Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
First priority for me is location, then the general size/layout/design of the house. After that, I figure I can redo what I need to, so I do not care about its updated status.
I am a house flippers worst nightmare. I hate granite and stainless steel, I'd prefer 50s appliances (but working!) in the kitchen and bathroom, I like tile on the counter, I like wallpaper but I'd like to choose my own, and I don't like carpet.
Honestly, if I walked into a house that needed to be updated, I'd probably love it.
Location is primary, privacy, size, and working condition. If it works, it's OK. I can change it later if I have to.
I watch a lot of the real estate shows on TV, and some buyers are hung up on getting something specific--like a white kitchen--and it blinds them to whatever else the house has to offer.
I'd pay more for a house that wasn't updated. I don't want all the trendy styles, they're just gonna go out in a few years. If I could find an old Craftsman style 1940's house, that'd be sweet.
However, they are very few and far between in my area. There weren't that many houses here then. We also don't have the heating systems and other mechanical house systems so there's no HVAC to worry about. A 1940 house in Hawaii would be just as suitable for the weather now as it was then except by now there should be really big trees around it. That's another big plus in my book.
I'd not mind a 1950's house. That's the one we have now. The chrome trim around the ferociously yellow countertops is a hoot!
The house before this was a 1972 house but it was done all in clear unfinished woods and not the whole avocado green/ harvest yellow, orange and chocolate of the late '70s. It is an Asian style house and we didn't update it at all.
Now we're building a new house but it's not going to have granite and stainless steel and those trendy open shelves instead of kitchen cabinets. Ick! I dunno what the decoration style is gonna be yet, I'm still drawing up the structural parts. But it won't be trendy, that doesn't last.
If it is priced as if it is outdated, and leaves room for whatever work is needed, good enough as long as there are not extreme structural deficiencies.
Even at that, I am much more attuned to location, location, location, site orientation, how the light enters the house, scale of the rooms and flow of the plan, and how the house embraces the setting.
I prefer having a few details in a house that are dated. Gives a house character. Plus some things now deemed dated look better to me than the latest style. Cherry cabinets will always be a favorite for me, for example, whether dated or not. However, I do insist that the dated things be in good working condition, and not worn out or grimy.
Ironically, when we originally made the offer on our house they had the "dated" beige walls. The sellers wanted to see if they could get a better offer and painted the walls grey. A few months later they asked if we still wanted the house. We did, but unfortunately, I hate grey paint. So they repainted those rooms needlessly. One of the first things I'll be doing is repainting them yet again--back to beige.
I bought a 1922 Craftsman Bungalow from the original owner... there was a lot of defferred maintainence and she had been a widow for many years.
The home was all 1922.
My friends kept asking when the Demolition party was happening.
I was on a shoestring budget and instead went room by room cleaning and restoring... window sash cords, glazing, paint, refinished the matchstick hardwood... left in place the push button light switches, high leg stove, 1922 plumbing, etc.
Anyway, when it came time to sell I set a new high price record... the couple that bought loved the home in every way... it was like stepping back in time.
Thing is I could have spent a lot gutting and replacing... but I really spent very little... even left in place the yellow with blue counter tiles...
I have nothing against remodels and have done quite a few... it does make me laugh when people say they are improving the property when everything they buy comes from China and is the cheapest of the cheap but has the look...
If it is priced as if it is outdated, and leaves room for whatever work is needed, good enough as long as there are not extreme structural deficiencies.
Even at that, I am much more attuned to location, location, location, site orientation, how the light enters the house, scale of the rooms and flow of the plan, and how the house embraces the setting.
I don't agree that price fixes all deficiencies. If someone wants an updated house, and say they have a budget of 250K with 50K of that for a downpayment and are approved for a 200K mortgage, finding something that is not updated for 200K might mean a lower mortgage but still isn't going to give them the cash on hand to do the upgrades even assuming they felt they had the willingness to take on a big reno (even hiring it out is still a lot of time and effort by a homeowner). On 200K, their downpayment only goes down by 10K, which does not go very far when it comes to renovations and they aren't living in the updated house they wanted. (Assuming that 250K was a realistic amount in their market to get what they wanted)
I don't want an old home because too many surprises. Don't want to pay for major updating either. No pink bathrooms please. Old homes usually have chopped up floor plans and outdated plumbing and electrical.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
