Central MA - houses under a 100 sq ft? (Hudson, Berlin: apartments, rent)

[12buttons]

where can I get the most bang for my buck in a good area? Please no great school districts with high taxes...we are pre -retirees and child free.
No subs with granite countertops either. Looking for older established colonial or cape - nothing falling down or full of asbestos. Don't need to fall out of bed into a mall or highway. a few miles out is fine. In town locations are fine as long as the college kids don't upchuck on my front lawn friday nights.
A little blue in the collar of my next door neighbor would be preferable to a wannabe with four screaming school age kids next door taking out my petunias with their boogie board.

Thanks!

12buttons

[clevedark]

I love it. Good luck. You sound like my kind of neighbor....

[brightdoglover]

Did you mean to type 1000 sq.ft.?
A post-war ranch that hasn't been expanded would do you well.If you really want something quite small (as I did) look in areas with lakes- there are often still older "summer houses" that need work but are small and near or on lakes.
I bought such a house in 1992- 700 sq.ft. "Needs work" was an understatement. I ended up tearing it down (before it rotted away) and built a custom contemporary 1250 sq.ft. I would have built smaller, but the fixed costs (water line, foundation, etc.) made it imprudent to build smaller, so I have a 300+ sq.ft. loft with second bathroom just in case I have to sell. Couldn't build a little ranch (my preference) due to being hemmed in by septic setbacks, and the property line at the time. I did end up getting the quarter acre of woods next to me (unbuildable- for $4K!) after the house was designed. I could have built a little ranch with the extended property line.
I love small houses, although I don't think mine is all that small!

[NettaJane]

Try Hudson! It's a lovely town with many small homes. There are also some 55 and over communities. Somewhat blue collar and very senior-friendly.

Berlin is off the beaten path and is another nice town to consider.

[lrfox]

Originally Posted by brightdoglover

Did you mean to type 1000 sq.ft.?

I sure hope so. I assumed this was a typo as well. 100sq.ft. is VERY small. There is a market for sub- 400sq ft. homes in the US, it's a small market... more of a niche group really, but it exists.

[12buttons]

Originally Posted by lrfox

I sure hope so. I assumed this was a typo as well. 100sq.ft. is VERY small. There is a market for sub- 400sq ft. homes in the US, it's a small market... more of a niche group really, but it exists.

I meant I did NOT want to spend more than a 100 dollars a square foot..but I need about 3000 sq ft....thanks

[12buttons]

Originally Posted by brightdoglover

Did you mean to type 1000 sq.ft.?
A post-war ranch that hasn't been expanded would do you well.If you really want something quite small (as I did) look in areas with lakes- there are often still older "summer houses" that need work but are small and near or on lakes.
I bought such a house in 1992- 700 sq.ft. "Needs work" was an understatement. I ended up tearing it down (before it rotted away) and built a custom contemporary 1250 sq.ft. I would have built smaller, but the fixed costs (water line, foundation, etc.) made it imprudent to build smaller, so I have a 300+ sq.ft. loft with second bathroom just in case I have to sell. Couldn't build a little ranch (my preference) due to being hemmed in by septic setbacks, and the property line at the time. I did end up getting the quarter acre of woods next to me (unbuildable- for $4K!) after the house was designed. I could have built a little ranch with the extended property line.
I love small houses, although I don't think mine is all that small!

your house sounds wonderful - so many folks are downsizing - congrats and enjoy!

[brightdoglover]

Thank you. It's an understatement to say it's a dream come true. I honestly never thought I'd have a "dream cabin" as I thought of it without moving to a rural area further north, likely as a retired person, and then I'd be getting older in a rural area- not a great idea.
I sit in my house and look out at the trees and moon, at the artwork on the high angled walls (no squares in this house!) and watch my rescue dogs snore, and still can't believe I live in such a place.
I would have fixed up the original house if there was anything to fix. Once the state required a new septic system for any repair permit, that was it. The furnace was dead, thw outlet pipes frozen, roof mushy, bathroom tearing off the main area... I really didn't expect to have to build a house, never mind be able to.
A few things I learned: angles cost more than squares; artists should not design your house; the salvage guy will take things that are obviously being strored outside; the bulldozer will wreck any fence no matter what; you should go to the site daily or close to it, learn how people take their coffee and bring it every day; asphalt pavers who claim to be "good Irish family men who are working in the area, just this week" are lying about all of it. (the latter- I asked for a breakdown of their low-ball estimate and they never came back).
Oh, and do not cry in front of the contractor. It embarrasses him. I only did it once.

I don't consider my house a downsize. I lived in studio apartments until I was 42, so a one-bedroom house (the former cottage) actually felt huge- it had upstairs! If it had been repairable at all, I would have done it. My current house, if I chose to or had to sell it, would likely go as "condo alternative" to a single adult or maybe two adults. It has a 1/4 acre of woods between the house and the road (the lot I bought after) and a 1/4 acre of fenced lawn for dogs. Other people's unbuildable areas and ditches/wetlands/woods surround it, so I don't have a feeling of being too close to people- can't see them in the summer- but I don't feel isolated. It's just the right mix of woods behind me and people within emergency earshot.
As of yesterday's ice storm, I also have a tree's crown on my fence and yard, no power until maybe Monday (very rare) and a possibly clogged drainage pipe, as the hill appears to be eroding on down. (I feel for the guy who lives below me- constant sump pump).
I feel silly loving a habitaton so much, until I remember how much trouble it was to get it, and how much trouble I had in apartments/tiny condo with psychotic people upstairs, rapacious landlords, the unbelievable fascism of the rent control board, and of course, no dogs.
I'm dug in for the duration. Just hope to find a way to spend summers somewhere not humid, likely in retirement or something.
(Posting from my night job- no power at home!)

[12buttons]

somewhere not humid? IS it humid in the summer in your area?
How about the Berkshires?