Has anyone bought a fixer upper?updated....still waiting!!!! :( - but with pics

Original post by yabbobay

Jan 29, 2004 04:57 PM

It really is my dream...b/c I don't want other people's ideas in my house...

but we found a fixer fixer upper...no inspection yet (we are debating a bid), but I just wanted to know the work involved...

I am prepared...DH is prepared...but are we going over our head?

what should we look at in the inspection report and say NO WAY?? foundation? roof? mold?

it is A GREAT neighborhood...so any money we put in...will come back to us as appreciation...

opinions please??!!!!

ss2002 Posted: Jan 30, 2004 09:03 AM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?

Funny, Anna...our dream fixer-upper was in East Northport also. We pass it often, and recently noticed a dumpster out front and major work going on all over the house. So I guess it is possible to do!

Forgot to mention that we would have had to purchase the REO as-is. The bank would not let us turn on a faucet or flush a toilet. Too much of a cr*p shot for me!

From what I've learned, the things that you should look out for-things that can mean major repairs/renovations are:

structural damage (usually from water)

faulty wiring

unsafe heating system

leaking roof (easy to replace shingles or flashing, whole roof replace is a bigger job)

plumbing problems (simple leaks/fixture replacements are easily repairable, replacing the entire system is a big job)

inadequate ventilation (may be as easy as replacing drywall, may be more extensive)

environmental hazards (leaking oil tank, lead paint, radon, etc.)

HTH! Good luck!!

Teri Posted: Jan 30, 2004 09:15 AM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?

Posted by anna

If the money was MUCH LESS than the average home out there, and you have a handy hubby or just ideas ready, and can spend extra $ to get things done, I say go for it!

I will never forget seeing a MAJOR FIXER UPPER when we were looking (4yrs ago!) and they were asking 500K !!!! It was a big house, lots of land (East Northport!) but needed SOOOOO MUCH HELP !!!!!!!! I couldnt fathom for that price.

So thats what my point is. IT really depends on what theyre asking compared to what it would sell for in 'move in' condition.
But Im sure you'll make a smart decision Erica

This has really been my experience - the fixer uppers we've seen in the towns we like need I'd estimate around $40K+ worth of work if not more, and they're only $20K less than the average nice house....so it doesn't always work out.

But if your house is a steal, in a nice neighborhood, then it may be worth it

yabbobay Posted: Jan 30, 2004 09:55 AM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?

thank you for all the 'go for it' statements...

we are pretty excited...and our RE agent thinks they are just sellign the land....so I am nervous that a contractor will come in and outbid us....

but they are opening bids on Monday....and we would still need to get an inspection...in case it is completely over our heads...

Sonicstef Posted: Jan 30, 2004 10:05 AM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?

Can you replace a foundation without rebuilding the whole house?

What about buying the place and building a new house in its place. If the location is fabulous and it considerably cheaper...that may be cheaper than repouring foundation, replacing plumbing, electrical and all the renovations that you might want. It would have to be all at once but then you can have a nice new house in a beautiful location.

yabbobay Posted: Jan 30, 2004 11:54 AM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?

you can replace the foundation...while living in the house...so that is a plus...

we thought about rebuilding...but where would we live? so unless we can figure that out...I'm not sure it will happen...

I did think about rebuilding the garage first and living in there...but I think that could be completely crazy...

but to us (and who are we) it looks like it is just the back of the house that is having problems...so I was thinking that we could live in the front and redo the back...although John is sure that it is not that simple

I'm also nervous about tearing it down...b/c it will be historic in 20 years...and thats 50% off taxes

Cira Posted: Jan 30, 2004 12:02 PM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?

We bought a house that needed a ton of work, which Rob and my father did most of it. Luckily for us, the cost of our renovations was minimal b/c of this. I think that if you love this house and you have a steady structure to work with - then do what you think is best. Let's just say that we've increased the value of our house by 25% in a year (if I subtract out our expenses) by buying the house when we did and fixing it up.

And to be honest, the next house I buy may have to be a fixer upper since the neighborhood I want is very expensive and we wouldn't probably be able to afford it otherwise.

Sonicstef Posted: Jan 30, 2004 12:32 PM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?

If it becomes historic, do you need to consult your cities committe before making changes? Its not automatic in NY at 100 so its rare, but if you own a historic home in NY, you need permission to do everything which would drive me nuts.

yabbobay Posted: Jan 30, 2004 01:31 PM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?

I think it would drive me nuts...and it still has 20 years for the possibility

but the neighborhood is 'waiting' for it...so I thought it could be a selling point later...

my aunt redid a historical house in CT...and it was a mess...but I think they tore down everything bu thte structure...and then put the moldings and doors back...but she is very proud of her plaque outside the door!! lol

shelzyp Posted: Jan 30, 2004 03:08 PM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?

Good luck Erica, I am sure you and John can handle it.

yabbobay Posted: Jan 30, 2004 05:53 PM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?

well...we put a bid on it...but won't hear anything until 2/7

we only offered asking price...and we know that some contractor has already offered more...so the only thing that would help us...is that we are not going to tear it down...

we went to look at it again...and there are just tons of people coming to look at it but we'll see!!!

anna Posted: Jan 30, 2004 07:31 PM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?

Good luck Erica!

Looks like others have found out about your little diamond in the rough!

Got my fingers crossed for ya!

bride082003 Posted: Jan 31, 2004 11:08 PM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?

I wouldnt call ours a 'fixer upper' because its only 10 yrs old, however we did buy the ugliest house on the block, or ' the diamond in the rough'. We knew we would want to make it our own anyways, so we figured we'll find a house that needs to be spruced up and get a deal on it. It'll be a lot of work since we pretty much have to paint and redo floors, etc in EVERY room in the house, but little by little it will be OURS

GOOD LUCK

kelly4 Posted: Feb 01, 2004 09:26 AM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?

this is our fixer upper! This is a pic of what it looked like when we bought it and what it looks like a year later. Still need landscaping done (this summer!) and a few touches inside. We did every room over! It was all worth it too! It is in a great neighborhood so it was worth it. It's not going to be historic like ~~fingers crossed~~ yours. Good luck!

alright... I think I'm the world's worst picture added. I'll try to resize them and do it over!

yabbobay Posted: Feb 10, 2004 03:46 PM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?

just an update...the asking price went up 20K...but we had already put our bid in...we are hoping they counter us...and we may go up 10K...not sure if we could do $20K and still do all the repairs...

I have pictures...but I am scared that it will jinx us...

the bids were supposed to be presented...but we just heard they are still accepting..

my BIL who does some contracting...looked at the pictures and said the repairs aren't as bad as we were thinking...so maybe we could go up...

I want to offer a higher bid...but our RE agent is telling us that we shouldn't shoot ourselves in the foot in case they would accept our low bid...

by the way...it is a divorce and the wife wants someone who will fix the place up...not tear it down like a contractor will...

I'll post the front of the house...and the palm trees in the front (which DH and I laugh that we should sell to make some money to repair...tall palm trees are expensive)

if we are accepted I'll post all the pictures...and you can see what a mess it is...

Suzanne Posted: Feb 10, 2004 04:14 PM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?updated....still waiting!!!! :(

Erica,
I totally know what your going through.. When we waited and waited I wanted to call and up our bid, but my father kept saying stay where you are.. and ultimatly it worked out... Do you think there are alot of other offers? Its so hard to make the decision, because if they accept another offer the only way back in is if they dont get a mortgage..

Good luck.. does she live there? Maybe you can do a 'chance' meeting

yabbobay Posted: Feb 10, 2004 04:18 PM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?updated....still waiting!!!! :(

no one lives there...but all their crap is still there...

i am pretty sure the only other people bidding against us are contractors...who we can't compete against with money...but in our letter the RE agent wrote with our bid...she said we are a young couple who want to fix up the house to its original splendor...blah blah blah...

Suzanne Posted: Feb 10, 2004 04:21 PM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?updated....still waiting!!!! :(

well thats certainly a plus... I guess I would say stick with the advise of the realtor.. does it work the same way in CA that it does in NY does the RE work for the seller?

I will keep my fingers crossed for you!!

yabbobay Posted: Feb 10, 2004 04:26 PM

Re: Has anyone bought a fixer upper?updated....still waiting!!!! :(

not sure about all these agents...but we have a contract with her that she works for us...BUT her fee comes out of the 6% the seller pays...so a higher price is more money for her

there are tons of buyers rights...so she is awesome in that regard - protecting us...but her big thing is that she wants to treat everyone right so that we will sell with her...and refer people to her...