Update on #22
We had the house inspected yesterday. There was much stress leading up to that moment. The outcome was mixed. Definitely not the outcome I would have preferred, but I am still trying to think positive. However, we are pulling out of our current offer on the house. Here is an excerpt from the email I sent our realtor, which explains the situation.
The house inspector had both good news and bad news. The good news is that the main part of the house is structurally sound, and in very good shape for a house its age. The bad news is that the electrical and plumbing systems have to be completely replaced in order for the house to be inhabitable, and she also suspects the gas would not be up to code even if reconnected. She does not recommend having that work done until it is moved because it would have to be done again. She also said the house has been for sale for a long time (just not with Keller Williams), with no interest because of those issues.
With all that information considered, and some of it being somewhat contradictory to the sellers' disclosure, which stated that the systems needed to be upgraded but were functional at this time, and since the initial costs would be much greater than we had hoped for, we have decided to walk out on this offer at this time; however, we are still interested in the house. We want to bide our time, gamble that the house will not sell, reconsider our financial situation (which we hope will improve within a year or so because of children graduating from college), and start looking for land. If the house is still available a few months down the road and we have been able to find suitable land, we will definitely revisit the situation, and consider putting in another offer.
So really it's just a matter of logistics. We most likely need to sell our current house to fund this whole thing, and we can't do that without a place to move to, and we can't live in #22 until after it's moved and rehabbed, and it makes no sense to buy it and let it sit there (paying expenses on it) while we look for land when we can't even spend any time in it or work on it because of no utilities. So...we will start looking for land and hope the house waits for us. Fingers and toes still crossed!
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
House #22
Good things must come in threes! Three great houses in three weeks! On the same trip as #21, we drove to another town to check out #22. What a beauty from the ONE picture shown on the listing. No photos at all of the inside, so this was the "mystery house." We wouldn't have bothered at all if we weren't already working with an agent who could show it. Built in 1920 (a bit younger than I was hoping for) and listed for $60,000, at 2,370 sq, it's substantially larger than the previous two houses. Larger could be an issue for moving, but might alleviate the need to add on. I was pretty taken with #21, so all the way on the drive between #21 and #22 I was obsessing about how to add on to #21 and telling myself not to get my hopes up about #22, having no clue about the shape of the inside, other than that it was described as "as is" and "full of character and possibilities."
BECAUSE, my friends, we have made an offer on House #22! It's contingent on the inspections, which is a biggie, because if it's found to have structural damage then that may be a deal-breaker, depending on the extent. I also want to try to have a mover come look at it to make sure it is indeed possible to move it out of its current location, which could be another deal-breaker. But keep your fingers and toes crossed! We're probably jumping in way over our heads, and straight into a money pit, but this beauty was a grand dame in her day, and she can be again!
Pros:
The price is right
Great bones
Oozes charm
Appears to be in sound condition
Large enough not to add on
30 minutes from home for weekend commutes
Cons:
The porch doesn't wrap (minor, but would be nice)
Size may cause a moving problem
Kitchen is small
Floorplan works for us, but might not work for resale (hopefully that's our heirs' problem)
Trim and doors not as ornate as others, and stained (pro and con)
A little younger than I was hoping for (minor)
Edited to add: Since we didn't get this house, I came back to add pictures of the interior.
Good things must come in threes! Three great houses in three weeks! On the same trip as #21, we drove to another town to check out #22. What a beauty from the ONE picture shown on the listing. No photos at all of the inside, so this was the "mystery house." We wouldn't have bothered at all if we weren't already working with an agent who could show it. Built in 1920 (a bit younger than I was hoping for) and listed for $60,000, at 2,370 sq, it's substantially larger than the previous two houses. Larger could be an issue for moving, but might alleviate the need to add on. I was pretty taken with #21, so all the way on the drive between #21 and #22 I was obsessing about how to add on to #21 and telling myself not to get my hopes up about #22, having no clue about the shape of the inside, other than that it was described as "as is" and "full of character and possibilities."
When the realtor opened that front door, I think all three of us went (or thought) "oh my god!" Not only at the shape it was in, but at the possibilities waiting! It appears to be structurally sound, and the interior is actually in quite good condition (the exterior has quite a bit of peeling paint and perhaps a little rot), but the current owners started a renovation that has left it in a state of disarray, to say the least. But the character! And the possibilities! The ad was quite right in that regard. Two notes about the trim and doors - 1) the trim is not as ornate as #21 (which I love) and the doors are the horizontal panels which came a bit later than the four-panels which are my first choice, but they are all present and accounted for with the original hardware, and 2) the wood is stained, not painted. I've decided that 2) is both a pro and a con. It is a con because painted trim is an ABSOLUTE in my next house, and painting over all that virgin wood is going to be a bit painful, but it's a pro because all the other houses had multiple layers of (lead-based I'm sure) paint which would have to be stripped, and this will be a much easier paint job. I could go on and on about this house, but I don't want to give too much away, because I'm holding out on my kids, who read this blog. (That's also the reason I'm not showing any photos of the interior.)
BECAUSE, my friends, we have made an offer on House #22! It's contingent on the inspections, which is a biggie, because if it's found to have structural damage then that may be a deal-breaker, depending on the extent. I also want to try to have a mover come look at it to make sure it is indeed possible to move it out of its current location, which could be another deal-breaker. But keep your fingers and toes crossed! We're probably jumping in way over our heads, and straight into a money pit, but this beauty was a grand dame in her day, and she can be again!
Pros:Great bones
Oozes charm
Appears to be in sound condition
Large enough not to add on
30 minutes from home for weekend commutes
Cons:
The porch doesn't wrap (minor, but would be nice)
Size may cause a moving problem
Kitchen is small
Floorplan works for us, but might not work for resale (hopefully that's our heirs' problem)
Trim and doors not as ornate as others, and stained (pro and con)
A little younger than I was hoping for (minor)
Edited to add: Since we didn't get this house, I came back to add pictures of the interior.
House #21
So as I was despairing over House #18, up popped this listing for a fairly similar farmhouse, also listed for $50,000. It was listed as being built in 1954, which just couldn't be true, so we had to do some research. Mr. D.H. found some old tract maps that showed it in the present location in 1915 (same age as #18). We figured that 1954 may have been when it was added to the tax rolls. So with its age confirmed, we trotted off to see it. While it lacks the coveted wrap-around porch, it almost makes up for it in much nicer trimwork/doors, city utilities, and better overall condition. The floorplan and roof lines, however, are not as amenable to an addition, which it would have to have. The attic has been completely "remuddled" into an attempt at a "master suite" which would have to go. That's what the weird pop-out on the upper back elevation is. Nonetheless, it would be "liveable" in its current state, and is in a town that we wouldn't mind spending weekends in during the time before we moved it. The location is also less isolated and a bit safer from vandals than #18.
Pros:
Right price for moving
Great bones
Fantastic trimwork and doors
Plaster walls
Wood floors
City utilities
Liveable condition
Cons:
Not on acreage; a moving candidate
No wrap-around porch
Small and not well-suited to an addition
Muddled attic addition
Pros:Great bones
Fantastic trimwork and doors
Plaster walls
Wood floors
City utilities
Liveable condition
Cons:
Not on acreage; a moving candidate
No wrap-around porch
Small and not well-suited to an addition
Muddled attic addition
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Updates
OK, I need to bring this up to date. A lot has happened in the last couple of weeks! We toured #18 with an agent and I fell totally in love. While I was inside drooling over the details, Mr. D.H. was outside poking his fingers into the wood. He reported that every place he poked, it went straight through...not a good sign. In addition, there are no city utilities, and no way to know what kind of shape the well and septic tank are in without paying for an inspection. And one thing I DON'T like is the wall and ceiling treatments, which appear to be pieces of plywood nailed up with trim pieces covering the joints, so I said they would have to go (see middle photo above). So Mr. D.H. said if we removed the interior walls and the exterior walls are rotten, what exactly are we left with? A pretty nice metal roof , some trim, and a floorplan...hmmm...To add to the negatives, the house is pretty isolated, making it a vandal/arsonist target waiting to happen. And probably uninsurable at that...not sounding good, is it? I pondered at length how we could possibly make this place work, and we considered going ahead and paying for an inspection just to be sure what the problems are, but they do seem almost insurmountable.
SO, as these things seem to happen, just as I was on the verge of admitting defeat - along came two more very interesting listings to take my mind off #18.
Edited to add: As I read back over this more than a year later I can see how a reader might wonder why we were concerned about utilities, vandals, etc. if we were buying it to be moved. At the time, we had considered using it as a weekend place for a while and starting work on the inside before we had it moved. We didn't have any land at the time.
OK, I need to bring this up to date. A lot has happened in the last couple of weeks! We toured #18 with an agent and I fell totally in love. While I was inside drooling over the details, Mr. D.H. was outside poking his fingers into the wood. He reported that every place he poked, it went straight through...not a good sign. In addition, there are no city utilities, and no way to know what kind of shape the well and septic tank are in without paying for an inspection. And one thing I DON'T like is the wall and ceiling treatments, which appear to be pieces of plywood nailed up with trim pieces covering the joints, so I said they would have to go (see middle photo above). So Mr. D.H. said if we removed the interior walls and the exterior walls are rotten, what exactly are we left with? A pretty nice metal roof , some trim, and a floorplan...hmmm...To add to the negatives, the house is pretty isolated, making it a vandal/arsonist target waiting to happen. And probably uninsurable at that...not sounding good, is it? I pondered at length how we could possibly make this place work, and we considered going ahead and paying for an inspection just to be sure what the problems are, but they do seem almost insurmountable.
SO, as these things seem to happen, just as I was on the verge of admitting defeat - along came two more very interesting listings to take my mind off #18.
Edited to add: As I read back over this more than a year later I can see how a reader might wonder why we were concerned about utilities, vandals, etc. if we were buying it to be moved. At the time, we had considered using it as a weekend place for a while and starting work on the inside before we had it moved. We didn't have any land at the time.
Thursday, February 9, 2012
House #20
One more in the same town as #19, this would be a moving candidate, but it's REALLY far gone. The interior is in really bad shape and doesn't have much left to work with, and it's very small. I believe the date listed for this one is also mistaken (1961), as it appears to be early 20th century that was last renovated in the 60s or 70s. It's listed for $45,000.
Pros:
Appears to be the right age
Right style
Right price for moving
Cons:
Very few bones left
In very bad shape
Very small
One more in the same town as #19, this would be a moving candidate, but it's REALLY far gone. The interior is in really bad shape and doesn't have much left to work with, and it's very small. I believe the date listed for this one is also mistaken (1961), as it appears to be early 20th century that was last renovated in the 60s or 70s. It's listed for $45,000.
Pros:
Appears to be the right age
Right style
Right price for moving
Cons:
Very few bones left
In very bad shape
Very small
House #19
On the same drive as #18, we took a little detour, mainly to view the little town this is in. The listing for this one says it was built in 1935, but it looks much older. It's cute, but very small, and has already had quite a bit of renovation. It's listed for $124,500, and is not in a location I would want to live, and not a good candidate for moving (because of the price and previous renovation), so not a serious contender.
Pros:
Cute little house
Seems to be right age and style
Cons:
Not on acreage
Small
Already renovated
On the same drive as #18, we took a little detour, mainly to view the little town this is in. The listing for this one says it was built in 1935, but it looks much older. It's cute, but very small, and has already had quite a bit of renovation. It's listed for $124,500, and is not in a location I would want to live, and not a good candidate for moving (because of the price and previous renovation), so not a serious contender.
Pros:
Cute little house
Seems to be right age and style
Cons:
Not on acreage
Small
Already renovated
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