Homes Scheduled for Showing
I’ve found 4 properties that I’m interested in, and dad shares my interest.
House #1 (my favorite)
Located in PA
2 Bedrooms, 1 bath, 880 square foot (about the same as we have now) BUT it’s two floors (which ours isn’t)
2.8 acres
Log cabin
Has a house warranty
Taxes: $276 (a year, I think, which is $1500 less than if we bought the property we live on now)
Total: $140k
House #2
Located in MD (Frederick County)
2 bedroom 1 1/2 bath
2.9 acres
Old cottage from 1890, (no pictures provided) with a stream on the property. Sold “as is” which makes me curious, but has ground rent, and I think I have to pay for water and sewage. It also states that the “correct” acerage is verified by the buyer (wtf?)
Total: $49k (another wtf, but still going to look into it)
House #3 (least favorite)
Located in MD (Frederick County)
2 bedrooms 1 bath
.5 acres
Also sold as is, but is a beautiful stone farmhouse, new carpet, but it looks like it sits on the road.
Total: $125k
House #4
Located in MD (Frederick County)
4 bedrooms, 1 1/2 bath
1.5 acres
May need a new septic installed (I asked what this meant and she said that they don’t know where the sewer “goes”. Dad says he and his friend can install a new one). Oak cabinets, several outbuildings for storage, rolling stream on the side. The woman was convinced it should be dozed, so I’m sure it has tons of problems with it. Again, my father and I have been living in a far worse-off house for years, so this would be no shock.
Total: $149.5k (I wonder if they will lower this because of the septic situation)
I have appointments for all but the $49k this weekend. If I can get a call back about that one, I’ll be able to see all 4 this weekend and see if we like any of them.
We’ll have a storage trailer here by the weekend, start packing stuff up (including all the wood we’ve split), put all the farm equipment across the street at the neighbors, start digging up flowers to pot, and we’ll be out of here by the end of the month.
I’m going to wait to call the estate lawyer on Monday to let them know we are no longer interested in buying this property. I want to see what sort of feeling I get from these homes this weekend. I already have the broker I like (and actually calls me back) getting me pre-approved for $150k (I was already approved by someone else for $190k) so we can move forward with this as soon as we’ve made a decision.
All of these properties are in a much better price range, and one I think we can afford with much ease. The $140k property is the one I am most interested in, and I estimate the total mortgage (with taxes) to be close to $1000 ($600 cheaper than this place). It may even be less, I don’t really know as it could also be a little more. The down payment will still be an issue, but my friends are really pulling together to help with that, and at least now I’ll be able to pay them back.
If anyone has any tips on what to ask for when looking at a home, let me know.
Entry viewed times. Posted in house buying
