Originally posted at twentysixcats.com

So anyone who bought their first house in the past year should have gotten the $8,000 homebuyer’s credit. I’ve been really excited to get ours, because there is so much that needs to be done!

We have a really long list, and several pretty expensive items. Not everything is going to get crossed off, so we’re trying to figure out what’s the most important.

On our list:
Foundation – One contractor quoted $5400 back last July. This is something that needs to be fixed before we try to sell the house. However, it’s not really affecting our quality of life right now. So even though it would be really nice to fix, we’re thinking it might be something that could wait.

Water – A plumber quoted $5800 yesterday. Our pipes are old, and need to be replaced. We see a lot of mineral deposits in our water (mostly rust), and we don’t feel comfortable drinking the water. I can only imagine what it’s doing to our laundry (especially those diapers!). We also need a new hot water heater, which we’ll replace after we fix the pipes.

Windows – We got a quote for $12,000 to replace all our windows. Currently, we have the original single pane windows, and 4 of them are broken and taped up. We would need to get a few more quotes; I’m hoping to find them cheaper than that. New windows would probably really help with our high gas bills, help cut down on noise, and give us some screens so we can open the windows during the spring/fall. Also, as a side benefit, we’d be able to get frosted glass for the bathrooms so we can have some privacy while still letting in the light.

HVAC unit – We haven’t gotten a quote yet, but worst case scenario we have to replace the whole thing and I think that would be about $3500. Our inspector told us back when before we bought the house that there are some issues with the HVAC, and that we needed to get someone to fix it. I don’t think the unit is broken as much as it’s not hooked up correctly. This would help some with our gas bills, and my guess is the house would overall be more comfortable temperature. The true test will be this summer when we find out how well the air conditioning works.

Downstairs den – Home Depot quoted $700 to carpet the den downstairs. We are so close to being done with this room! We just need to install the carpet, and then I’d love to replace the light fixtures, and we’ll be able to use that room. I want to turn one corner into an office, and make the rest of it a kids’ playroom. I am so eager to be able to “move in” downstairs. I feel like once that room is done, then I’ll be able to make the furniture arrangement in the main level more permanent, and put up pictures, and then finally feel more at home.

So we have a lot of decisions about what to tackle first. The plumbing makes sense to tackle first since it’s under our budget unlike the windows, but it’s not very much fun. Carpeting the downstairs is really important to me, but it’s also one of the more optional things.

There are other small things on our list. My uncle is going to replace the door to our carport, which is exciting! Also, he is going to put a lightswitch in the master bedroom. That will be a nice change.

So who else got $8,000 for buying a house, and how are you spending it?