First-Time Home Buyers Moving On Up: Help This Poor Couple Find Another Home to Hug!

Jamie hugged her home today. That’s because it won’t be long before she has to say goodbye to it, forever.

Jamie Laubhan-Oliver and Larry Oliver are selling their very first home. While we all know that change is good, you’ve got to move on, that’s the way the dice rolls blah blah blah, we also know that some of us get very attached to homes, particularly the very first one we bought as newlyweds, notably one we poured not just our heart and soul into, but our backs and fingers. (And concrete!) For Larry and Jamie, it’s more than sweat equity: they purchased a brand-new town home in 2007, in the Cedars, an industrial-funky Dallas neighborhood south of downtown and I-30 undergoing an urban transformation with new townhomes, apartments, Dart’s Cedars Station, the loft/retail development South Side on Lamar, the Dallas Police Headquarters, plus Gilley’s Dallas and Poor David’s Pub. Jamie and Larry snapped up one of those townhomes, and it is the  understatement of the year to say they merely added some of their own touches. Their home looks nothing like the neighbor’s. Where to begin? They designed the custom tiles, the fireplace, stained the concrete floors and cabinets black, and added a vintage claw foot bath tub in the master bath. On the neat back patio is a massive concrete table that stays with the house — “we poured the concrete ourselves”. The table is so secure the couple hid under it during recent Dallas storm activity.

But they made a decision to move on because they need more space, and their home is on the market. They would like a large, leafy yard and, as Jamie says, Larry really wants a swimming pool, “that’s it in a nutshell.”

And they may be needing an extra bedroom or two someday, hint hint.

So where are they looking? Oak Cliff or Lakewood, mostly because of affordability. But Jamie says she really likes the vibe of Oak Cliff, how it feels like Austin, and has homes with great old bones that are not cookie cutter.

“Everything’s different and unique,” she says.

And they like the trees and rolling hills. Unlike most “turn-key” couples buying today, Jamie and Larry are creatives — they scout products and produce photo shoots for a living—Jamie as the art director for D Home and D Weddings and Larry as a designer for Neiman Marcus’ The Book.

“We don’t want something already done that won’t fit our taste,” says Jamie. “We want to make cosmetic, not structural changes.”

The budget is $400,000 or less, and here’s a house Jamie has found that she likes. No buying until the homestead is under contract. So, sweet readers, send us some help and listings. Let’s help Jamie and Larry find another home to hug!