I finally found a house. So, EXCITED!
The process took awhile to get everything finished. Because of a dispute on what I wanted the buyer to take care of before I moved in and what they actually wanted to handle. Of course, it was a house being sold because a parent(s) had passed away and it was being sold because the children didn't want it. So, the house had eight sellers.
My biggest tip for first-time home-buyers, check out what your state has for you. My contributing final closing cost was $15 because I took advantage of the first-time home-buyers program and as long as I stay in the house for 10 years, I don't have to worry about paying back the closing cost.
Second tip, get the inspection. If not for the factor of having knowing what you want the buyer to take care, but so you know what needs to be looked at for replacements. When you buy a used car, you like to take it to your mechanic, maybe kick the tires. Well, a house is a bigger investment and needs to be checked under the hood just as thoroughly. The house I got, I was able to find out that the siding is okay, but will need to be replaced soon. So, when winter came, I knew that my heating may be a little higher. The inspection will notice things you may forget to keep an eye out for when you look at the house. For me, they suggested places to put insulation that may help with cold spots in the winter. (Which is part of the tip, be there when they give the inspection to help notice things and listen to tips they give. If they say they don't want you there, don't hire them to inspect your house.)
Third tip, be aware of the city laws. One gets so worked up in looking for a house and school districts and neighborhoods, that you forget to find out about local animal laws, garbage rules, and costs of utilities (or what utilities are used). Cities are now getting more controlling about how many Fido's and Fluffy's you are allowed in your home. You may see your neighbor break the law, but you have to decide if you want to be the same way or not.
Enjoy the thrill of the hunt, but remember there is defeat in hunting. In the words of Dory from Finding Nemo "Just keep swimming."
Tuesday, May 5, 2015
Saturday, February 1, 2014
Tips for Sellers
One of the houses I viewed, the first floor looked nice, but there was a lot of stuff on the walls. Go upstairs and there was more stuff. Closets filled, climbing over stuff to get to closets, rocking chair in the bathtub, etc. Go down to the basement and the stuff was multiplied. I couldn't help but ask the question "Are they going to be able to move out in time?"
My realtor assured me that if we set a closing date they would have to honor it. This wasn't the first place I saw that had no signs of people packing. I'm not asking for the cleanest house in the world or things shoved in the closet (because we look in the close) I would prefer to see things boxed up and signs that you are motivated to move out.
The other thing I would appreciate (especially since it cost me getting the house I really wanted) is winterize. I don't know how much it costs, but it will cost you a sale. If you have house that is empty that you are trying to sell winterizing is necessary in order to sell your house.
One big tip that could help you with a sale. Check your listing once it is posted. Realtor's are human and can place things wrong. The description can have errors in it, which looks unprofessional. Most importantly and this has come close to affecting me looking at a house, they may say a house has one bathroom when it has 1.5. People will look at Bed and Bath first then at the description and that .5 can make a difference.
My realtor assured me that if we set a closing date they would have to honor it. This wasn't the first place I saw that had no signs of people packing. I'm not asking for the cleanest house in the world or things shoved in the closet (because we look in the close) I would prefer to see things boxed up and signs that you are motivated to move out.
The other thing I would appreciate (especially since it cost me getting the house I really wanted) is winterize. I don't know how much it costs, but it will cost you a sale. If you have house that is empty that you are trying to sell winterizing is necessary in order to sell your house.
One big tip that could help you with a sale. Check your listing once it is posted. Realtor's are human and can place things wrong. The description can have errors in it, which looks unprofessional. Most importantly and this has come close to affecting me looking at a house, they may say a house has one bathroom when it has 1.5. People will look at Bed and Bath first then at the description and that .5 can make a difference.
905 S 6th Ave Virginia, MN
This is a very nice house and has lots of space to work with. The pictures that are posted with it are very helpful on showing the size of the first and second floor. The basement is the size of the floor and usable for storage, laundry and it has a newer furnace. Even though it lists only one bathroom, there is a .75 bath in the basement and it is the only location with a shower. The bathroom on the second floor only has a bathtub. There was a possiblity of putting in a stand alone shower if you wanted to eliminate the closet in the bedroom next door. There is no bathroom on the first floor.
The biggest concern I had was this home is stucco on the outside and there were some major cracks in the stucco and would have to look at repairing those. However, I felt no major drafts in the house and the tempature they set the thermostat at was the tempature in the house (I know because they had thermometers all over the house.) THe other concern I had was although they had the electricity recently checked, they had the shower stall within a foot of the electrical box and that just seems a little dangerous to me.
Location is another factor. It is on a busy corner and there is not much land included with it because most of the space is taken up by the house and the two stall garage.
The biggest concern I had was this home is stucco on the outside and there were some major cracks in the stucco and would have to look at repairing those. However, I felt no major drafts in the house and the tempature they set the thermostat at was the tempature in the house (I know because they had thermometers all over the house.) THe other concern I had was although they had the electricity recently checked, they had the shower stall within a foot of the electrical box and that just seems a little dangerous to me.
Location is another factor. It is on a busy corner and there is not much land included with it because most of the space is taken up by the house and the two stall garage.
Friday, December 20, 2013
When to Look
I've gotten the suggestions that the best time to buy is in the fall so people don't have to winterize for Minnesota. I have been told that people put there houses on the market in the spring when there kids are done with school and they have the summer to move and not worry about changing schools in the middle of the year.
The problem is when is the best time to look at a house. It may be rough and sloppy, but I think the best time to look at a house is when the weather is bad. We had a week of below zero temps and if that hadn't happened, I wouldn't have found out that the pipes were frozen. It also gave me a chance to figure out the difference in temps from one room to another. You go after a rain storm and you find out about leakage problems in the house or puddling problems in the land.
This may save you money on an inspector.
The problem is when is the best time to look at a house. It may be rough and sloppy, but I think the best time to look at a house is when the weather is bad. We had a week of below zero temps and if that hadn't happened, I wouldn't have found out that the pipes were frozen. It also gave me a chance to figure out the difference in temps from one room to another. You go after a rain storm and you find out about leakage problems in the house or puddling problems in the land.
This may save you money on an inspector.
124 S 3rd St, Virginia, MN
This house made me want to cry. I fell in love with this house. It's 120 years old and has great character. Two sets of steps leading upstairs. Large basement with Sauna and 2.75 bathrooms. Set of stairs leading to the attic. New insulation, furnace, and several new windows.
The part that made me want to cry is no one has been in the home since June of 2012 and no one winterized. Two years in a row the pipes have froze. I predict that when it thaws this year the pipes will break, the boiler furnace will be wrecked, and great damage will be done. A great house that has withstand decades ruined because someone didn't take care of it for two years.
The part that made me want to cry is no one has been in the home since June of 2012 and no one winterized. Two years in a row the pipes have froze. I predict that when it thaws this year the pipes will break, the boiler furnace will be wrecked, and great damage will be done. A great house that has withstand decades ruined because someone didn't take care of it for two years.
1130 Lincoln Ave, Eveleth, MN
Eveleth is a town of awkward streets and I say this because it took me awhile to figure out what was road and what was driveway. It has some businesses but not much.
This is an old 7 bedroom home that has a single bathroom. I was expecting a home that would have rooms chopped so a large family could make do with what they had, but it actually started out as seven bedrooms. Actually the one on the main level could be questionable. It has no closet and no heating source and it's kind of just there. It claims a .25 bathroom in the "walk-out basement", all it is is a shower that I wouldn't want to use. The basement is a dirt floor and it looks like the walls don't go all the way to the floor anymore.
The house is cool, but it needs some fixing. It has had some water damage from possibly the roof at some point and the walls were in the process of being repaired but are incomplete. Although there is only a shower stall in the bathroom, there is plenty of room to place a sepearate soaking tub, which would have been my plan if I had the money to renovate the rest of the house. It looks like whoever owned the house first was going to renovate it, but never finished it. The kitchen looks amazing and the house has great potential for any size family, but it is definitely a fixer.
This is an old 7 bedroom home that has a single bathroom. I was expecting a home that would have rooms chopped so a large family could make do with what they had, but it actually started out as seven bedrooms. Actually the one on the main level could be questionable. It has no closet and no heating source and it's kind of just there. It claims a .25 bathroom in the "walk-out basement", all it is is a shower that I wouldn't want to use. The basement is a dirt floor and it looks like the walls don't go all the way to the floor anymore.
The house is cool, but it needs some fixing. It has had some water damage from possibly the roof at some point and the walls were in the process of being repaired but are incomplete. Although there is only a shower stall in the bathroom, there is plenty of room to place a sepearate soaking tub, which would have been my plan if I had the money to renovate the rest of the house. It looks like whoever owned the house first was going to renovate it, but never finished it. The kitchen looks amazing and the house has great potential for any size family, but it is definitely a fixer.
Thursday, December 19, 2013
608 N 2nd St Tower, MN
Tower is a little busier town then Soudan with a few more things to offer like a grocery store, thrift store, and gas stations. It offers central location of being only thirty minutes to Virginia, Ely, Cook, Aurora, and Biwabik. You have the small town atmosphere of everybody knowing everybody. I lived in my trailer for seven years on Main Street, so it wasn't hard to notice it was gone, but still people were concerned and asked me what was going on. Even ones I didn't know the name of.
This house has not been lived in since, I believe July 2012. I got close enough on the purchase that I was going to have an inspection with contingency of utilities turned on. The water was turned on, so don't know what happened once they were turned on to take care of them for winter because never got to the point that the furnace was turned on. The electricity inspected fine because the power company required it to be inspected before they would turn on electricity. The seller would only put in 50 gallons of fuel and the delivery company had a 100 gallons minimum and it was causing delays. Mostly the seller was "dragging his feet" because I was asking a lower price and wanted utilities turned on. I signed agreements beginning of September and cancelled the papers middle of November without the seller ever getting a fuel delivery to the house. Passed the seven day deadline from signing papers to get inspection because of waiting for the delivery.
The seller is more of wanting to sell it "as is". He doesn't live in the state and all the appliances are there (some aren't in the correct location, like the fridge is in the garage) and he doesn't know if they work). So, he won't remove anything and I swear it looked like things appeared in the garage from the first and second time I looked at it.
The garage is cool because it is actually a carriage house with the swing out doors. The basement is half cemented and half dirt. It is cemented enough to house the furnace, fuel oil tank and for you to walk to them minus abou two feet from steps to the cement that you have to walk over a wooden board. The two bedrooms are good sized, but no closet in one (there is an armoire in there) and the other has a half closet with shelves under it. Huge laundry area because it used to be the kitchen and the kitchen is an addition, just don't know how old it is. Nice size pantry with a built in apothecary style drawer system.
Recommendations: Make sure you get the utilities turned on. I know the electricity was inspected, but know how anything worked in the house. Saw some sockets painted over, but don't know if they were properly capped off. This place has some charm and space for a starter home, but make sure you get it inspected and that you aren't in a hurry to move.
This house has not been lived in since, I believe July 2012. I got close enough on the purchase that I was going to have an inspection with contingency of utilities turned on. The water was turned on, so don't know what happened once they were turned on to take care of them for winter because never got to the point that the furnace was turned on. The electricity inspected fine because the power company required it to be inspected before they would turn on electricity. The seller would only put in 50 gallons of fuel and the delivery company had a 100 gallons minimum and it was causing delays. Mostly the seller was "dragging his feet" because I was asking a lower price and wanted utilities turned on. I signed agreements beginning of September and cancelled the papers middle of November without the seller ever getting a fuel delivery to the house. Passed the seven day deadline from signing papers to get inspection because of waiting for the delivery.
The seller is more of wanting to sell it "as is". He doesn't live in the state and all the appliances are there (some aren't in the correct location, like the fridge is in the garage) and he doesn't know if they work). So, he won't remove anything and I swear it looked like things appeared in the garage from the first and second time I looked at it.
The garage is cool because it is actually a carriage house with the swing out doors. The basement is half cemented and half dirt. It is cemented enough to house the furnace, fuel oil tank and for you to walk to them minus abou two feet from steps to the cement that you have to walk over a wooden board. The two bedrooms are good sized, but no closet in one (there is an armoire in there) and the other has a half closet with shelves under it. Huge laundry area because it used to be the kitchen and the kitchen is an addition, just don't know how old it is. Nice size pantry with a built in apothecary style drawer system.
Recommendations: Make sure you get the utilities turned on. I know the electricity was inspected, but know how anything worked in the house. Saw some sockets painted over, but don't know if they were properly capped off. This place has some charm and space for a starter home, but make sure you get it inspected and that you aren't in a hurry to move.
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