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Old 12-11-2014, 06:26 AM
 
Location: Somewhere in USA
658 posts, read 721,647 times
Reputation: 571

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Zarick View Post
welp.. was down getting ready to paint and found that one of my basement walls curves out. Did not notice this, nor did the inspector. It is one of those half height walls and when I say curves I mean the corners are 1.5" deeper than the middle of the wall. It looks like whoever built this house in the 60s was high when pouring the foundation walls. What did I pay the inspector for?
It happens, that's why sometimes you HAVE to do your due diligence by doing another walk through by yourself. Lets hope it's nothing major (like foundation cracks and stuff).
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Old 12-11-2014, 06:41 AM
 
3,490 posts, read 6,084,500 times
Reputation: 5421
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jukesgrrl View Post
Well, the junk collectors may not SEEM to have done anything to you, but wait until you put that house of yours up for sale. The vast majority of your potential buyers will NOT want to look at stuff like that. They won't know your neighbors and they will view living next door to such a mess as a detriment. Many will choose never to tour your house after they've done a drive-by to evaluate curb appeal. Others will give you a low-ball offer because they think the house lacks value due to its surroundings.

Your property is being DEVALUED by a neighbor with "tons of crap in front of his house." You will not get nearly the price you might have for your house if his home remains looking like Fred Sanford lives there.

You might see HOAs as busybodies telling you how to live ... but others see them as guardians of home value. That's why they are so popular. Even municipalities with good zoning regulations are not as successful as HOAs at getting homeowners to show some reasonable respect for the community in which they live. "No man is an island," as the poet said. The appearance of our homes reflects on our neighbors and can cause them to gain or to lose money at sale time.
Fact: HOAs are popular because developers are expected to create an entity which will ensure common maintenance is performed after the properties are sold to buyers.

Fact: Many home buyers would rather not have a HOA but it frequently requires a majority vote by two thirds of the home owners to disband the HOA that the developer was required to create.

Fact: There are several companies that exist for the purpose of collecting money from HOAs that have poor financial stewardship.

Fact: Those companies continue to press for laws that encourage the creation of HOAs.

Fact: Some HOAs go inactive rather than disband because it is so difficult to get the two thirds majority vote to disband. The people that would like it to disband, by definition, don't want it to exist and many ignore it.

You're welcome.
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Old 12-11-2014, 08:07 AM
 
Location: Over yonder a piece
4,268 posts, read 6,276,294 times
Reputation: 7139
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zarick View Post
Actually second home, but that is okay.
I feel like I overblew the HOA. Really... how often do people even hear from their HOA. Would I have ever? I am not so sure.
I think what really bothers me is my wife really really liked that first home and the area was really peaceful and the only reason we could buy that home is it needed a lot of work.
This home is also more than we could normally afford because it needs fixing up.
Traffic noise is really not inside. You can BARELY hear it during rush hour if the house is dead silent. With the windows open you can hear it just fine.
I guess at this age I expect to be in my forever home. Being 40 now I was hoping to be done moving.
I won't say whether your decision was right or wrong.

We've gotten TWO letters from our HOA in the 8 years we've lived in the neighborhood. One because we let our yard grow too long the weeds were at least 8 inches high) - our lawn mower was being repaired and the grass/weeds went CRAZY with growth after a bout of rain. Once we got our mower back, we mowed and were fine.

The other was for a dent in our garage door that was only visible from the street because the crack in the door had rusted a bit. Rather than replace the door (which would couldn't afford since I was unemployed at the time), we got some sealer to seal the crack, then painted the door. We didn't remove the dent - just sealed and painted the door. No more letters - from the street the dent was no longer visible because the rust was covered.

Other than those two notices, we've had good experience with our HOA.

As for being in a forever home by the age of 40, don't be locked into an idea like that. Will you need a house that large once your kids are grown? It's doubtful. Our current house (3000 sq ft) is good for our family right now, but in 8 years when we are empty nesters it will be unncessarily too big and we plan to sell at that time and downsize into a smaller house (2200-2300 sq ft).

Stop thinking about the other house you didn't buy - it's not worth stressing over anymore. Go into your new house and think about how you can make it better. I've said before in other threads that it took us 8 years to get the house even close to "perfect" (and it's not perfect yet). We lived with a cramped, dark, small kitchen for six years before we blew out the back wall and did a complete kitchen remodel. We had horribly stained carpeting in our TV room for 8 years before we finally laid down hardwoods in there last month. You don't have to get it all done at one time. Make a list of projects you want to do, in order of urgency, and slowly begin working through the list. You'll find it changes over time - things get removed and added all the time.
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Old 12-11-2014, 08:47 AM
 
Location: Somewhere in America
15,479 posts, read 15,564,516 times
Reputation: 28462
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zarick View Post
Actually second home, but that is okay.
I feel like I overblew the HOA. Really... how often do people even hear from their HOA. Would I have ever? I am not so sure.
I think what really bothers me is my wife really really liked that first home and the area was really peaceful and the only reason we could buy that home is it needed a lot of work.
This home is also more than we could normally afford because it needs fixing up.
Traffic noise is really not inside. You can BARELY hear it during rush hour if the house is dead silent. With the windows open you can hear it just fine.
I guess at this age I expect to be in my forever home. Being 40 now I was hoping to be done moving.
Depends on the HOA, but that one sounds particularly fussy. And YES they do send letters! They will fine you! They can be a thorn in one's side.

Sounds like you didn't have a super high budget for where you live. That's the brakes. Learn to adjust. Go paint the freaking house and make it your family home. Quite your belly aching! You haven't even moved in nor given it a chance yet. This could be temporary. You can always sell and move later.

Sounds like you need to buy your own lot and build what you want. That's not cheap! It's faster than a year and a half usually. Just make sure there's no HOA if you have any feelings at all that you don't want one because I guarantee that you'll end up with the HOA from HOA just because you don't want one. Even if you build your dream house, there will be issues. It's a house! Nothing is perfect. And it sounds like you're waaaaaaaay too picky since it took you a year and a half to buy a house. That is a ridiculously long period of time!
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Old 12-11-2014, 09:24 AM
 
129 posts, read 188,677 times
Reputation: 121
Quote:
Originally Posted by Suncc49 View Post
Is this drywall you are talking about? Easy fix. Common in older homes. 1.5 inches? CMON man.....

You are going off the rails here and perhaps need a mental adjustment.
No it is in the concrete wall. It looks like the concrete walls all seems to be a bit warped if you will. Like whoever poured them couldn't tell a straight line.
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Old 12-11-2014, 09:38 AM
 
Location: Philaburbia
41,879 posts, read 74,938,731 times
Reputation: 66809
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zarick View Post
No it is in the concrete wall. It looks like the concrete walls all seems to be a bit warped if you will. Like whoever poured them couldn't tell a straight line.
This should not stop you from painting them ...
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Old 12-11-2014, 09:41 AM
 
Location: Omaha, Nebraska
10,348 posts, read 7,936,317 times
Reputation: 27742
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zarick View Post
What can I do to get past this?
Recognize that ALL houses are compromises. The perfect house does not exist. Recognize also that you can sell the damned thing (or rent it out after moving to another place) if you really don't like it. You own the house, the house does not own you. (Believe me, I empathize, because I have many of the same feelings about my own house. The difference is that when I bought my place I loved it. it took living in the house a while for the disillusionment to set it. The problem's mostly me, not the house.)
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Old 12-11-2014, 10:09 AM
 
772 posts, read 910,750 times
Reputation: 1500
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zarick View Post
We looked for a house for over a year and a half. About midway through this process we found a house in a really nice wooded neighborhood. However, my realtor kinda rushed us into putting in an offer (didn't use that realtor afterwards) and it made me a little mad. Our offer got accepted and then I got the HOA documents. Well I am not one who wants to live where people tell me what color I can paint my house, or what types of bushes and trees can be in my front yard and having to get approval for a playset for my kids in my backyard. The house needed a lot of work and the yard while big really lacked usable space because it was almost completely treed and fairly sloped (you can't remove trees without HOA permission).
My wife really liked the house. We went back for a second look and the pet odor was stiffling. The carpet was brand new which is a bad sign. House didn't feel as good, and so I talked my wife into letting it go. Which she agreed to do. Our realtor said we wouldn't find anything better at this price point. He was right.

So a year later we finally bought a house which is a design I don't like (split - entry), needs work and has traffic noise pretty bad in the back yard. So why would I do such a dumb thing. It really boiled down to my wife was tired of looking and she liked this house enough because it has space and over an acre of usable land. My kids lives were disrupted by constant house hunting. Our tiny home was so outgrown there was barely space to walk and toys were everywhere. However, now I hate my new home so much I don't even want to go paint the walls before we move in. I can't even open the windows cause I don't want to hear the traffic noise, and I feel ill every time I go.

All I can do right now is regret the one I screwed up. But it is too late and I am stuck. I have nothing but anger and regret at myself right now and I am ruining my families new home (they are all excited to move).

What can I do to get past this?

road noise ? plant 20ft evergreen trees. build privacy fence yourself to save money

layout ? knock down walls , move walls around, everything except load bearing walls, call a structual engineer to find out .. make the layout awsome !
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Old 12-11-2014, 10:27 AM
 
1,638 posts, read 3,824,021 times
Reputation: 3502
Zarick, I really hope you are listening to the words people are telling you here.

You are a perfectionist at heart. At the end of the day you will probably never be 100% satisfied anywhere.

I am a perfectionist, too. Well, was. Having 4 children cured me of that. But I think it helps to put things into perspective. You are experiencing a high level on anxiety because you are afraid you made the wrong choice. ALL BUYERS HAVE COLD FEET. I have purchased 4 homes, and there wasn't one closing when I wasn't thinking to myself....did I make the right choice? What about XYZ? The house isn't perfect. What if? What if?

This is a manifestation of your muddled brain and OCD/perfectionistic tendencies. These things, to some extent, are not based in "reality." It's just your anxiety chewing away at you, your brain driving you mad over things you cannot control.

Take my advice and find ways to quiet your mind by making some changes. No, the work will never be done. You will never look at your house and think, "This is it! It's done!" There will always be projects to work on, and the "unfinished" aspect of it will probably always drive you crazy. But you can learn to live with the discomfort, and find ways to adjust the things you can control.

Be happy for your wife and kids, who seem thrilled. Maybe seeing their joy will help you find yours.
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Old 12-11-2014, 10:36 AM
 
Location: Somewhere in America
15,479 posts, read 15,564,516 times
Reputation: 28462
Quote:
Originally Posted by shaylahc View Post
ALL BUYERS HAVE COLD FEET. I have purchased 4 homes, and there wasn't one closing when I wasn't thinking to myself....did I make the right choice? What about XYZ? The house isn't perfect. What if? What if?
No ALL buyers do not have cold feet! I've purchase 3 houses and never had cold feet. I never asked the questions you listed above. I was thinking about moving and decorating.
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