Sophia, how does the timing with the house-buying money from work work? I mean, if you can get an FHA loan or whatever that cuts way down on the money you need to have in hand, and you can get that money from your job, then Bob's your uncle!

The house buying money from work is a little confusing. I think, like many of our "benefits" they make the process confusing so that you do not use it. It looks like you contact them, and they send you to home buying classes-- so I don't think you are supposed to come to them with a house all picked out! But I did realize that for a house that low in price, the grants almost entirely cover the downpayment (it looks like $3,000 from the Uni, $3,000 from the city, and $3,000 from participating banks.)

The kind of nice thing is that there actually about 15 of those cute little houses right there and they go on sale fairly regularly.

Oh- and re: the work stuff-- I have once had it get better and once had it get worse. I will say that my boss said that the dean's first questions was 'Does Sophia know?" and then asked Pam for suggestions for a replacement (the part of her that is my boss is .3 FTE's. The rest of her is a professor who is not my boss.) The people Pam suggested, I like and she asked me for suggestions as well.

Whoa, they found a cure for Hep C!

Go science!

So Master Chef digitally altered a crowd scenes to make it look like more people were there: [link]

Big picture - notice all the duplicates: [link]

Cats Discover Bubble Wrap

They seem rather alarmed.

Sophia, you should totally start the homebuying classes! Just so you're ready, at least.

I realize I'm just freaking out about this because the prices are so low and I'm sad about not being able to buy here....At least, not yet.

I just got an email about a Cornhole event. I swear to god, we don't have that here.

I don't think you are supposed to come to them with a house all picked out!

Eh, I wouldn't get anxious about doing the homebuying class wrong -- it's a tickybox to be checked off so that things like first-time homebuyer programs can be considered a public good. The class will be about what's the process, and advice like "don't spend a basquillion dollars you don't have" and "get an inspection" (which your bank will probably require anyway, so, like, duh). They'll give exactly zero shits if you've done anything out of order. It's also impossible to fail.

In other words, if you decide want to do it, something like a class is purely a box to be checked off, not something to stress about.

I just got an email about a Cornhole event. I swear to god, we don't have that here.

I definitely get the "urban dictionary" type meaning of cornhole in my head, rather than the game. I don't even think I have heard of the game before a couple of years ago.

I think I probably will take the classes. I am sort of in the get ready to start to think about it stage. But I also want to get in while the prices are still so cheap! I could impulse-buy a house!

In other words, if you decide want to do it, something like a class is purely a box to be checked off, not something to stress about.

And may actually provide you with good information as you head into the homebuying process. Do you need to settle w/in a certain amount of time of doing the class/getting the money? I got a grant from the city that had a time limit attached but, like you may be doing, I had a house picked out and was in the process of getting a contract on it, when I applied for the grant. I don't think that was the normal way the grant went but it worked out fine. And allowed me to buy my place even though I didn't have a lot of money available for a down payment.

Oh! Jesse! I thought of you this morning when I heard Whitey Bulger was finally captured! crazy.