The new house
'Cause I know you all have been dying to hear more about my house-hunting saga.
It turns out I'm a wheeler and dealer, because I stood by my low offer and didn't budge. I win at real estate chicken. Here is the house I am planning to buy, assuming all the inspections and stuff come out okay. This is the view from the south, at the attached garage and breezeway porch.
The good news: I like the house and the neighborhood (it's the same neighborhood I live in now)
The bad news: the house is being sold "as is," so whatever wrong with it, I'll have to fix. (Hence the low offer.)
All of this morning was taken up with inspections: the regular inspector, the termite inspector, the sewer inspector, and the structural engineer consultant. Among the things to be fixed: a steadily bowing foundation wall on the north side that'll have to be braced with I-beams and possibly a deadman anchor. Awaiting bids on that little project. Many thousand dollars, which is why I'm paying $25K less than the seller originally asked, which is also $25K less than he bought it for. (Maybe he didn't get a good inspection beforehand.)
Among the cheaper fixes: termite treatment for a small porch off the kitchen. Somehow, I feel like it's a bargain, because the termite inspector uses a doggy!!!! It's true! This is Crocket, the specially trained termite sniffing dog.
Sadly, this particular pose of Crocket's means there are termites under where she's sitting. I lof her. She has beautiful floppy ears and a curly tail and spotty toes. *kisskiss* Oh, right, and I'll have to have the termites treated. Look, people, if you have to have a termite inspection, hire an inspector with a sniffing dog. It totally takes away the sting of finding out you have termites, because after she told me about the termites, she kissed my hands and let me skritch her soft ears. Try that with a regular termite inspector.
The house had previously been a rental and one gets the sense that the owner got in over his head and just gave up. The house has been unrented most of this year and maybe here's why:
The bathroom also has about three inches of layer underlayment and linoleum, which is particularly interesting since the doorway to the bathroom is all of about 5'8" high. I can barely go through the door without ducking. Part of the problem is the layers of flooring, but the door is just short. Not even 6' tall. Thankfully, the bathroom is NOT built for gnomes and it's about twice the size of my current bathroom.
Let's see, there also a creepy basement, complete with creepy shower. Looks like a nice place to scrub up, right? Also, ancient phone wiring still in place.
Oh, right, you probably want to know what I like about the house. Well, it's got some lovely space, including a huge kitchen with a breezeway porch that connects to the garage and houses the laundry. Whew! Would not want to do laundry in that creeptastic basement.
Oh darn. I was also going to show you the 30+ year-old air conditioner, but that must be on the inspector's camera. At any rate, it works. It's huge and ancient and it fired right up and started cooling the house. Unexpected to say the least.
Comments
Our house's 40+ yo a/c worked dandy except during that "+" period. Now, we have a new one but new systems are only built to last about 10 years. Bastards!
Enjoy the new digs and good luck!
It looks wonderful.
Is the basement like super creepy? Do you feel like someone is watching you down there?? I love basements.....they scare the shit out of me.
I LOVE the kitchen.
I wish I'd known that when we bought this dump. It was a horridly abused rental.
Anyway, happy new house to you! Hope everything goes really well and the kitties are happy with their new digs (because we know that's all that really matters).
Has lots of nice features, too, in spite of the obvious. Make sure it wasn't a crack house.
Oh what a wonderful little doggy!!
The kitchen is awesome. *so jealous* and it's perfect kitchen color
At least the captor who previously lived there let his captives shower once in a while.
GOOD LUCK! and congrats!
The cats are gonna wear out their noses sniffing a whole new house.
Next time we have termites done, I'd love getting a doggeh inspector, but the kitties would hate it. The companies around here advertise about how "green" they are, but they'd get more business with a dog!
I'm very envious of all the greenery, it all looks so lush.
The house looks very cool. I love that screened in porch. I want one. Older houses have so much more charm than new ones.
The funniest part about the doggy inspector was that she has a particular way to signal for termites, but she also pawed at my leg a few times. The human inspector said, "You have cats, don't you? She loves cats." So apparently she's a cat-sniffing doggy, as well as a termite-sniffing doggy.
And yeah, the sink is total HOME REPAIR FAIL.
That termite inspector is teh awesome.
That dog is so cool.
my house is 80 years old. i didn't find out, till after i moved in, that it had been a rental for many years. it has tons of stuff wrong with it. doesn't matter - it still works for me.
wishing you the same!
Lol at the creepy basement and shower.
I will enjoy so much hearing all about your home renovation projects!
I'm sure the old phone wirings go direct to 1950, like a Twilight Zone.
Shower in the basement?
Ummmm.
Well, if there's a busy morning upstairs you can just nip down the dark, shadowy staircase, and get nekkid down there alone, and, ummmmm, shower.
I covet the kitchen.
And screen porch win.
And, as someone said LUSH.
Maybe it's just my poor browned-out California summer eyes, but that looks all tree-lined and luscious to me.
No wonder you like your neighborhood.
Oh, and two-car garage?
Cool.