Need info on Wichita - Kansas (KS) - Page 2 - City-Data Forum

TedH71 · 12-05-2008, 09:42 PM

Be careful if you're buying an old house to renovate and sell or live in. My wife and I were interested in one and she did research on the house. It was for sale at $30k and had 6 bedrooms, etc. Turns out the whole house was built with abestos everywhere! Back then, everyone built houses with it...the house was over 90 years old. Sadly we had to walk away from it.

drjones96 · 12-06-2008, 10:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TedH71

Be careful if you're buying an old house to renovate and sell or live in. My wife and I were interested in one and she did research on the house. It was for sale at $30k and had 6 bedrooms, etc. Turns out the whole house was built with abestos everywhere! Back then, everyone built houses with it...the house was over 90 years old. Sadly we had to walk away from it.

Indeed. This was my exact fear when I had thought about buying an old house here. There are many positives but the cost to renovate could turn the whole deal into a regular money pit.

TedH71 · 12-06-2008, 10:23 AM

I'm looking for a house that has a huge wraparound porch for a renovation project but we kind of want to move in afterwards because we have kids. We also prefer it to have somewhat large backyard. The main problem with the old houses is they tended to come with a very small backyard. Some actually used to have carriage houses..there was a house for sale that also had a carriage house converted to workshop/apts. Really cool. I also have found out that the Flint Hills area used to have lots of old limestone houses. I contacted someone who somehow decided to learn how to renovate limestone houses and sell 'em. Problem is he does not want any competition which is understandable. I just want a house to renovate then live in it for good. I think limestone houses are a better investment because you don't have to worry about termites, lol. Plus I'm sure they stand up better to tornadoes. My biggest concern is to find a job if I ever get a house in the Flint Hills considering I am graduating in May 2009 with cnc machining certificate.....I have 6 months of carpentry courses then my college decided to boot the carpentry program out and a few other majors as well due to declining enrollment (I don't think that's the real reason though...the carpentry teacher was the longest serving teacher on campus and he was making more money than the college president!) so I had to go back to square one. Would love to be a small construction company. I have a friend who graduated with a 2 yr degree in carpentry/masonry. No one will hire him (he used to live in Salina) due to his deafness. I'm deaf myself but don't let it limit me. We both have talked about starting up a small construction company maybe specializing in some areas (vinyl siding is one, dry wall is another...) then working from there. Not sure if market in Wichita is up to another small construction company.

upandrunning · 12-07-2008, 03:54 PM

I think that home sales are going to hit a wall in Wichita. As I type home sales slow, more and more factories are laying off in the Wichita area. The recession is creeping up on Wichita. As the economy slips so will sales of the small planes and as people do not fly as much so will orders for the large planes. As the war slows and we pull out of other countries, and the Obama administration does not give a blank check to the Military, so will orders for new military aircraft. The whole country is going to have to shift a gear. I do not think that in 5 years it will be the same old USA. Not if we are going to survive, we can not conduct business as usual.

salsashark · 12-20-2008, 05:15 AM

College hill homes are nice but you pay a premium to live there. If you're interested in older homes you might take a look at Riverside. Homes are cheaper there but there are some areas that aren't as nice.

Andover is a nice town but there's not a lot of older homes there, most are in the subdivisions.

$1300 a year for a home in College Hill is low. My home is valued at 83K and my taxes are $1,065 a year. I guess it all depends on what the city feels the home is worth.

KevK · 12-20-2008, 08:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by salsashark

College hill homes are nice but you pay a premium to live there. If you're interested in older homes you might take a look at Riverside. Homes are cheaper there but there are some areas that aren't as nice.

Andover is a nice town but there's not a lot of older homes there, most are in the subdivisions.
$1300 a year for a home in College Hill is low. My home is valued at 83K and my taxes are $1,065 a year. I guess it all depends on what the city feels the home is worth.

Yep. When an F5 smashes into a town one would not expect to find too many "older houses" there.

TedH71 · 12-21-2008, 01:34 PM

Hate to say this but honestly Kansas does not get that many tornadoes. Greensburg was a fluke. Oklahoma is the state with the most tornadoes.

janelle144 · 12-23-2008, 01:51 AM

Old houses are white elephants. Leaky basements plus if you go back far enough---turn of the century they have postage stamp closets. No one had many clothes during that time. Some houses have been renovated and have nice kitchens, baths, etc. so the work has been done already. Not sure about asbestos but that would be a pain to deal with.

I live in a house built about six years ago. I like the newer houses. Be sure you get a real estate person who knows their business. They can tell you what to look for in a house as far as any damage---hidden or showing. Be careful of specials and taxes as well.

The West part of Wichita is booming but be careful of flooding out there. Don't buy near the creeks. East Wichita is on higher ground.

jbdallas · 12-26-2008, 03:11 PM

If you do plan to, or actually move there, just tell the real estate agent you want to look at homes that don't have specials. If you don't understand what specials are, an agent can easily explain them. There are plenty in Wichita that don't have specials. Some friends of ours lived off 119th (far west side of Wichita) and they had a nice little place w/ no specials. Can't say I have any idea on what they paid in taxes, but they couldn't have paid more than 130k for the house.
However, if you want something w/ an open floor plan you need to look at something newer more than likely. When we left in August, there were quite a few for sale in the area of 37th and Tyler (SE corner). That is right next to a school and not far from target, Wal-Mart and the YMCA, and I assume the new lowes. There is also a set of duplexes that are 3 yrs old on that corner as well, rent was about $1000/month for a 3/2/2 w/ finished basement.

KevK · 12-28-2008, 05:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TedH71

Hate to say this but honestly Kansas does not get that many tornadoes. Greensburg was a fluke. Oklahoma is the state with the most tornadoes.

Oklahoma gets more but Kansas is not far behind. A tornado there is not a "fluke". It is a common thing. It is just that most of them occur out in the country where not many people live.