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Save the money and sell it during the winter, when people aren't thinking about air conditioning. Really, it works!
That's actually probably a good idea (even if borderline unethical).
The current house I'm living in doesn't have a/c, and we're having record highs this year (in the 90s). I had to go out and buy a window unit. You can get away without a/c up here, but I wouldn't do it again, and you can bet my new house will have central a/c (even if it will be used sparingly).
I live in NJ and we actually seeked out houses WITHOUT central air. Growing up in NYC where most places do not have central air I was used to using window units, when we first moved to NJ we had central air, I was SOO excited--until I got the first bill. After that no thanks! Why do I want to cool the entire house or an enitre zone if I am only going to be in one room? If you turn it off then it takes muuuuch longer to cool the house than a window unit does to cool the one room you need to use. Also we were never quite as cool as we liked since getting the whole house down to 65 degrees would cost a fortune on central air but with a window unit only a few minutes at a fraction of the cost!
No thanks on central air, I like to sleep in frigid room with a nice blanket all summer and not break the bank keeping the kitchen cool at 3 am.
Don't know if your house currently has gas hot water heat or gas hot air heat, if you have hot water radiators then I would check the cost of a split ductless a/c system. It's much more efficient than ducted a/c - allows to "zone " cool and the cool air is not lost in the ductwork.
If you currently have ductwork then it probably would be cheaper to get conventional a/c
Nope i would not buy a house without ac and I have live in different parts of the country all my life and still have suffered during the summer .I have suffered with heat rash and other things in homes I have rented without ac and would certainly never buy one without it .
There are plenty of window units in the deep south - especially in old large homes where it would cost a fortune to install central air.
That's what I assumed. Are they on for 24/7 during the summer, or is possible to turn them off few a few hours without the house over heating? I know it depends on the house and the efficiency of the unit.
I sold a house without A/C and it took a while to sell and not in this kind of market either. It was one of the major complaints. The house was located in the Detroit area. For me to install A/C meant installing a newer forced air furnace which I could not afford. I offered to leave all the window units I had and eventually the house did sell. But I did not get an offer until the fall. We had a very humid summer and although the house was cool with the window units it pretty much told buyers from the get go I had no A/C. The units were loud and hogged up the windows.
I do have a wall unit, but it is not in the window. The unit itself is very old (1970s brown panel look), so I will probably get some quotes on central air, but I at least will get a new unit.
It has been a humid summer, but I'm either working during the day, or out with the kids.
I would buy a house without A/C and actually did - in the Colorado area. I grew up without and to me its a minor inconvenience 1 month out of the year. I am more interested in the type of windows and heating system and the insulation.
my house is ready for the installation of a unit though so when I go to sell in the distant future i can either install then or give an assurance it is ready for installation. The electrical and piping is already done.
Not here in the south where you need a/c 8 or 9 months of the year. Where you live, window units may be acceptable. We have had them here in the south, in fact, but I wouldn't choose to do that again.
Nope. I have lived in IN and while the A/C did not get used for months on end it did get used.
I don't know how anyone lives with window units. They are too noisy for me. I use all of the rooms in my house and hate being uncomfortable while the room cools down.
All other things being equal I would choose not to buy a house without central air.
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