Wisconsin Beth
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Post by Wisconsin Beth on Apr 11, 2016 12:15:05 GMT -5
Not that house. First picture had me going UGH and skipping the rest of them.
Give in to the cheese side and move to Wisconsin!!!!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2016 12:20:04 GMT -5
Not that house. First picture had me going UGH and skipping the rest of them. Give in to the cheese side and move to Wisconsin!!!! Governer Walker, the Packers and crazy high property taxes? I'll pass. :-) |
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Chocolate Lover
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Post by Chocolate Lover on Apr 11, 2016 13:04:42 GMT -5
What's with the toilet beside the washer/dryer but the gaps under the steps behind? Is that an enclosed room of some kind with creative ventilation? :S It wouldn't surprise me if that was just an open basement with the toilet there. A lot of older houses here have a toilet in the basement. No bath "room", just a toilet. Not sure why they sheetrocked behind the steps at all, but it looks like there's a lot of plumbing near the base of the steps and it may have just been too much of a pain to get it all the way to the floor? Nope. Just nope. Pick a different house.  |
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lexxy703
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Post by lexxy703 on Apr 11, 2016 13:04:42 GMT -5
I think you'll regret the lack of yard. Plus do you really want to get rid of your horses, goats & chickens? That would be too sad.
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lexxy703
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Post by lexxy703 on Apr 11, 2016 13:06:19 GMT -5
It wouldn't surprise me if that was just an open basement with the toilet there. A lot of older houses here have a toilet in the basement. No bath "room", just a toilet. Not sure why they sheetrocked behind the steps at all, but it looks like there's a lot of plumbing near the base of the steps and it may have just been too much of a pain to get it all the way to the floor? Nope. Just nope. Pick a different house. My BFF's inlaws have that set up. She says it still freaks her out after all these years. Especially when her MIL pops in with laundry saying oh it's just me when she'd using the toilet. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2016 13:11:27 GMT -5
I agree with Archie- so much depends on when and how it was updated.
My first house was 75 years old and it was SOLID. The inspector thought he'd find termites and carpenter ants eating it up but the wood was so hardened there were no critters. It had been owned by the same couple for the last 30 years; they were handy but knew when to bring in professionals.
That was over 30 years ago. Now I'd have a few concerns, which may or may not apply to you. First, I don't think it was as well-insulated as modern houses. We kept the thermostat lower in the winter than I'd be comfortable with now. The kitchen was tiny. I suppose we could have opened up the wall between the kitchen and dining room (if not load-bearing) and made it a single space. The garage did hold 2 cars but it was a separate structure. Two bigger concerns: the siding was "asbestos shakes", whatever they are, and I wouldn't want to have to deal with that now. They were in good shape but removing or covering would be a nightmare of paperwork and regulations. The other was the oil heat, fueled by two 500-gallon fuel tanks under the driveway. I'm sure that now a seller would have to have them inspected to make sure they weren't leaking, and leaks would be very expensive to remediate.
From watching too much HGTV in the gym, I'd add that any changes you plan to make might uncover things that were OK as is, but now need to be brought up to code once they're uncovered or changed. I'd want a really good inspector who's an expert on old house issues.
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kittensaver
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Post by kittensaver on Apr 11, 2016 13:11:27 GMT -5
I used to own a listed Historic Preservation Home in La La Land and we loved  it. But the neighborhood changed (became way more hipster and crowded), life got in the way (we took on my DB's two teenage girls) and the house was just too tiny (1100 square feet for 2 adults, 2 teenage girls and 3 cats). I disagree that old houses are too much work. I've seen some pretty poorly constructed new homes that were HUGE headaches for the poor buyers. Put me in the "they don't make 'em like they used to" camp.
What do you need most? Privacy or convenience to school with two growing boys? Acreage or walkability?
Is this move an irreversible decision - as in, any chance you can keep the existing house/rent it out - and then move back when the boys have flown the nest? |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2016 13:12:40 GMT -5
It wouldn't surprise me if that was just an open basement with the toilet there. A lot of older houses here have a toilet in the basement. No bath "room", just a toilet. Not sure why they sheetrocked behind the steps at all, but it looks like there's a lot of plumbing near the base of the steps and it may have just been too much of a pain to get it all the way to the floor? Nope. Just nope. Pick a different house. LOL It's not the only toilet in the house. There are two perfectly lovely bathrooms on the other floors.  Those basement toilets are just a thing for some reason. Basement shower stalls too. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2016 13:14:56 GMT -5
Is this move an irreversible decision - as in, any chance you can keep the existing house/rent it out - and then move back when the boys have flown the nest? Absolutely zero chance. I can't afford the one mortgage as it is. |
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Chocolate Lover
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Post by Chocolate Lover on Apr 11, 2016 13:15:34 GMT -5
Nope. Just nope. Pick a different house. LOL It's not the only toilet in the house. There are two perfectly lovely bathrooms on the other floors. Those basement toilets are just a thing for some reason. Basement shower stalls too. I know, but see lexxy703's comments as to why not. Just no. I want to be able to close a door dang it! (How else does a mom get any peace and quiet?) |
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Chocolate Lover
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Post by Chocolate Lover on Apr 11, 2016 13:16:19 GMT -5
Nope. Just nope. Pick a different house. My BFF's inlaws have that set up. She says it still freaks her out after all these years. Especially when her MIL pops in with laundry saying oh it's just me when she'd using the toilet. Yeah, nope. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2016 13:16:53 GMT -5
I think you'll regret the lack of yard. Plus do you really want to get rid of your horses, goats & chickens? That would be too sad. I'm trying to do the right thing from a financial standpoint...and I do hate the house I'm in. But it would suck to move for about a hundred reasons. I think I've been successfully talked out of this one though. The only thing I really LOVED about it was it was so close to both schools. |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2016 13:17:56 GMT -5
LOL It's not the only toilet in the house. There are two perfectly lovely bathrooms on the other floors. Those basement toilets are just a thing for some reason. Basement shower stalls too. I know, but see lexxy703 's comments as to why not. Just no. I want to be able to close a door dang it! (How else does a mom get any peace and quiet?) Right. Just saying it would probably just be an unused toilet in the basement. Unless it was an emergency and I was home alone doing laundry.  |
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souldoubt
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Post by souldoubt on Apr 11, 2016 13:19:10 GMT -5
If the price was right I'd buy an old house that wasn't updated so I'd definitely buy one that was. The biggest must have for me next to location would be something that has good bones. I realize an inspector doesn't rip open the walls so they can't check everything but some new construction during the housing boom turned out to be garbage. They used crap materials (in some cases not their fault as they were found to be defective after the fact) on cookie cutter homes they built fast to meet demand. I'd rather have something with some character than a home that looks like every other one on the block which is what you find in a lot of the developments that sprung up around here.
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Chocolate Lover
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Post by Chocolate Lover on Apr 11, 2016 13:20:16 GMT -5
I know, but see lexxy703 's comments as to why not. Just no. I want to be able to close a door dang it! (How else does a mom get any peace and quiet?) Right. Just saying it would probably just be an unused toilet in the basement. Unless it was an emergency and I was home alone doing laundry. I still don't want to look at a random toilet just hanging around down there. And my luck, I would be home alone UNTIL I really had to use that toilet, then everyone in the world would arrive and come right down to the basement for some stupid reason. Anyway, I hope you do find something you like more even if it has a random toilet hanging out in the basement. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2016 13:22:00 GMT -5
It's not the only toilet in the house. There are two perfectly lovely bathrooms on the other floors. Those basement toilets are just a thing for some reason. Basement shower stalls too. My grandparents' house had a basement toilet but they were a better class of people so they had it in a niche with a shower curtain in front of it. Décor in the rest of the basement included a giant scary furnace, my Uncles' back issues of body-building magazines and framed photos of historic blast furnaces from around the USA. There was no bathroom on the main floor, only upstairs. It used to be considered poor taste to have a bathroom on the main floor. The sole bathroom in my great-grandparents' house was upstairs. It had to have been hard on them as they got older and more frail. |
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swamp
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THEY’RE EATING THE DOGS!!!!!!!
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Post by swamp on Apr 11, 2016 13:31:33 GMT -5
We had a urinal in the basement where I grew up.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2016 13:35:13 GMT -5
DH wants to know what your house is worth.
The last appraisal was 2012 and it was 260K, but that is just the house and front 5 acres. There's another 10 attached acres that isn't included in the appraisal about 8 of which is tillable. In theory, that should be another 60-80K, but with the water issues and the fact that it has some maintenance things that need to be attended to I figure 260K for the entire place to be conservative. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2016 13:38:42 GMT -5
This old house and our last old house had a toilet in the basement. They had doors though. The first house that toilet came in real handy when remodeling the only full bath and so did the little milk carton like shower stall. |
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bookkeeper
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Post by bookkeeper on Apr 11, 2016 13:48:11 GMT -5
Looks to me like they fixed up everything but the kitchen. I am looking to rip out my 1977 kitchen and I will probably spend $20K to $30k to put a new one back in.
The house has a yard, but someone paved over it.
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Jaguar
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Post by Jaguar on Apr 11, 2016 13:58:56 GMT -5
Seriously I do not like it.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2016 14:03:28 GMT -5
Sounds like a fair price, I know you have equity but will it be enough to help you get another and afford it? I know you are worrying about when child support stops.
I owe 144K, paying it down close to $1000/month these days, so I'm figuring worst case I walk away with 100K after paying a realtor. Kind of sickening to think when you figure all I have in it. There are no 30K houses around here. My first house was 40K, but that was 20 years ago. Pretty much anything under 120K is crap or really small (like one bedroom, one bath). If you go outside of town or to one of the neighboring small towns or ever *gasp* across the river in WI you can get a lot more house for less than within the city limits. 130K-160K would get a pretty nice place. |
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Post by mojothehelpermonkey on Apr 11, 2016 14:03:41 GMT -5
Nope. Just nope. Pick a different house. LOL It's not the only toilet in the house. There are two perfectly lovely bathrooms on the other floors. Those basement toilets are just a thing for some reason. Basement shower stalls too. The basement of the house that I lived in during high school had a shower stall and a toilet, but no walls. The rule was that if the door at the top of the stairs was closed, it was probably not a good idea to go down there. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2016 14:04:07 GMT -5
Seriously I do not like it. It's the toilet isn't it? |
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Jaguar
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Post by Jaguar on Apr 11, 2016 14:17:19 GMT -5
Seriously I do not like it. It's the toilet isn't it? Nope it's what you won't get, a yard. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2016 14:24:36 GMT -5
Yeah. The no yard is really sucky.
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resolution
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Post by resolution on Apr 11, 2016 14:31:57 GMT -5
You know, I've been struggling to figure out where I can add a second bathroom to my house without reconfiguring the whole thing, and it never occurred to me to just stick a stool down there in the basement next to the dryer...
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lexxy703
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Post by lexxy703 on Apr 11, 2016 14:40:23 GMT -5
You know, I've been struggling to figure out where I can add a second bathroom to my house without reconfiguring the whole thing, and it never occurred to me to just stick a stool down there in the basement next to the dryer... Well now you have your solution.  |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2016 14:53:02 GMT -5
No, I recently lost the war to stay in our comfortable low cost townhome and now get to purchase a single family. I did win the battle that it had to be a new build. So slap a negative 42k on the scoreboard and let's put even more equity into another piece of real estate, so la-di-da  |
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resolution
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Post by resolution on Apr 11, 2016 14:53:45 GMT -5
You know, I've been struggling to figure out where I can add a second bathroom to my house without reconfiguring the whole thing, and it never occurred to me to just stick a stool down there in the basement next to the dryer... Well now you have your solution. I am going to have to show the pic to DH when he gets home and tell him that we have a solution. |
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