CITY GIRL IN THE COUNTRY

Filed Under: Catskill Farms Vacation Homes | Sullivan County House Hunting | Catskill Real Estate Home Ownership | Old Houses and Catskill Farmhouses
Written By: Jamie Hollier

 No doubt about it, I am a city girl. I have lived in cities all my life. So, the idea of moving to the country, or at least the concept of buying a Sullivan county home, has been something of a shock to my friends, family, and even myself.

When I started to really consider buying my first place, though, I was suprised by how far my money went. In all honesty, putting my hard earned cash into a condo where the homeowner's association could tell me what color my doormat had to be or how loud I could rock out to the Beatles while scrubbing my floors, left a sour taste in my mouth. Add to this the reality of condo life when everyone is aware of your constant comings and goings and people sit around and talk about what they hear through the thin walls. It is not that I have anything to hide or be ashamed of, I just want a more private life than that with any property for which I foot the bill and risk.

Then there was the size issue. I have always prided myself on being adaptable and flexible, but this time the price per square foot sticker shock just didn't subside. I don't want to have to work hard and long hours in order to be able to afford an elaborate closet that is passed off as a home. I want room for my art, my antiques, and my pets.

The question of adding some greenery to my life then surfaced as I looked at condo after condo. I am not too great of a green thumb but that shouldn't stop me from trying. I like flowers, trees, and even just the feeling of laying in the grass on a summer's day. I want to be able to make snowmen in the yard in the winter, plant bulbs in the spring, and have a yard to play catch in for the dog I may one day acquire.

So, with all these concerns and desires, where was this woman to turn for proper placement of a down payment on a house? The answer, for me, was discovered in the land of Catskill farmhouses. Here was an opportunity to have a nice little house for me to make my own. Sullivan county real estate afforded me the option of having a perfect place for all my antiques and my attempt at a garden. I would be able to have a yard, in fact acreage, and a porch on which I could sit with friends relaxing the weekend away with conversation and iced tea.

Upstate New York real estate also ended up being a perfect fit for the active side of my life as well. I would be able to snowboard on the weekends and then take a short drive home on Saturday night instead of having to rent a place in the mountains. I could hike in the summer, buy local produce, and have friends come stay for a while. Life in the country never seemed less boring.

I never thought I would say this, but this city girl is in love with the country, Catskill real estate to be exact. The house is perfect, designed to meet my needs, and it makes me feel like I really got something in my first home. However, I am still, in part, a city girl with my condo and my 9-5 downtown during the week. Maybe one day, though, my farmhouse in Sullivan County will be more than my weekend home and will be the setting of a nice quiet ex-city girl life.