Change of plans.. Again

I haven't posted much of an update on my Lately. I recently wrote about hunting for a new apartment ("Aggressive" Breeds vs New Apartment Hunting), a few things have happened since then.

We decided we wanted to buy again. We were having so much trouble trying to find a place that would allow Riley. We sat down and really thought about what we want and what we can afford comfortably. And what we can afford (or what we want to pay)... well, lets just say, we're not finding anything in our price range in a good neighborhood. We got to thinking.. What about a townhouse? They are affordable, offer everything we want in a single family home, some have back yards.. We had made up our mind. So, We went searching, and sat down with our Realtor and our Lender. Then bad news hit us like a brick wall. The husband had no credit. Zilch. With that being said, We cannot get approved for a mortgage, and it could take 6 months to build his credit up to where it needs to be. With that being said, we had to go back to looking for a rental. Boo!

I spent hours searching online. Getting anxious, nervous. Just 2 months and we have to be out of our current apartment. If we are not out of our apartment by the time our lease expires.. they will Jack our rent up to $1340 a month.. and that's just base rent!! That does not include Water, Trash, Pet rent, washer & dryer rent! EEk! We would end up paying $1500 a month! Yeah, it was time to search hardcore! I found a place online.. a townhouse, Yay! I called and it seemed perfect. Roo's allowed!! The lady said they would have just 1 available when we needed it. Felt like we had to act fast. We went and looked at it. We liked it, but it seemed a little cramped, and didn't have a private patio.. and that kitchen sure could have used some updates! But the price was awesome, which made it so hard to turn down. The lady referred us to their sister property that offered larger homes, and a private patio. She also said she was sure they had something available. We went and checked it out. We liked it a lot. A lot bigger than the previous townhouse we checked out and much more space than our current apartment. The price was ONLY $100 more than the first townhouse we looked at.. and it meets all of our needs. So, We signed the lease. We are going to be saving more than $300 a month compared to our current rent. Yesssss! <- That's me very excited, if you didn't get that. We move in the first of June. I'm absolutely excited.

We had to sign a 12 month lease, which means we'll be stuck on this side of the water for another year (unless we break the lease when he deploys). But we have decided that if we like it there, we might as well stay there for the remainder of his orders here in Hampton Roads. This side of the water is a lot cheaper.. not to mention the roads are a lot better. The down part is.. THE TUNNEL TRAFFIC! I have pretty much adjusted to it, but I feel bad for my husband.. He will be the one suffering with it every single day! I'm sure he is thrilled about that one. I guess that means he should finally adjust to it as well. We've been here for a year already and have roughly 5 more to go.. yea, it's definitely time for him to adjust.

"Aggressive" Breeds vs New Apartment Hunting

The husband and I have decided to look for a new home. The apartment we live in now is just a little on the pricey end, and because of it.. we are not able to put any money in savings.
We considered buying a house, but in these economic times, we feel that when it comes time for our next Duty Station... we may not be able to sell the home. We have decided to go hunting for a townhouse.

The apartment we live in now isn't bad, but for the price.. I expect it to be a lot better than it is. We had a problem with our the heat in the master bedroom and were basically told there was nothing they could do about it. They seem to have hot water problems in our building quite often (no problem with hot water in our apt) and when one person's hot water is messed up.. they shut the whole building's water off. They have shut our water off twice within a month's time, tomorrow will be the third time. That can be very frustrating. Monday's are always Laundry day.. and It just feels like my whole week gets thrown off. They do allow pets here with no restrictions, which is why we jumped so fast to sign the lease here.. but we're hoping to find a townhouse with a fenced in patio so she can play outside more.

Riley- Roo, 3 year old American Pit Bull Terrier

I love my dog so very much. She is a 3 1/2 year old American Pit Bull Terrier. She is one of the sweetest, cutest most loyal dog I have ever owned or been around. But she's an "Aggressive" breed. For some reason, when people refer to her breed as "Aggressive" or even "Vicious" I just want to start on a rant.. "Dems fightin' words". (sorry for the movie reference, but it's what just popped in my head).

Today I received an email from a townhouse community and she started off by saying they were a "Pet Friendly community" and then went on to describe how they had no weight restrictions. I was thinking we found our place.. but wait.. next line said "no aggressive dogs are accepted" and the next line in small print, "The company considers aggressive to mean pit bulls, chows, Akita, etc". I wanted to scream! You're NOT a "Pet Friendly" community if you don't allow all breeds.. That's just my opinion. But it just really frustrates me. My dog is NOT aggressive nor is she Vicious! I had a chiwahwah who was more "Viscious" than Roo could even imagine of being.. and I know of two cocker spaniels that attacked my sister.. Like I said.. my dog is NOT AGGRESSIVE! I had to give myself a minute before I messaged the lady back. I really let this get to me.
I think I handled myself quite well in my response. I wrote, "Sadly, you're housing community is not for us. We have a very loving, non-aggressive American Pit Bull Terrier that you community discriminates against. Thank you for your time.".

Why does apartment hunting have to be so hard for people who love and want to save this amazing breed of dog? Especially for a military family, who doesn't have much option for housing.. We could buy a house, but with Orders that can change.. It is probably not the best idea, not for us. I'm sure we'll find another place.. I still have more than 25 townhouse communities to call and email. I'm keeping my head up, I just needed to rant some.