Meanwhile...

If only I had money to spare...while constantly searching for land, I also couldn't stop myself from occasionally searching house listings as well. So what did I turn up, on craigslist no less? The perfect house, being sold to be moved, for only $5,000. That's right - three zeroes. And the owner (a church) is perfectly willing to negotiate the timeline...they're in no real hurry to use the lot, they just want the $5K. If it were totally up to me, I'd be writing a check so fast you wouldn't believe! But Mr. D.H., the pragmatic half, says no land, no house. No spreadsheet of all the total costs involved, no house. It's been about a month since we looked at it, and as far as I know it's still available (I asked to be notified if it sold, but of course that doesn't always happen), so I'll just have to hope it "waits for me" and that everything can come together. I've asked two movers to give me a ballpark estimate, but neither has come through (I think because we don't have land). It's about 100 miles from the land we're looking at, so I know it will be expensive. Meanwhile my heart is breaking a little bit each day at the thought of losing it.


Huge wrap-around porch

Ship-lap walls under wallpaper

One of TWO claw-foot tubs

Wood floors under carpet squares



Perfect trim and doors 

Fantastic Craftsman room dividers (2)

Offer In - Fingers Crossed

And the roller-coaster ride continues...



Looking out at the distant hills

Farther from home than we wanted (about an hour and a half), covered with cedars and very little else, rocky soil - but the views! Oh, the views! The pictures don't really do them justice, but with some clearing to open them up it would be like the top of the world. Over 21 acres, off a paved county road, and in a beautiful, historic area (near the LBJ Ranch), and with a wonderful rural feel, this land won us over.

Only half of it is listed for sale - 10.59 acres for $111,195 ($10,500/acre), and that lot is very long and narrow, unacceptably so. Even though we know it is priced for the views, there are many negatives - the lack of (real) trees, rocky soil, lower part is in a flood plain, only half is fenced, no well, no access from road (this land doesn't front the road and a fairly long private road is going to have to be built to access it), one side borders a bed & breakfast business...so we took a big gamble and made a "low-ball" offer for this tract and the adjoining 10.59 acre tract, for $157,000 total, WITH the stipulation that the seller put in a well and complete the fencing! I'm pretty sure they're going to laugh us right out of the county!



From the bottom looking up the hill

More distant hills



A few of the very-few oaks




Looking across the road