When I moved to Sioux Falls a couple of years ago, I was laboring with a limited budget.
I was reluctant to throw away money paying rent. I started house-hunting instantly. The section is lovely & the properties for sale were quite costly. I spent more than six months touring one home after another; My priority was a safe neighborhood & great amount of property. The only way I was able to afford a condo with potential was to purchase a fixer-upper. I found a three-home office, two-bathroom residence that had been left vacant for over five years. The bones of the home were solid & square however everything else was a mess. I am handy & have some experience with renovations. I wasn’t afraid of tackling the project & making improvements that would significantly increase the resale value. The most taxing aspect was making sure I completed necessary repairs & upgrades before the arrival winter. I knew that by the end of September, the temperature would plummet into the thirties. By Thanksgiving there would be snow on the ground & temperatures in the teens. I needed to have airtight windows, insulated walls & ceilings & a laboring heater. I was dealing with a leaking duct system, a leaking roof & lots of water detriment. The winters in Sioux Falls are unforgiving. I didn’t want to shiver all winter, spend my money large heating bills or risk my water pipes frosty. I spent all of my free time & every dollar of my savings on my house. I went without anything that wasn’t a necessity, including modern appliances & furniture, until the Spring thaw.