Sell house directly again - Prepayment penalty

Currently, my dream would be to move back to the area of the old rental apartment. But we have now waited 3 years for something to become available, and it didn't. A well-established residential area... we lived surrounded by retirees. I loved it... it was so so so so quiet

Yes... If you have children, though, that would have been the quietest time, because it would really take a miracle if all retirees have no problem with children screaming at any time of day or night...

Drama is guaranteed there...

We would first have to save again. That’s why I wonder what would happen if, purely theoretically, my dream property suddenly appeared out of nowhere tomorrow

Then the dream property including ancillary costs and possibly renovation/refurbishment must be paid or financed.

The following options are available for that:
- Property swap
- Use of equity capital
- Support from family
- Subordinated loan (if you are solvent for that)

And then everything also depends on which investment is being discussed. If the new house is inherently more expensive, you will have to refinance anyway, use equity capital or find a fool who wants to take over a house that was just sold with a significant surcharge. Especially with still weak demand, you have to rather expect that your house is worth less than what you paid for it (purchase price + renovation).

1. why haven’t I heard anything at all these appointments?

Because it really isn’t loud there and maybe you’re just getting worked up about something? That could be a possibility.

2. today I walked through the area and it is extremely loud everywhere for me, even in the new housing areas with the huge seven-figure single-family homes. It can’t be that it’s so bad if so many decide to buy/build here

It’s “loud” everywhere. Whether it’s playing children or the neighbor who tinkers in his workshop for several hours every weekend, the ever-present (country) road with traffic, etc. It also gets interesting in the evenings when instead of the highway noise you regularly hear the “noise” from parties reaching you. Real quiet you only have in a secluded location – and even there I find it really loud especially in spring when the birds make noise. Or it’s the toad families partying at night.

I think I will seek psychological help in order to figure this out and make a decision. And yes, I’ll let the child grow bigger ;-) the hormones from the birth might still be lingering.

Thumbs up. I think that’s good.

Maybe a little story from my profession.. I had changed companies and got my own office, which was located in an old building. My first day (and a few more) were a disaster.. The office was on a well-traveled hallway (wooden floor with a carpet on top). I heard and felt every step. I felt sorry for myself and couldn't imagine how I was going to endure this for longer... I had almost regretted my decision... But it was incredible and I didn't even notice the moment... it simply didn't bother me anymore.. and that after a relatively short time. I then worked in this office for many more years without problems. I hope my story helps you to overcome the initial shock.. it can actually get better over time. Good luck!

Thank you dear Steffi, it felt good to read that.

How long have you been living there?

1. why haven't I heard anything during all the appointments? It must be possible that the noise also fades into the background for me

I can well imagine that. During appointments, you have appointments, meaning you have something to do/talk to people, or your mind is elsewhere. And the brain can excellently filter out noises if it wants to. However, you can unfortunately only control this to a limited extent. I worked at McDonald's when I was young, and anyone who has ever wondered why the employees let the fryers beep for hours: Because they don't hear it anymore. No joke. The brain filters out this horrendously loud beeping very efficiently when you have something else to do. So much so that you no longer perceive it. Nevertheless, my neighbor’s constant country music droning in the garden continuously drove me crazy, even though it wasn’t nearly as loud. You can’t choose what gets filtered out.

The quiet retiree neighborhood also reminds me of us back then. I loved that too. But: My oldest child is now 5, and there’s quiet in the garden at the earliest when everyone without a driver’s license is in bed. Around here in the neighborhood there are kids and a playground. You always hear something, and that simply belongs in a new housing development.

In the first house, I also fixated a bit on the noise. In my defense, it was also simply louder there more often than average. But even here at the new place, a neighbor sometimes has a radio playing when he’s working in the garden. But it feels much, much rarer like that. And it bothers me much less here. Back then the noise situation basically spoiled the whole house for me. Today I sometimes ask myself whether that was just a psychological outlet, and I was actually just generally unhappy there, and couldn’t really admit it to myself because in principle "everything was perfect" in the new building. So the psyche grabbed the one straw that was obviously not perfect and multiplied the problem by a hundred somehow.

was a psychological outlet, and I was actually just generally unhappy there, and I couldn't really admit it to myself because basically "everything was perfect" in the new building.

Almost everyone who has ever been to a psychologist: "Why are you coming here?" "I don't know, actually I should be fine..." The catch is that we believe if we earn money and spend it on things that everyone seems to consider desirable (house here as an example), we would automatically be happy. And when we are not, we still feel guilty because there are so many people who are worse off.