The deal fell through with the other potential buyers. Our real estate agent forwarded a question we had about some cracks in the mortar above the garage doors to a contractor friend of hers. Based upon the photos she sent and not an actual inspection, he gauges the cost of repairs to be anywhere from $3k – $8k. Crikey. So, if we decide to pursue this home, our asking price dips even more.
Don’t hold your breath on this one, kids.
Our real estate agent just e-mailed me with the news that house 25 has a pending offer. Disappointing, but hey, let somebody else pay for all of those pricey maintenance items. Right?
Yes, yes. If it’s meant to be, it will. We will find the right house. We will not overpay. We will find the right house. We will not overpay. We will…ah, fuck it. Stay tuned.
We visited one of my girlfriends from college over the weekend in KY. She, her husband, and their two daughters live in a fucking awesome house. So awesome, in fact, that the hubby started re-thinking our house hunt strategy. You see, my friend’s house is on 3 levels and huge: a whopping 3100 square feet. That’s a lot of living space for 4 people. The basement is finished and boasts a playroom, full bath, bedroom, workshop, and a living room with a fridge, cabinets, and sink. Very nice accomodations for visitors, no doubt about it. However, their yard is much smaller than the ones we’ve been focusing on.
The hubby and I talk about it, and I slip into full-on devil’s advocate mode. Believe me, it’s not that I don’t like their home. But, I don’t want to compete (she’s one husband, two houses, and one child ahead of me, but who’s counting?) with my friend, either. We’ve been looking at houses very different from hers, and the last thing I want to do is change my mind based on her fantastic abode and a ridiculous keeping-up-with-the-Jones’ mindset.
Let’s talk money, too. Her house was $259k, and her taxes are around $2500/year. That’s a lot of dough. I didn’t even think to ask what their utility bills must be to heat and cool such a large home. The bottom line is, the hubby and I decided to stay the course, but maybe scale back on our desired yard size. He’s now thinking of how many hours a week it will take to maintain an acre lot. This summer was definitely an exception since we had very little rain, and therefore very little grass to mow.
I’m very happy for my friend and her obvious financial success (did I mention they purchased the house less than 3 years ago, and it’s already paid off in full?), but I’m also happy that the hubby and I can objectively talk about what our family’s needs are and not be brainwashed into buying more than we truly need.
Last Friday, we toured houses 24 and 25. This is getting ridiculous. House 24 was fine; we could live there if we had to, but it’s overpriced. This seems to be a common theme; perhaps we’re just cheap.
The funny thing about house 24 is that the sellers bought it in February of this year and paid $192k. They did some upgrades and have it priced at a whopping $239k. I can assure you they did not spend $47k on this place. Being generous, they might have put $20k into the home. MAYBE. Moving on to house 25.
House 25 is in a killer neighborhood. Priced at $249k, it is by far the cheapest place in the entire subdivision. The next highest home on the market is well over $300k. From an investment perspective, WOO HOO, right? We really liked the floorplan and the 1.29 acre lot. However, the home is 13 years old, and the roof, heating system, and A/C unit are all original. At that age, you’re flirting with replacing three very expensive items. A new roof would probably be around $9k-$10k, the heating and A/C each around $5k. Yikes.
We figure a reasonable offer is around $220k, but even at that price, it’s too much to pay for a home if we have to shell out up to $20k on a roof and climate control. Who would have thought that finding the right house would be such a colossal pain in the ass? Not me.
