

And nope. No roommates. I’ve lived alone since I graduated college and would never go back until a Mr. joins me! 🙂

What was your home buying process? (where you looked, how long, etc)
I did a whole post about this process yesterday – read here!

Was the process hard or easy for you?
I kind of talk about this in yesterday’s post as well – the process in general was easy. My realtor was incredibly knowledgeable about the area and well informed of what I was looking for. She was super patient with me too since I had a specific list of what I needed/wanted. So that whole part of the process was easy.

The hard part was the waiting. I didn’t think the process would take so long and did get discouraged a few times, but ultimately knew the house for me was out there and it would happen in the right time.

Did you experience any buyers remorse when your offer was accepted?
Remorse, no. Adrenaline, yes. An ‘omg, what did I just do’ moment, yes. Haha! But that’s totally normal. A good friend of mine bought a house recently as well as my cousin and they both said the same things – totally normal.. I mean, biggest purchase of your life, who isn’t going to freak out just a little! But ultimately I knew it was the house for me any worries I had I quickly put to rest.

What town is it in?
Like I said, most asked question by FAR but not sharing this! I will say that I am close to all of my family (within 15 minutes) and am exactly where I want to be 🙂

What were your requirements/looking for?
Should I share this hahaha
Keep in mind that these are my requirements as a single woman and business owner.

Non negotiables:
Move in ready – no major renovations.
Tons of natural light + windows.
Open floor plan on the first floor.
Designated office and/or enough bedrooms for 1 to be an office.
2 car garage.

Pluses but not deal breakers:
Decent back yard/land
Pool

Okay soooo… I decided pretty much from the get go I wasn’t going to move into anything that needed major overhaul. I couldn’t take that on right now nor did I want to + so I was willing to look at higher priced homes to steer clear of that. Changing paint or upgrading appliances was about as far as I wanted to go.

For lighting.. I have a major vitamin D deficiency and have SAD in the winter here so having as much light as possible was a non negotiable. Also, for photo/blog purposes with shooting things. And just because who wants to sit in a dark, dreary place?! I did that for 5 years in my apartment and almost went insane. ha

Having a big family, an open floor plan was a must for me. We have regular family gatherings and our weekly ‘sunday funday’ so there’s no way I could have a closed off main living area.

I really wanted an office so that I could have a space to work in + then additional bedrooms for storage, a studio/shooting/working space, guest room and more. This house has an office on the 1st floor, and then 4 bedrooms on the second so it’s PERFECT! More on the bedrooms in a bit..

What are your neighbors like? Have you met any of them yet?
Yes, I’ve met two of my neighbors so far + love them! A couple my age just moved in a few weeks ago next door and they have the cutest golden retriever puppy! Everyone else in my neighborhood moved in around the same time so I hear they’re all really close, regularly get together (like have neighborhood block parties and things!), and have really good relationships so I’m looking forward to making lots of new friends here!

Did you design/build it/new construction?
The house was built in 2011 so that’s a no! The previous owners worked with a local builder + they were the only ones to live here. The house is relatively new and also has a ton of upgrades, which I am so fortunate! They added the pool, shed, backyard patio, finished basement, solar, and more to the house after they moved in.

Did you do any painting before moving in?
I did not just because I didn’t really have the time, but I do plan on changing the paint in a few of the rooms – which I shared in the empty house tour video!

Would you consider it turn key or will you be doing any renovations?
I think I kind of answered this, but it was turn key and that was a non negotiable for me. I ALMOST ended up with a house that needed a lot of work and thank good gosh I didn’t ha. I would be miserable.
For now, no renovations aside from changing paint, but eventually I would like to redo the master bath + add hardwood to at least the master bedroom upstairs!

Where will you buy your decor, furniture, etc?
Most of what I have now is from World Market, Homegoods, and Wayfair.
I plan to kind of do a mix of everything .. high and low spots – there’s certain pieces I want to invest in and then other things I’m fine purchasing more on the budget end!

How many bedrooms and what will you do with them?
The house has 4 bedrooms.
One is a master, obviously.
One will be a guest room.
One room I’m going to turn into a studio/shoot space/catch all room for anything blog related. In my apartment, my office was a constant disaster with all the incoming mail, product, clothes, trying to organize for shoots, things to sell, things to return.. you name it. It was like a warehouse. I don’t want my office here to be like that, because I actually need to WORK in it without being distracted – which was a major issue for me before. I don’t do well with clutter or trying to concentrate with clutter around me. So one of the rooms will be for that!
The other room will be empty for now, but most likely end up as a second guest room/over flow storage room. (even thought there’s plenty of storage space everywhere right now.. ha!)

I think that about answers it all for you guys!! Here is the empty house tour video + I’ll be sharing more updates as we go and things get furnished. For now, any decor you see in photos or stories is already linked here on the blog in my home decor posts.