Buying A House: C or D?

This mid-century pad is of great interest to me. I just wish the part of town it's in wasn't as run-down as it is (though it did get a "historic" designation recently).

http://www.trulia.com/property/3120701151-590-Collier-Ridge-Dr-NW-Atlanta-GA-30318

http://thumbs.trulia-cdn.com/pictures/thumbs_4/ps.60/9/6/6/d/picture-uh=b789d875fd48a4b7a49b7725703c283f-ps=966d4f6e4fdb52763347d59573ffdb6b.jpg

xp - no, just a 1951 house in a development that was built mostly at that time. Someone else bought it, fixed it up some, staged it (it was empty when I saw it) and flipped it. Made about $120,000 in the transaction, but I doubt the flipper made much profit given how nightmarish condition both the exterior and interior were in and what the renovations must have cost. Here's how it looked when it was put up for sale again one and a half years later:

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/6900-Oakridge-Rd-University-Park-MD-20782/37542637_zpid/#photos

Collier Ridge Dr. house looks sweet (I need to move to someplace a home like that sells for only $110K - it would fetch a half million in my parts). That's the same front entry door I'm planning to install on my place soon.

Well, tbf, in other Atlanta neighborhoods, that house would sell for 350k.

I'm with Chris, as an Angeleno, these prices are completely shocking!

Yeah, I know, right? The 2 bedroom houses on our street in Highland Park were like almost half a million dollars. Now THAT'S shocking to me. I just assumed I would be renting there for life, and I was okay with that, but now we're out here, I figure it really isn't actually worth it to keep renting.

They're even more now! Good luck with your hunt - sounds like it'll be way more fun than one out here!

Contemporary ranch style in Leverett. Way out there, pretty spendy, but interesting:

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/26-Teawaddle-Hill-Rd-Leverett-MA-01054/56981466_zpid/

But what to do there? What goes on there?

Not much there but trees, but it's about a 10-15 minute drive from Amherst and a 30 minute drive from Greenfield. But yeah, it's out in the woods.

We looked at 8 houses today in about 4 hours! Crazy. I kind of want to post a pic I took of one particularly insane place if I can figure out where to host it...

imgur is good for that

Check it out. For those everyday church organ/giant bathtub moments. This is about a quarter of the entire property, the house was like three separate builds superglued together, again out in the woods, right on the shore of a lake.

http://i.imgur.com/VpdzlJE.jpg

It was like Liberace's suite in the Overlook Hotel.

Ummmmmmm WAHT?

Also featured a suspended walkway, a huge garage (with two boats parked in it?) and many many many vaulted ceilings with skylights. Interesting but...probably not for us. Cheap for what it is, though. Great project for somebody.

Instead of finishing our mostly-unfinished basement, spouse and I have decided that one day (when money begins falling from the sky) we will put a sauna and steam shower in our basement, kinda spa-like. Some people are like OMG WHAT ABOUT RESALE PUT A RENTABLE APT DOWN THERE and we are all like "not moving, not sharing."

This pic makes me think our plans are COMPLETELY reasonable.

It was funny to see how people live, the amusing hobbies they have, etc. One house had a room just for the owner's side business in cherub-shaped cake toppers. Smelt a lot like frosting.

Another smelt like weed. I guess those people's hobby was weed.

If only we could combine those hobbies.

cherub-shaped weed

cherub-shaped sauna with weed

gonna kickstart this

Adam, I think you missed my Roxy reference. Should have used something from So Solid.

Yes, I'm sorry!

Oh I see it now.

Instead of finishing our mostly-unfinished basement, spouse and I have decided that one day (when money begins falling from the sky) we will put a sauna and steam shower in our basement, kinda spa-like. Some people are like OMG WHAT ABOUT RESALE PUT A RENTABLE APT DOWN THERE and we are all like "not moving, not sharing."

This pic makes me think our plans are COMPLETELY reasonable.

― mom tossed in kimchee (quincie), Friday, March 28, 2014 7:21 PM Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Why would it necessarily be the case that a rentable apartment improves resale? I would think that the majority of home buyers would want a usable basement over a separate rentable apartment that would be useless if they weren't planning to be landlords.

I've looked at duplexes (the Texas version of a rentable unit in the basement - live in one half, rent the other) and I'm not sure how anyone deals with tenants living next door (or downstairs) all the time. Being a door knock away from anyone with a complaint sounds like potential torture.

xpost to Hurting:

I live in a "desirable" DC neighborhood, and if we did a super-nice basement apartment, the monthly rent would cover our mortgage with ease.

Basement apartments are a thing here (and in NYC as well?).

Nevertheless, it remains a mostly unfinished space where the cats shit.

But when money falls from the sky: SPA

Oh but good point in that best resale would be "finish it with an in-law suite and a playroom for the kids and or/gym space for DC yuppies and/or MAN CAVE" and none of that is ever gonna happen under our ownership.

Is this an appropriate space to talk about man caves? Because I have some opinions.

Preach!

I saw a family house with an awesome man cave the other day - stacks of records, drumkit, nice big desk, nice sofa and big TV. All for one man.

Man cave dwellers: you don't like your spouse, you don't like your kids, you watch too much TV. You like TV better than your family.

Like, you can't even be bothered to watch TV with your spouse and kids.

Also, you like puffy black leather sofas, which are ugly.

Also your wife does not like you very much because she let you have a man cave in the hopes that it will mean she sees less of you.

Anyone here ever built on their property? We were wondering about building a two car garage structure with a small studio above it in our yard. Also then a place to stay if we are ever doing serious work on the house itself.

> I saw a family house with an awesome man cave the other day - stacks of records, drumkit, nice big desk, nice sofa and big TV. All for one man.

― Kornblud (admrl), Tuesday, April 1, 2014 7:48 AM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Someone I know built an addition with all that and more (swapping some pro keyboards for drums): 60" TV, kitchen, full bathroom, acoustically insulated from rest of house, separate landline phone number, its own heating & air conditioning, direct access to/from garage without having to walk through rest of house. Several times I've been with his wife who thought he was out of town when he was actually home.

Building on your property often a good idea if legal boundries don't get in the way - know the extents of your plot of land, and how far back from the borders you're required to build on it.

Yes, that's kind of what we are thinking. I edit film and video and am trying to build a studio space, but this would also be guest house for family and visitors, etc. Would tear down a garage and build on the same spot.

xp I just don't generally like the idea of doing things based on "resale" value when you first move in to place (except that you don't want to do anything completely crazy that would kill resale). I mean, you don't really know how long you're going to stay or what the market is going to be like when you leave -- maybe there's high demand for basement rentals now and maybe there won't be in ten years. If you want the apartment now, for your own benefit, to defray the mortgage, that's different.

Nah man I just want a steam shower and a sauna! And a place for the cat boxes. This is really all I desire in a basement. Well, laundry machines, too.

Something I never thought I would want but now kinda want: a mud room. Or just somewhere at the back door where one can actually sit down to take off shoes and hang up a coat.

Yeah we were just talking about how we want to put some kind of shoe-off bench in our foyer, it's a thing I never really thought about before kids.

It's a thing I never really thought about before I had trouble standing on one foot while taking the shoe off the other foot.

It somehow is a thing, and I've been considering paying too much for this solution:
http://www.westelm.com/products/mrk-universal-expert-shoe-bench-h595/

http://rk.weimgs.com/weimgs/rk/images/wcm/products/201405/0180/img5o.jpg

Adam, I was thinking about enclosing a carport, but the city requires that if you take away covered parking for two cars, then you must construct new covered parking for two cars.

Your city may be less car centric.

I would kill for a goddamn mud room. And a front porch. Our house is awesome minus those 2 things basically.

Several times I've been with his wife who thought he was out of town when he was actually home.

!

Adam, I was thinking about enclosing a carport, but the city requires that if you take away covered parking for two cars, then you must construct new covered parking for two cars.

― Spencer Chow

Could you enclose the carport in such a way as to convince the city that the space was still going to be used to store cars? (such as a big "garage door" that is ony used to bring in furniture / open the space to the outdoors)

Should probably start a Man Cave picture thread, but it would make me too angry.

xp yea i feel like a front porch is something that i'll be wanting the most when we look for a house in the next couple years

a backyard too

adam's new studio

http://www.womansday.com/cm/womansday/images/5G/01-The-Greatest-Show-on-Earth-1.jpg