Jul 16, 2007

Lucky #21?

The contract I had with my buyer’s agent expired last February. After having her supposedly working for me for over a year and half (almost 2 years), I am still a renter. Out of the 15+ houses she showed me, only TWO were suggested by her. Both of those TWO happened to be listed by her agency. Do you see a problem with this?

Needless to say, I decided to get myself a new buyer’s agent. She’s an older lady who’s been in the real estate business for a long time. I told her my grievances about the other realtor. I figured it’d be good for her to know, and if she had a problem with me or my “issues” then she could tell me to take a hike. LOL

On my lunch hour we looked at 48 properties that matched the criteria I was looking for. For the most part, anyway. I narrowed it down to 7 properties that I wanted to see. The new buyer’s agent showed me 4 out of the 7 last week. Out of the 4, there was one I really liked.

It’s located on the outskirts of town on a fairly large lot with a nice view. Neighboring homes aren’t right “on top” of it. Across the road is the golf course. The lot is covered with trees. The neighbors aren’t too close and a very nice golf course is across the street.

From the front, the house looks pretty “Plain Jane”. The real curb appeal is the back where a balcony comes off the dining room that has a large patio door. The balcony runs 2/3 the length of the house. The 2-stall garage is under part of the house and you’d never know it was there unless you drove around to the back. The walkway up to the back doors is flagstone and flanked by flowerbeds (that are overgrown right now). There is plenty of parking space, with shaded yard in both the front and back.

The house is approximately 1400 sq feet with 3 bedrooms and 2 full baths. When you walk to the basement, there is an efficiency kitchen and two additional finished rooms. The garage is heated and to the front of it is a sectioned off workshop. What really struck me as interesting is that the home is very retro (70’s) -- Like walking back in time and I found it to be very cool. It’s an older home and when it was built, I could tell they spared no expense. There is a lot of closet space and storage areas. The main bathroom has double sinks, lights, and medicine cabinets. The Both the living room and dining room are ample size, with the dining room overlooking the backyard. There’s even a built-in area off the main hallway that was used for sewing. It has doors so all you have to do is close it up. There are things that would need to be changed such as carpet wallpaper, paint, etc. These are things that wouldn't need to be changed right away. Overall, I really like the floor plan, the architectural features, and the yard. I could see myself living there, and I can see the possibilities it has.

I have a suspicion that the electrical service into the home is only 60amp and will need to be upgraded to 200amp. It has electric hot-water baseboard heat (which I have found out is good), but I think the furnace may need to be replaced in the near future. Even though the roof looks good, there are 3 layers on it that will require a complete tear off when it is re-roofed.

It’s listed at assessed value and “as is” condition which means the sellers won’t be doing any repairs in conjunction with the sale. Taking into consideration the location and the values of surrounding properties, I’m pretty sure that if I bought it and invested $5-10K over time that I would make a profit if I ever wanted to sell it.

I took S to look at the outside last weekend and he thinks I should put a bid on it. We have an appointment to see the inside on Tuesday. I have worked up a long list of questions I need answered. Most definitely would want a sale contingent upon an electrical inspection, furnace inspection, well & septic inspection.

So could House #21 be the lucky one? Time will tell...

15 comments:

Singular Stitches said...

Good luck on #21. It sounds wonderful!

We went through issues with our realtor too. I think that's a pretty universal thing.

Sharon said...

Good luck with the house-sounds promising!

Marita said...

The house sounds amazing. I hope the inspections all work out well.

At least if they don't you know your new agent is good and will find you more places to look at.

Unknown said...

We just let our second listing lapse on a house we are trying to sell. Agents are always focused on the new. Once listings get stale, they get ignored.

Yes, you need a FULL HOUSE inspection. Luckily there are a lot of home inspection companies out there now. Before you pick one, ask to see a sample of their reports. The inspector spent 8 HOURS inspecting the house we are in now. That's an insane amount of time, but if they don't spend at least 90 minutes (testing every faucet, cycling the heating system, checking the attic, roof, and basement) walk away. But don't be put off by "cosmetic" problems up to and including leaky faucets and non-functional toilets. Only bail if there are structural problems, ongoing water damage, major roofing problems, or problems costing $10,000 or more that need to be fixed RIGHT NOW.

Other things to consider. Will your furniture fit? How far is it to your job? School? Shopping areas? What's the traffic like at rush hour, not just a quiet weekend? Can you really live with that orange/red/bright green room until you have time to change it out? Are you really a painter/plumber/drywall person? No landlord to fix it for you. Are you really a yard person (we are NOT)? Can you keep up with the bigger outside space?

All that said, owning your own space is definitely worth it! Just make sure it is a space that is worth your money and time. GOOD LUCK!

Anonymous said...

Meari, You lead such an interesting life. It actually sounds like it would make me terribly tired. But that is the story of MY life. LOL! Good luck with house #21 and peaked at your lovely cross stitching!!!

Pam @ Heart2Heart said...

How exciting! I hope things work out the way you want them to. Will be waiting to see how things turn out for you.

Mary Ann said...

Sounds like a cool house!

glenda said...

Good Luck!!

Katie said...

I can hear in your writing that you are excited. So I say Good Luck. What better time to get a house than the same time I am haha. Keep us upated!

Anonymous said...

Ooh, it sounds lovely. Good luck with it!

The Teacup Cottage said...

Sounds great. I agree that there should be some inspections ... you don't want to end up on one of those TLC shows where the buyer got hosed and now has to fix it. Keep us update and if it works out, you gotta post pics!

stitcherw said...

Congratulations on finally finding an agent that seems to be working with you. The house sounds wonderful. I'll keep my fingers crossed that all the details can be worked ou.
Sue

Kathy said...

Good Luck with the house. Hope it turns out good for you. Good realators are hard to find. We were lucky to have a wonderful one, very honest and thorough.

Cynthia said...

Have your inspections done, then go with your gut instinct. Do you feel you will love the house in 5 or 10 years?? Are you able to live with what can't be changed "right now" but in time?? Then go for it.

At least with a golf course across the street, you know you will have well-manicured grass to look at out the front window, although we will miss the ATGG saga...

Life's a Stitch!!
Cynthia

Anonymous said...

Sounds like a really neat house. Good luck!!!
Barb in TX