Buyers - What is the strangest thing you ever saw while home shopping? (housing, condo)

[Fairfax Mom]

We went into the finished basement and in the middle of the room on a raised platform was a toilet - we called it the throne house.

[the painter]

Originally Posted by Fairfax Mom

We went into the finished basement and in the middle of the room on a raised platform was a toilet - we called it the throne house.

Can I ask where this was-I remember reading a listing that said something about this. Something about made for a king or you'll feel like a king?

[Keeem]

A toilet is a tiny closet on the second floor of a house. You had to leave the door open to use it. The sink was in the middle of an adjacent bedroom.

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by Keeem

A toilet is a tiny closet on the second floor of a house. You had to leave the door open to use it. The sink was in the middle of an adjacent bedroom.

I have seen a few of these handyman specials. Typically an older guy or couple who can no longer make it up & down the stairs. Sorta sad. I mean "improvements" like this might make it somewhat more feasible to remain in their own home a bit longer, but really once some one's mobility is that compromised they ought to at least move to a ranch style house if not a condo or even senior housing.

[Out of Alaska]

The "case" for an axe on the adult son's bed in the basement -and shuffling in the closet.

I promise this happened when I was a teenager. My Dad grabbed me by the arm and took me outside the house before I knew what was going on. Apparently the son had mental problems and was upset his parents were selling the house, etc.

[Briolat21]

House priced at the TOP of the local market. Builder still selling in community (at lower prices, due to market conditions). House has been "UPDATED"... by that meaning they are in the middle of finishing the basement themselves. Everything is ALMOST finished - but nothing is done. Walls are built right NEXT TO the steel support studs - so that instead of boxing the studs into the wall they are in the room. A "playhouse" for the kids has been permanently framed and DRyWALLED into the basement - so they built walls 2ft apart from one another with cut outs at the bottom (for kids to crawl into) and cut outs at the top (for kids to look out of)..

It was a nightmare. They needed a $75K reduction just to undo the nightmarish work they had begun!

[scuba steve]

Most recently: one with an exercise room added on, bumped straight back from the living room. It had a window a/c unit and black rubber floor, and the original window was still framed in and had blinds. Nothing subtle about it.

A second house had another horrible expansion added on to the back. It was done a while back and maybe an inch down from the main bedroom... pretty much made it into two master bedrooms but the quality was terrible. Whoever built it didn't try to disguise the fact that it was an addition, and the new room had one wall of the original white exterior brick, painted red. This also turned the bedroom downstairs into a completely windowless living space.

Another house I looked at a while back had renters living in it. They had several birds, ferrets, a cat, and a rabbit. All in the living room and one bedroom of a 1,600 sqft house.

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by scuba steve

Most recently: one with an exercise room added on, bumped straight back from the living room. It had a window a/c unit and black rubber floor, and the original window was still framed in and had blinds. Nothing subtle about it.

A second house had another horrible expansion added on to the back. It was done a while back and maybe an inch down from the main bedroom... pretty much made it into two master bedrooms but the quality was terrible. Whoever built it didn't try to disguise the fact that it was an addition, and the new room had one wall of the original white exterior brick, painted red. This also turned the bedroom downstairs into a completely windowless living space.

Another house I looked at a while back had renters living in it. They had several birds, ferrets, a cat, and a rabbit. All in the living room and one bedroom of a 1,600 sqft house.

I love a nice "coral reef" style fish tank, but the aquarium that looks (and smells !) like it is home to the "Creature from the Black Lagoon" always is a scary sight. Especially when it looks big enough to hold Shamu...

[brookdaleresident]

I just saw a house that had the garage converted into a den. Problem is they didn't remove the garage door, and the floor was concrete. Somehow I didn't get that warm and cozy feeling.

[scuba steve]

Originally Posted by chet everett

I love a nice "coral reef" style fish tank, but the aquarium that looks (and smells !) like it is home to the "Creature from the Black Lagoon" always is a scary sight. Especially when it looks big enough to hold Shamu...

I was getting ready to say something about there not being any fish there, but remembered there was a beta in the kitchen in a bowl. Problem with that place was the smell from all the critters and the dirt. Place wasn't priced according to the undoing that'd be needed after the renters left.

I remembered about another place I looked at this year that was comparably priced for the neighborhood (~14 years) and was empty, but once I went in the structural problems were apparent right away. Inside there was severe cracking from corners of every window and a vertical crack or two running up in the living room. No need to look any further. While walking back out I noticed the brick showed signs of the problem as well. I have no idea if that place is still standing, or was knocked down later.