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March 2012 Moms
hannahbagels
member
not crazy about the house- NBR
hannahbagels
member
DH and I are looking at getting a house away from the city. He found one that has a barn, an arena, a pool, and a play set for a really good price. I was stoked.
But today we went and saw it and I wasn't impressed. Its almost 40yrs old so it requires maintenance. Roof and chimney need fixing, carpet has stains, kitchen appliances are old and its not as big as I thought.
DH is over the moon and wants it, despite my telling him we'd have to put more money into it than I would like and it just didn't stand out to me. He's not listening to me. He called to get more details about a mortgage and whatnot..
What can I do to get my point (that I wanna keep looking) across besides yell "I DON'T LIKE IT"...
This discussion has been closed.
Re: not crazy about the house- NBR
Probably should have posted this on the nest instead.. married life or buying a house or one of those boards.. Oh well haha. If I don't get much advice I'll go over there.. I just really like you guys
P&R- bed time for DS, be back in the morning
I don't personally view 40 years as old. This house is just over that and other than an former apartment, it is the newest place I have ever lived.
Can you tell him that you will keep it in mind but can you please look at a few more places? That way you aren't ruling it out but still trying to find something out. Would it be enough work that money would be wicked tight if you bought it and fixed it?
I can just see both sides. I'm the daughter of a carpenter so I always knew I would buy a house that needed a little work and then eventually build my own. But also can appreciate a house that would require no work besides regular maintenance for at least awhile.
Married: 1/2008 ~ DD#1: 3/2012
TTC #2: Started 4/2014 BFP 7/30/15 MC 8/3/15 BFP 9/4/2015 EDD 5/16/2016
Good idea. Because its not horrible, I just wasn't impressed.. When we found this apartment complex, I knew this was it. I want to be excited about buying our first house, not dread putting money in it.
I don't mind house work since then I could choose what I want. We just wouldn't be able to afford it until I'm done with school (doing pre-reqs right now to get into nursing program) so I'd have to live with whats there for at least 3 years. And it didn't pass inspection in some areas, so some stuff is stat.
<a href="http://s699.photobucket.com/albums/vv353/guppyamy/?action=view
I agree, tell him you want to look at more places first. I don't know your market but I'm guessing it is slow like everywhere else, so no rush to put in an offer without taking your time.
Our first place, DH loved. It was the very first place we looked at. After looking at around 50 other places, I decided I never had the moment where I knew it was the place, but it was better than all the other places I saw. It was worth my time, to find out that although it was not my ideal, I had tried to find something else so I could not hold it over DH that he chose the house. This house, we both walked in and had the moment and didn't look back from there.
BFP #2 7/18/11 - EDD 3/29/12 - Born 3/13/12
BFP #1 4/4/11 - Natural M/C - 7w1d - 4/30/11
40 years isn't old, my house is 69 years old. And there are houses in my hometown that are 300+. lol
I would just tell your husband you'll consider it but want to keep looking.
If you do end up wanting to get this place what you can do with items that don't pass inspection is put it in the offer/contract that they be fixed/replaced prior to closing or that the price come down to reflect the extra money you'll have to put out correcting the problems. It's what we did when my parents bought the house I'm in now.
I agree with pps in that you could look around a bit first. I wonder if you'll be able to find something in the same price range with all the great outbuildings that this place has. And appliances don't have to be expensive. Scratch&Dent places are great for getting really nice stuff at discounted prices.
BUT! You should love your house.
We looked at about 50 homes, and when we found the one we are in, we both knew it was the right one! My realtor told us that if we don't dream about it at night, then it's not the right house! This one was a short sale, and it took 5 months, but we had dreams about it the whole time we were waiting!
Hate to break it to you, but it doesn't matter how old the house is- it will ALWAYS need something done to it. If it's not the roof, it will be the door or a window or a broken hinge or a squeaking floorboard.
As for the "I don't want this house" part, say that you don't like it and you want to keep looking. If nothing better shows up in your price range, then consider this one again. It's amazing what you find you can live with after seeing all the other crappy houses out there. Who knows? Maybe by looking around, you'll find the house of BOTH your dreams!
(side note- this post reminds me of that car commercial where the couple is house hunting)
Is the hayfield big enough to make a few bucks off of? Or at least keep your own horses overwintered if you get it baled? Man I want a hayfield.
Do make sure that if you get as far as an inspection on the place, you get a really good inspector with lots of references. There can be a lot hidden underneath that your or I wouldn't know to look for.
How exciting though, to be looking for a house! Enjoy the process
It could be. When you go into the houses you're looking at don't think about the age too much. My 69 year old house can use some work (siding, replace 2 windows and some rotting wood work) but the same can be said for my parents 40-something year old house (they had a leak in the kitchen this summer and had the floor ripped out to the 2nd sub floor, the dry wall in the garage removed). At some point all houses need something.
When we bought my house I was turning 20 and we got it because commuting to my job and school an hour from my parents house was getting to be expensive (oil changes every 6 weeks) and worry-some since my school didn't cancel classes till really late (think 4:00 class canceled at 3:45) in bad weather. And since apartment rentals were more than a mortgage payment my dad decided to buy a house/condo for me so we'd build equity.
Until I found the house I'm living in now it was just myself and my realtor looking at houses. The best advice she gave me was use your gut. We'd walk into a place and kind of stand there a moment and see what the initial response was. There were a few that we barely walked the ground floor of before leaving. And there were others that just confused us (a "3 bedroom" where there was really only 1). But when we found my house there was something that made us both go this could be something. My parents had the same thing with their house (which was in a town no where near where they "wanted" to move to).
So my advice is find a realtor you have a good connection with. It makes a huge difference (I had another before the one I used to buy the house and the places she showed were just... not right- she also kept calling my friend Frank, his name is Bryan
).
As for adding rooms it really depends on the house. Some houses lend themselves to easy additions or remodels (taking out a wall here and there). Others not so much. My house- it wouldn't be too difficult, my parents- no not really easy to add on to, and we both living in Cape style houses. It has more to do with the land and layout of the house.
Ok and to end this long response (sorry
) should you go with this place and you go for a home inspection make sure that the inspector isn't just highly reputable, but that s/he be knowledgeable about the types of out buildings you have (barns and what not) since you'll want those inspected too.