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Mr. Powers posted:The others I've actually managed to eliminate before going to look and before posting about them. I thought you guys would enjoy my continual luck finding a perfect buy in the wrong place or with an indoor lower level swimming pool.  post on! At least drainage house can be fixed by application of far too much money.
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Jun 12, 2019 15:49
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Mr. Powers posted:In reality, of the houses I posted about, only the house with the bridge yard was I seriously considering. That one was a good house for the money and I think most people had a vision of a four lane highway bridge in the yard and being adjacent to a main cargo route. Not buying it was still the right call, though. There was only one other house that I got as far as looking at before ruling it out (of houses I was really interested in), and that was the one I mentioned earlier that clearly had drainage problems. It sounds to me like your budget is too low to get a GOOD house in an acceptable neighborhood, so you should consider if you would rather continue to rent or buy a lovely house or an OK house in a lovely neighborhood.
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Jun 12, 2019 17:11
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therobit posted:It sounds to me like your budget is too low to get a GOOD house in an acceptable neighborhood, so you should consider if you would rather continue to rent or buy a lovely house or an OK house in a lovely neighborhood. Based on past sales (on the order of 6 months), the budget is doable. The houses I don't post about that meet requirements and are uninteresting include things like bad flips, property lines cutting off part of the driveway, priced including features I don't want (pool, typically). Inventory is fairly low, so it's just waiting for the right combination. The two basement pool houses interested me because they were significantly under budget, the bridge yard house ticked the boxes and was a better house than I typically see in my budget, and transfer station house is in my budget and just priced too high for the location (it's already had one price drop). It's a waiting game for me at the moment. I could brute force my way into a house that meets requirements by upping my budget (which is based on what I want to spend, not what I can afford), or by reducing my requirements. I'm patient, and in the mean time I'll keep bringing you all deals that are too good to be true because they are patently false. My requirements have shifted through this process, too. When I started looking I was okay with a fixer upper, but that shifted after seeing some real stinkers to be a house that is liveable and usable and could benefit from improvements (but did not require improvements to be liveable). I was also okay with any garage configuration, with the plan to build a garage to suit me, but the finances for the garage are more complex, and I don't want the garage to be a required project. So, now I'm at two car garage objective, one car attached bare minimum (and it would need to be a really nice house otherwise). I looked at 5 open houses over the weekend that were in my budget and hit the top level requirements, but were uninspiring, fell short on wants, and not a good enough deal for what I feel I'd need to put into it to get the wants.
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Jun 12, 2019 21:16
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The curing process actually consumes water, so underwater concrete will cure more completely! (Concrete doesn’t dry, it cures, so it won’t unmix while underwater.)
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Jun 12, 2019 21:21
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concrete is denser than water so if you had a basement full of water and you filled it with concrete, surely the concrete will displace the water, and then be exposed and cure!
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Jun 12, 2019 21:45
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Man you guys are making it hard to keep my mind off the crawlspace/support beam repair and water/mold remediation work being done on my house today ($11k well spent, baby)
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Jun 12, 2019 21:50
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Mr. Powers posted:Based on past sales (on the order of 6 months), the budget is doable. The houses I don't post about that meet requirements and are uninteresting include things like bad flips, property lines cutting off part of the driveway, priced including features I don't want (pool, typically). Inventory is fairly low, so it's just waiting for the right combination.
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Jun 13, 2019 01:47
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That's pretty broadly applicable. "Flood", "Wastewater Treatment", "Murder", "Grover"...avoid them adjective houses!
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Jun 13, 2019 02:23
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Dik Hz posted:So I have this theory that if you refer to a house as "the $bad_thing house," you probably shouldn't buy that house. Yeah, I mean... I'm not.
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Jun 13, 2019 03:40
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Sex House was a cool and good internet show
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Jun 13, 2019 04:15
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QuarkJets posted:Sex House was a cool and good internet show Bad house tho.
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Jun 13, 2019 16:36
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Home inspection came back with water issues in corners of the foundation. Inspector speculated that these could be fixed by adjusting gutters and grade but my gut feeling is previous owners have been trying for years to solve these problems and it’s clearly not working. My spouse and I want to ask repair money in escrow for a more permanent solution: drain tile and a sump. I’m having a hell of a time getting anyone in the area to come out for an estimate or give one on the phone. Seems like all these waterproofing guys are quite busy right now. My buddy is telling me he had this done on his house for 4.5k a few years ago. Adjusting for our larger sq ft and inflation that would bring us to 7k or so. That sound at all reasonable? We live in Minnesota if that helps.
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Jun 13, 2019 18:35
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My painter forgot to ask for 25% up front and to warn me that he would want 25% at the halfway mark. Today is the halfway mark, tomorrow is Painter Pay-Day, and he called me in a panic because he's got 5 people to pay tomorrow and Not Enough in the business checking account -Dumb on his part I've never painted a house before, and my dumb idiot rear end thought they like... sent you a friggin bill afterward or something. I transferred money from savings to checking but that poo poo isn't available until MAYBE Friday, probably Saturday or Monday. -Dumb on my part We both seem to have fixed it though, as I found a kind soul to give me $5,000 in cash and he sent me a message saying "No worries I got payroll taken care of, pay whenever you can" Whew
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Jun 13, 2019 20:34
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Inspection down. For a 50+ year old house, it's in very good shape. Current owners seem really on top of things, really stoked. Only findings were a couple HVAC issues (a vent duct in the crawlspace needs repair, probably damaged during plumbing work since it was under the sink; small spot of potential mold in the attic above the range exhaust, which is pretty good given this is the PNW; chimney grout is starting to break up, could use some work). Waiting on radon and mold testing to be sure, and on monday we'll probably get about 4 or 5 honey-dos in that shouldn't total over $1k. Sellers even left hot coffee and cookies for us. Our realtor said he's never seen that before for an inspection, lol. Good times today. So I locked in my loan, but I just got thrown a curveball. I inherited some money (I was expecting some gifts from my parents later in the year, but not the amount I got RIGHT NOW). I suddenly can definitely put 20%+ down if I wanted to. I'm on a 0% down VA loan with a 30 yr fixed at 3.625% interest (3.838 APR I think). Cost 0.25% loan origination fee (about $950), and there's a VA loan funding fee (just under $8k) that's rolled into the loan. There's no pre-payment penalty, so I assume I could just dump a ton of money into the loan right away to drop the interest payments pretty significantly. Would it make more sense to call up the loan officer and eyeball other loan types, different durations? The moving parts here seem to be the origination fee (fairly static and small regardless), the VA funding fee (saving that $8k would be solid), the interest rate (3.625 is already pretty decent, not sure how much that'd get lowered if I paid more in), and the duration (not sure how much that would change things up). Since it's a VA loan, there's no PMI regardless, so it's not like that's a hurdle that 20% down would fix. As far as I can tell, I'm probably about as good sticking with this loan as trying to find a different type, especially since I've already paid the origination fee and the VA appraisal fee.
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Jun 13, 2019 21:10
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GoGoGadgetChris posted:
What kind of backwoods bank do you use that when transferring between your own accounts the money isn't available instantly????
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Jun 13, 2019 21:10
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mattfl posted:What kind of backwoods bank do you use that when transferring between your own accounts the money isn't available instantly???? The USA and two different banks.
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Jun 13, 2019 21:11
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Exactly. Discover online savings, and Wells Fargo/Chase for checking. I sent money to both to see which is faster.
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Jun 13, 2019 21:12
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Ahh, ok. I retract my statement then!
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Jun 13, 2019 21:17
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      1. Lol HDR and mega wide angle lenses 2. Goodbye wallpaper
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Jun 13, 2019 22:20
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GoGoGadgetChris posted:My painter forgot to ask for 25% up front and to warn me that he would want 25% at the halfway mark. For a small, under-a-week job most people would just expect 100% the same day they finish unless they specify anything else in a contract by the way. This is entirely his problem, not yours. I've yet to pay a deposit on work, though the house was generally unusable during the interim days. Your only concern unless spelled out otherwise is having the money free in your checking account in case they finish early. It's not wise to piss off contractors no matter how cash-poor they are, so you did the right thing, but he should also be understanding of the whole "yeah I transferred the money to pay you at the end of the job, it lands on Monday.  " I've definitely had contractors drive to my house in a slight panic to pickup a check on a Friday, probably to help cover their float.
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Jun 13, 2019 22:32
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My wife and I have discovered a new ability to pick out houses of smokers. The sweet sweet scent of cigarette smoke baked into the drywall has tanked our interest in 4 houses now. One of the sellers was good about not smoking inside, but the smell was overpowering when we opened the garage door.
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Jun 14, 2019 00:56
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Democratic Pirate posted:My wife and I have discovered a new ability to pick out houses of smokers. The sweet sweet scent of cigarette smoke baked into the drywall has tanked our interest in 4 houses now. One of the sellers was good about not smoking inside, but the smell was overpowering when we opened the garage door. If the house is priced appropriately ServPro can make that smell go away. My mom's house was caked in 40 years of chain smoking when they bought it. Once they tossed everything not nailed down they had servepro come in and do a full smoke remediation on it. Basically scrubbing everything clean, sealing it all in with several layers of Kilz, and some other magic. I'm very sensitive to that kind of thing and I couldn't tell it had been smoked in. As you can imagine this isn't cheap, but the cost of the house reflected the condition it was in.
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Jun 14, 2019 01:05
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H110Hawk posted:For a small, under-a-week job most people would just expect 100% the same day they finish unless they specify anything else in a contract by the way. This is entirely his problem, not yours. I've yet to pay a deposit on work, though the house was generally unusable during the interim days. Your only concern unless spelled out otherwise is having the money free in your checking account in case they finish early. It's not wise to piss off contractors no matter how cash-poor they are, so you did the right thing, but he should also be understanding of the whole "yeah I transferred the money to pay you at the end of the job, it lands on Monday. On one hand you're right, on the other hand, if you're working with a contractor and all of his employees or subs walk off the job because he missed payroll, and they will especially in this market where there is a serious construction and trade labor shortage, then it's now your problem
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Jun 14, 2019 01:07
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H110Hawk posted:If the house is priced appropriately ServPro can make that smell go away. My mom's house was caked in 40 years of chain smoking when they bought it. Once they tossed everything not nailed down they had servepro come in and do a full smoke remediation on it. Basically scrubbing everything clean, sealing it all in with several layers of Kilz, and some other magic. I'm very sensitive to that kind of thing and I couldn't tell it had been smoked in. As you can imagine this isn't cheap, but the cost of the house reflected the condition it was in. Yeah you basically have two options, tearing out all the flooring and drywall, which sometimes people will do anyways especially if it's a big-time renovation, or putting multiple coats of Kilz or polyurethane on every surface. Carpet has to go one way or the other obviously and it is the worst smoke and cat piss magnet of any surface in the house. Old carpet will smell like smoke for literally 10 years.
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Jun 14, 2019 01:12
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Democratic Pirate posted:My wife and I have discovered a new ability to pick out houses of smokers. The sweet sweet scent of cigarette smoke baked into the drywall has tanked our interest in 4 houses now. One of the sellers was good about not smoking inside, but the smell was overpowering when we opened the garage door. I toured an apartment while it was being gutted. 20 years occupied by a smoker and you could see where pictures had been on the walls.
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Jun 14, 2019 01:16
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Democratic Pirate posted:My wife and I have discovered a new ability to pick out houses of smokers. The sweet sweet scent of cigarette smoke baked into the drywall has tanked our interest in 4 houses now. One of the sellers was good about not smoking inside, but the smell was overpowering when we opened the garage door. We bought a small cape cod for my mother in law and she’s a smoker. She swears she doesn’t smoke inside but my clothes always smell like smoke after being over there. I try not to think about it.
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Jun 14, 2019 01:23
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I think DP is saying only the garage smells smoky. Not good, obviously, but usually a whole lot easier to handle. E: oops just the last house.
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Jun 14, 2019 01:27
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Just bought a house. Been looking for close to 8 years now and finally found one that was reasonably priced and had the things i wanted and not the things i didnt. Only things I didn't like about it are that the driveway is shared with the neighbor, and there's a huge rear end slab foundation shed taking up 75% of the backyard that i will want gone eventually. It's a seller's market here and I put in an offer $10k below list price because I wasn't really feeling it but then they accepted it anyway even though there were higher offers thanks to a high escrow and good credit. I'm just sitting here in a daze. Crazy to think I've sealed my fate and will be moving out of my apartment in 2 months assuming the inspector doesn't find a dead person in the crawl space. 
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Jun 14, 2019 02:53
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That house looks great. If I could somehow teleport that shed into my backyard I would instantly trade you for my lush green lawn. I would give it a year or so to see if you find some value in it because I bet you will. (Assuming the sale goes through) Looks like you also have rear road access to it so the shared driveway situation might not be a big deal. I don't think it would be a big deal anyway, to be honest, but that totally depends on how well you and the neighbor get along.
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Jun 14, 2019 02:59
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Polio Vax Scene posted:. Crazy to think I've sealed my fate and will be moving out of my apartment in 2 months assuming the inspector doesn't find a dead person in the crawl space. I don't see why that would make the *more* expensive.
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Jun 14, 2019 03:11
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My grandparents bought a condo where the prior owner suck started a shotgun. They got a killer deal on it.
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Jun 14, 2019 03:15
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Polio Vax Scene posted:Just bought a house. Looks like a nice compound to start a cult at.
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Jun 14, 2019 03:19
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Congrats on the house. That shed is indeed hugeass, looks like it almost matches the house square footage. It’s so big it’s got its own smaller shed.
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Jun 14, 2019 03:27
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The seller said the house we saw today had fumes from recent application of oil based paint, not smoke. That’s better than smoke and the house didn’t have any big project areas, but our realtor is showing they’re about $30k overpriced.
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Jun 14, 2019 04:11
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Democratic Pirate posted:The seller said the house we saw today had fumes from recent application of oil based paint, not smoke. That’s better than smoke and the house didn’t have any big project areas, but our realtor is showing they’re about $30k overpriced. Do you believe the seller or do you believe your nose that smells smoke?
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Jun 14, 2019 13:35
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The oil based paint was probably put up to cover the smoke.
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Jun 14, 2019 14:27
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My bank and the seller seem to be doing everything they can do to torpedo the deal. The seller didn't complete the banks required fixes (adding some handrails and making sure the smoke detectors were working) until literally the day before close. When I was doing the final walkthrough they were still completing the Radon fix and the HVAC and furnace didn't work. The bank put in a rush and checked the railing and smoke detectors the same day as my walkthrough, and then the next day (closing) were basically radio silent up through the scheduled close time. end of the day rolled around and we still didn't have the check totals and now closing has been moved to Monday, but I have several things for work that I ABSOLUTELY CANNOT MISS so I have to go to the bank today to handle the checks for the close, but still haven't heard anything.
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Jun 15, 2019 11:39
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super awesome A+ grade house inspector  that's so blatantly materially-mis-represented that I'm going for the small-claims, holy gently caress is this guy on my side or not Paul MaudDib fucked around with this message at 15:26 on Jun 15, 2019 |
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Jun 15, 2019 15:23
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Nitrousoxide posted:My bank and the seller seem to be doing everything they can do to torpedo the deal. Same. I caught a HUGE mistake on the lender forms a week out from close. Totally on them. Im amazed any home gets bought ever.
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Jun 15, 2019 15:48
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Optimus_Rhyme posted:Same. I caught a HUGE mistake on the lender forms a week out from close. Totally on them. Im amazed any home gets bought ever. No one reads those forms especially not the Judge that orders your foreclosure.
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Jun 15, 2019 16:36
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