In the end, we decided against anything with one bathroom. Say what you will about how picky that is, but we know our requirements. The place we live needs two toilets. So we’ve given up the Craftsman house (she would have made us wait too long before she decided anyway) and the Sunnyvale house. We’re looking at two more places this afternoon, both in Santa Clara. I’ve printed copies of our credit reports, photocopied our pay stubs, put the checkbook in my purse, and in one case downloaded and filled out applications. We’ve driven by each — one a townhome at $2100 monthly, the other a house at $1995, both the same square footage — I intend to put applications into both, even though we haven’t seen inside yet. I’m done looking. Husband is done because I say he is. 😉 The thing is, it’s just a rental. We’re not buying, so this is not an investment. We just need a sturdy, safe, quiet place to live, and I don’t care if it has “charm” anymore. We bring the charm.

And considering the deplorable conditions people live in worldwide, everything we’ve looked at is luxurious.

I’m sorry if I haven’t been commenting or responding to comments much lately. This housing search takes a lot more time than one would expect. I’m feeling a tad unwell these days too, and with the stress of this I’m taking care of my basic needs: eating, sleeping, being in the moment.