Buying property

[Lindsey]

So far, so good! I got to look at the smaller 2 bedroom condo today. I really liked it. Everything has been redone, it's just ready to move in! The floors are really nice, and the super soft carpet was heaven on my feet Of course, it would probably also be Layla's favorite pee pad Anyways, the only downside is that it's a condo and there's no yard.
After seeing the condo, the realtor wanted to go for coffee to explain the whole buying process to me. She even bought my coffee! There was a bit of stuff I wasn't expecting... first of all, the closing costs would pretty much equal exactly the amount of money I have saved up for my Europe trip The second was a downer about buying a condo... that if the condo owners decide they need a new roof for example, they can go to each person and say "We need $2000" and you have to pay up. I just don't think I could handle the unexpected costs. Scott told me that just happened to one of his friends.... she bought a condo and the condo people decided it was time to replace all the windows so she had to cough up $4000
AND about the house... the tenant needs 24 hours notice to get his big angry dog out of the house before people go inside. My realtor tried calling him a few times today and he won't answer his phone. She talked to the owner of the house and he said the only reason it hasn't sold yet is because the tenant is being very uncooperative about letting people in to see the place. He doesn't want to move.
Anyways, she did leave a message saying we want to look tomorrow night. We will hopefully also be able to see the larger 3 bedroom condo tomorrow night. We couldn't get in tonight since the two people living there have the flu.
Oh yeah and she said her big concern is about basements in old houses like that. She asked the listing agent and she was told that there are no major problems at all with the basement which is great news! She also told me "If you're going to live there all by yourself you might want to get a bigger dog.... I just don't think your yorkie will offer much protection!" lol... I have been looking into that too!

[Blueyes]

I think you should just move to Texas

[Lindsey]

Originally Posted by Blueyes

I think you should just move to Texas

Lol... if only it were that easy! If I started the process right now I might be able to do that in a year or year and a half Still an option, if I could get a good renter after buying a house!
Okay so I looked at two houses last night. The first one was just a little over my price point but has a brand new kitchen and bathroom. GORGEOUS. The rest of the house still needs some work. It is a 1912 house, with original hardwood in some areas and some original walls. They actually told my realtor yesterday they were just in the process of pulling it OFF the market to do the finishing up renos and then sell it for $30,00 MORE She told them that would put it out of my range so they let me look at it as it is now.
We went to the second house... the two story that was so cute on the outside... DISGUSTING on the inside. It would basically need to be gutted to the studs and completely redone. I just don't have that kind of money.
So we went back to the first one. Scott came over and my brother came over. The basement isn't usable, but it's dry and looks in good condition. Water heater and furnace are relatively new. The appliances (fridge, stove, washer, dryer, dishwasher, range hood) are all new. They did a half-assed job for most of the renos but I can redo them.
The upstairs... OH the upstairs! It's so beautiful! I would use the whole area as a master bedroom area. There are two dormer windows in one area, and the back is where the bed would be and there is a HUGE picture window, it takes up basically the whole wall and looks over the back yard. It's a half story so the walls are slanted up the sides which takes away some of the real USABLE area, but Scott was talking about building homemade dressers to utilize some of the space.
The problem is I'm leaving tomorrow and I'm not back until Monday... I'm not sure how long they will hold off on doing renovations to let me think about buying it as it is now
Oh, and it's a half a block from Kyle's mom's house and not a super great neighborhood... but on the other hand I can't even afford an apartment condo in a good neighborhood. It's not the worst part of town though... I think I'd just need to invest in an alarm system, and it gives me an excuse to buy another bigger dog

[judy]

Renovations cost Lindsey! Maybe you should think of 5 or so things you would want to renovate, and then go look at how much materials cost. I did some renovations, and mostly cosmetic stuff. I went shopping with Steve, and everything is expensive!!!

Actually, I chose this house because it didn't need much in the way of renovation. I put down new flooring, put up fans and lighting, bought 2 vanities with hardware, and I think that was it. Then there are window treatments, which are expensive by the time you're done. Paint is expensive too. I could go on, but I just want to tell you that it is costly.

I'm not saying not to buy it, just to go in with your eyes wide open. This way yoiu won't get in over your head.

[gja1000]

That is good advice Judy - materials for renovations are very expensive. We built on an 800 square foot addition to the back of our house - no plumbing - which is VERY expensive - just concrete, wood, windows, sheetrock, shingles, paint, etc etc. Eight years ago, it cost $25,000 - and that was for materials only, we did all the work ourselves. Labor is double the materials - so if we'd had it done, it would have cost $50,000. And that was only the building materials, not the window treatments, and decorations.

I could not believe how expensive flooring is!!! We put hardwood floors in our living room and bedroom and it was about $3000 - that was materials only, not labor, cause again, we did it ourselves. When we built on to the house, we wanted to stain the concrete, rather than put down wood or tile. Again, to have it stained professionally was outrageous!!! So, we did it ouselves and it looks great.

The message is that renovations are seriously expensive! I'd only buy a house that needed lots of renovations, if I knew I would have plenty of cash to put into to it. Houses can be money pits if lots of things go wrong!

I know you want your own house Lindsay, and I hope it happens soon! But be very careful what you buy. You don't want to have only a house and then not be able to do anything else.

Good luck in your search! But I really think Betsi is right - just move to TEXAS!

[Janet]

We built our house many years ago and I'm wanting to do some different things, but I'll just have to wait. It's just too expensive. I'd definitely go with the advice these ladies offered. Hope you find the perfect place Lindsey.

[Lindsey]

Well the guy selling the house was very pushy. He said on Thursday that he needed an offer that night or he would continue with renovations. I said fine, I won't take it. Today he was still asking my realtor if I want it. That's just too pushy for me though. I told the realtor I would rather go with a condo, unless I could find a great house in a great area without much work needed... although in my price range I doubted I could find that. Just a few minutes later I came across a listing for a cute little house in a good area, 18 years newer than the last one, with a brand new furnace, new flooring, and new electrical. It also has a pretty new fence with a nice yard and garden. It's at least worth a look!
I agree with the cost of renovations. Cosmetic renovations I can do pretty cheaply because I have found a bazillion ads for people who bought materials like flooring and then only used half and are selling the rest of it for half price. However, the less work the better!