On the fence about my house...I might let it go

DH and I had an offer accepted on an adorable house in Island Park. Really good price...everyone was shocked at what was accepted compared to what the house is.


It's a great starter home, nice location, etc. Everything seemed good; we were just going to do some work to the kitchen. And, the rooms are small but we'll deal.

Then we got the engineers report back. It's an old house (we knew this) and although things are fine now, there is a lot of expensive stuff that is on its way out and in need of repair. For example, roof, boiler, a whole lot of expensive things!

We spoke to the owner last night and said that we want to negioate the price further. He seemed open to it but we didn't give a figure. I was hoping he'd give one first...don;t want to negioate aganst myself. So I'm supposed to call him.

Now, DH and I are having our doubts since the house will need at least $15K of internal work (not beautification) in the next few years. On one hand, we're not prepared for that but on the other hand, the price is right, the location is great and the house seems like a good investment.

I already started to look at other listings online and I'm meeting with a real estate agent to see a few places tomorrow. All of the places are bigger and still in my price range.

What do I do?

-- hold off on the island park house
-- let the island park house go
-- suck up what needs to be done and buy the house anyway

I'm so confused! Advice please!!!

Re: On the fence about my house...I might let it go

I would let it go. There are so many houses out there now that you don't have to settle. I just went through the same thing...

Re: On the fence about my house...I might let it go

prices are coming down and there a ton of homes on the market.

but if you really like the house, and the owner is willing to negotiate, i would try to negotiate with him first.

Re: On the fence about my house...I might let it go

what does your gut tell you?

if you love the location and the house, I say go for it. most homes on LI are not new and will need this kind of work at one point or another. so if you can negotiate this work into the price of the house, I think that is a good thing.

Re: On the fence about my house...I might let it go

I don't think you should settle, but if youlove the house, it is worth fighting for. Negotiate with the owner and see what happens.

Re: On the fence about my house...I might let it go

Keep in mind the engineers report is what might need to be done when. If the house isn't brand new it is probably going to need repairs down the road. Someone I know was told the garage door needed to be replaced immediately but it lasted 15 yrs.

Re: On the fence about my house...I might let it go

Is this a town/location you really want? We were faced with the same decision a few years ago when we bought our house. The engineers report listed so many things that "might" go wrong and their estimated cost. They included a new roof (already had 2 layers); a new cesspool system; a new hot water heater; upgrade electricty to 200 amp; new furnace; regrade yard to prevent flooding (we are at bottom of a hill), etc. We decided that this was a location/area we wanted and we took the house. Over the years, when we saved, we tackled each thing. There are still things we haven't gotten to and knock on wood they are holding up fine. My point is that not everything that is listed will need to be taken care of at once, unless of course that is how you want to have it. OVer time you can work ot make the house yours, so its really a decision you have to think about.

HTH

Re: On the fence about my house...I might let it go

Re: On the fence about my house...I might let it go

Message edited 9/13/2006 6:29:38 PM.

Re: On the fence about my house...I might let it go

$15K is relativelly cheap.

My boiler would cost $10K by itself to replace.

Just make sure the report is complete. Read the fine lines and get estimates on the repair. Don't take the Engineer's word for it on how much it is going to cost. Everything is expensive when it comes down to work on a house.

Then you can negociate when you have quotes by professionals. Afterward, if it's still a deal or what you are willing to pay for the house, then I would go for it.

Message edited 9/13/2006 7:30:55 PM.