I booked our first home in 2014 April.After 6 months of house hunting with a 1 year old baby in tow.
We used to pack lunch for Rai snacks for us, plenty of water ,wipes, my tab and a few toys for Rai in our car and
go home shopping.

We signed up for a few popular home listing sites.But you have to go and see .Can’t shop online for your home.

What I did do to buy our home ?

Saved  10% of our salaries (while doing PG)  for 2 years.Couldn’t do more because my hubby had an education loan and a personal loan to pay off ,during the same period.

We then made Fixed deposits of this lump sum amount for 2 more years.That was the time limit to get a job,have a baby and find  a flat we could call home.

The time we spent looking  for the perfect flat ,we also had 2 recurrent  deposits going ,to continue  saving for the home.It was still 10%.

How this helped?

When we actually bought our homes we were able to manage the downpayment  with our own money and  help from my mother.Mothers are angels.Just when we thought we couldn’t make the down-payment , my mom lent us the money.

No extra personal  loan at inflated prices and we did not need to use one of the bad credit installment loans available to us, which would have been one of our options. Thanks mom!

We both wanted an apartment  in a housing complex.Standalone houses though wonderful  for gardening didn’t really fit our budget.So budget is important.

Searching for the best home loan deal, arranging for personal loan from mommy , using our savings, it was hectic.

While buying our home we were sure about 3 things:

1)Location

Very few things are as important

2)Space.We wanted the feeling of space .To breathe and relax and also to cut my plastic sheets to make those molds for all my decorative projects.

3)The budget, didn’t want it to feel like a noose.

We cancelled a few deals because SBI had not yet approved the project.

Even with 3 years of research under my belt, I had found it is difficult to do the SBI  paperwork initially ,but life is easier later.Less hidden costs and surprise charges.
Another thing that was interesting was SBI Maxi gain. It’s really cool .Our  final  EMI will depend on the total amount that we   actually take as loan.

My flat is having its flooring  done now.So it’s pretty raw at this stage.But I am excited  to share the framework with you.It will help ,if we dream about it together.

While saving ideas on my

Pinterest  board,

,I have decided on 6 things:

1 I want lots of  plants in my home

2) I want a green wall and book walls .
Can you understand I am biophilic?
I want 2 to 3 walls to have “book walls “.Floor to ceiling is nice,with  rail ladder/step stool

3)I want my rooms to blend into one another to have that feeling of space.Not wanting the feature wall option.Maybe a mural.A “patachitra”.I don’t know .Have to think more.
Really want   lead free paint   options here.

Researching .

4) Accessories to change the look and theme of the rooms.I want colours from the room decor  rather than the wall colour.

5) Ecofriendly furnishing options.This is Z must. It has to be safe ,hypoallergenic and greenfriendly.

The question  is will I find it in Kolkata.

If I find it ,can I afford it?

6) The kitchen..That’s another story.I cook regularly.Daily stuff.Rarely gourmet.  I am more of a gadget dependent cook, than anything else.I really want my stuff at easy working locations.Plus I want a stainless steel modular kitchen.So research again.
A few days back one of my friends told us about her curtain shopping fiasco.18 Curtains none fit finally. The horror of getting them changed or fitted.Task to make even the decor crazy people cry.

I did tell you about my #Daily chatter challenge.
My childhood obesity research continues.But I will, be taking you along on my journey of choosing ecofriendly ,budget friendly, health promoting options for your home.

Tell  me about your home decor experience.What was the one lesson you learnt?

What makes your home healthy?

I am taking part in the #ubc #blogboost Ultimate blogging  challenge with Blogchatter

#DailyChatter

#UBC Day 8