We met with the Realtor (same one as in June) at her office at 11:00 AM to make a house hunting plan. We had sent her list of ten we wanted to see on Sunday, but she was out of town until today, but we didn’t stand still while we waited. We drove around looking at the outsides and neighborhoods of the ten we were interested in. We eliminated one and added 2 more. The realtor added one of the ones we looked at before that just came off the market. Around half were vacant so they were easy to get into, but others had to be scheduled. So we agreed to meet again at 2:00 PM at the first house and by then they should have the rest lined up.
House #1 – There was a pretty descent view of Klamath Lake and the insides were freshly painted. They were also freshly carpeted which was a big no no for Donna’s dust allergies. And it was really a shame they didn’t spend some of that money of re-staining or painting the outside because the place really needed it.
House #2 – This one won the House Hunter challenge in June. At right now is the leading contender again. There is a nice front deck with a view over a park. the garage is not attached, but there is a covered walkway to the kitchen. The reason the last deal fell through had to do with the house inspection, so if we can figure out what spooked the previous bidder, maybe we can deal with it the issue or pay for fixing it if we purchase the place.
House #3 – This was one of our late additions. This sucker checks all the right blocks, no carpet at all, 2-car garage, central air. Donna claims there is no view, she is sort of right, but the big stumbling block is price, it is at least $30k over what we want to spend.
House #4 – This one serious potential, it was in a really nice area and the price was right in our sweet spot at $199K. But it quickly went downhill to elimination once we visited it. All the bedrooms were carpeted (not unusual around here), the kitchen was a mess in that the stove was antiquated and custom built into the counter top and the street turned to be very busy.
House #5 – This one was a late scratch as the owner couldn’t get away from a meeting to corral her dogs so we could see the insides. it is one they scheduled for tomorrow.
House #6 – This is on a very busy street, but Donna wanted to see it because she really liked the kitchen along the rest of the insides and the backyard looked pretty good. I knew it was going to be a non-started based on the fact that there was no garage and there was no place to add one. The handicap ramp on the front was gone, but that turned out to be the only positive. The front part of the house was not on a foundation so it had a distinct list to it. But kudos to the photographer as they made the place look 40 times better than it was.
House #7 – This was Brian’s favorite place. The style! The garage! The landscaping. The view. It also had an excellent kitchen. But ultimately it will not be our new home. It sits on a high hill which would necessitate 4-wheel drive in winter and it, like House #3, is a bit too high in price for us.
House #8 – This was near the top of our must see list. It is within walking distance to the YMCA where Donna can swim and get her Yoga fix. It checks every box except for the carpet in the bedrooms. One of things mentioned in the ad for the house was that a new roof would be added before any sale. Well today was the day they were doing it. We couldn’t get in because the big forklift truck was parked in the driveway lifting shingles up to the roof. Our visit was tabled until tomorrow.
House #9 – This was 3 doors down from the other Merryman place, so we had parked halfway between the two. It really wasn’t a bad house, but we both came away with an icky feeling. This one gets crossed off the list.
House #10 – This house was runner-up in June, but we had to cross it off the list because it was under lease until May of 2020.
House #11 – It is low on the list for it’s strange location, but we wanted to look at it anyway because the kitchen is recently re-modeled and looks great in photos. It is having an open house this coming Sunday, so we said we would go then just to trim the house visits today.
House #12 – This is listed as Dawn Court, but it is actually on Dawn Drive. We were intrigued just on the fact that the house was brick and there are very few in this town, plus we are coming from a brick home. Turns out this is a short sale and the pictures on the web are carefully selected to not show how bad a shape this house is in. It is listed for $190,00 probably because that is what they owe the bank and the house would be worth that if you could get it for $140 thousand and spend $50 more on renovating it.
House #13 – This was our second late edition home and it turned out that 13 is an unlucky number because although there were several keys in the lock box none of them fit the front door lock. There was one for the deadbolt, but there was no way we were getting in this one. A second attempt is scheduled for tomorrow.
So after two & half hours and 9 homes walked through, we left the realtor behind and headed to Baskin-Robbins for some re-fortification and talk-talk, because, man, House Hunting is a lot harder work than they make it seem on HGTV.
If your devoted fan base has any say, #7 all the way!! That house is gorgeous, the view and the house…both WOW!! So, you spring for a 4-WD and do a little price negotiation. It is, after all, your forever home!!
Donna was not a fan of that look, too modern and sterile for her tastes. None of our furniture would really fit in the place. Our rattan dining room stuff, the first furniture we as a couple bought, 43-years ago, wouldn’t even look good on an outside deck. Then there is the neighbor downhill from us. The deck of our fancy nice house is on the side and it looks down into the very cluttered and uncared for backyard of that house. There is a piece of broken glass window laying there right next to a big wheel and other children’s toys. Not to mention the several glass pipes with well used bowls (we can only hope that they are for cannabis not some stronger.)