Buying a home for the first time is a particularly intimidating prospect. But it’s also one that gives you a good opportunity to evaluate your priorities. Is it to have a lot of space (two bathrooms + den)? How about scenery? Are you looking for somewhere in a hip and happening community or how about a home that’s got a horrible view but is tucked away on a nice, quiet street? Unless you’re Richie Rich, it’s pretty difficult to have it all. You need to make some sacrifices that don’t feel like sacrifices, because you’re about to spend an ungodly amount of money – at least that’s what if feels like the first go-round.

All the sudden, those thousands of dollars you’ve been carefully putting aside, and that had seemed so big and bulbous in your bank account and RRSPs are weak and puny standing next to the omnipresent and life altering blimp of a mortgage. A thousand seems like a lot of money in everyday life – heck you can buy a new computer, TV or vacation with it, but in the world of my mortgage, it’s really just a drop in the bucket.

Then there’s the whole aspect of how the process takes you from your itinerant renter ways to setting roots down as firmly as an ol’ oak tree (well, maybe I’m exaggerating, but you get the idea). You better make a smart decision. No take backs. No longer can you uproot and head to greener pastures if you happen to dislike the neighbors’ loud music or the landlord incredibly slow fix-it routine. Oh you can move, but it’ll be a hell of a lot more expensive than just forgoing your deposit and renting a moving van. Now you get to pay property transfer tax, a Realtor, a lawyer and tons of other fees.

No you are locked in and because you’re in a condo, you’re not in this alone. Welcome to the community of condo owners. You don’t know any of them yet, because you’ve only just purchased your place. You’ve reviewed your strata documents and they all seem normal enough – but then you really never know. You don’t know if you’ll jive, if they’ll share your scrimp and save philosophies and “work life hustle” way of doing things. Maybe they’ll be terrific. Hopefully they will be, because their decisions will have an intimate and in some cases profound impact on both your life and your financial investment in the future. In a condo community the arbiter of many future decisions is the almighty power that is Strata.

Despite these concerns, I will say I am excited to soon be embarking on a new journey into home ownership. For the first time, my fiancé Theo will truly be able to nest rather than simply improve the lot of another person with her ongoing home renovations. Plus, after some exhaustive searching we were able to find a home right smack dab in the middle of a community we really know and love – Grandview Woodlands aka Commerical Drive. At least the neighbourhood won’t be a surprise. Sure we could have gotten a few hundred more square feet if we headed a city or two past outside of Vancouver. But to be honest, the more we looked, the more we became convinced that we would be willing to sacrifice space for a community. Though are living arrangements would be smaller and denser in Vancouver, it was worth it for us.

Our condo itself is a great find. A two bedroom gem on the second floor of a fully rain-screened building built in 1995. We’ve been in there twice and we already have a vision of the renos that will transform the place from cramped, dirty and gaudy into refined, tasteful and comfortable. First step is to take down some drawers, replace the hot water heater, do a little plumbing and take a sledgehammer to the large bathroom mirror which has been glued (yup, you heard right – glued) onto the wall. Then its on to painting. We figure beer and pizza will be the minimum wage for the job with a possible raise of big man hugs from me for all who participate. Let the saga begin!