decisions, decisions

We have found 2 home that we are considering

one is very cute and re done and has potential to expand but needs 2 be extended because it is small but livable for the time being, the yard is wooded and private it needs some work but its a good size lot.


house # 2 is a total fixer- but much much bigger. ITs a wreck the tenants basically destroyed the place it needs to be gutted but its huge, the property itself is smaller than house number !

Both are basically the same price same area- except # 2 the asking is 10k more and the taxes are 1k more

what would you do?- we already mad an offer on #1 before we saw #2.

#1 has not gotten back to us about our offer - they are thinking about it.
We dont know if we should make an offer on 2 yet... What would you do

Re: decisions, decisions

i just don't think i could move into a total fixer upper....

but that is just me...


when it comes down to it ....you probably prefer one over the other...

i say go with whatever is your instinct tells you to

Re: decisions, decisions

I always would go for the bigger - it's a lot easier to renovate space that is already there than it is to add space. Many times, people buy a house intending to expand and never do or never have the $$$ for it. When you renovate, you can do one room at a time, as time and $$$ allow.

Re: decisions, decisions

i'd go with the small but liveable one...
when we were looking for a house, we were in a bidding war over this house that was a total fixer upper, and we ended up not getting it...We ended up getting a house that didn't need anything and i'm so happy we did... We say to ourselves, how on earth would we have payed for the renovations on the other house, not to mention, where would we stay while the house was getting worked on!
so for us, we are very happy with our decision..
good luck to you!

Re: decisions, decisions

It's a lot of $$$$ to expand and once you do, if you do, your taxes will be reassessed at that current rate and that will be even more $$$$. My BIL is expanding his great room and deck onto his already big house and you don't even want to know what it is costing.

I would go with the fixer upper, yes, it takes a lot of patience as you will be living in a mess for a while but then again, you would be doing that if you expanded. I know people who have an they have to move down into their basement, pick up dust when they get home eveyday, etc. With a fixer upper, maybe your DH could do a lot of the work himself and you could do it gradually when you had the money. Also with the fixer upper, there maybe more room for negotiation because it may need more... boiler, windows, electrical, roof, all of these are negotiable. The seller has to realize that their house needs work and hopefully, will be more willing to bend on the price.

Good luck

Re: decisions, decisions

I'd go for the bigger property.

Re: decisions, decisions

we bought a bigger house that was totally trashed & fixed it up. It has a "big" lot for this neighborhood, but not huge. The house itself is much bigger than most around here but it needed everything. We did it ourselves & there are things that are still not done two years later. We actually planned on doing more exterior stuff but with rising intrest rates we don't want to borrow money now, and we are saving less because of rising energy costs. What I'm trying to say is sometimes the "chunk" of money you'll need to expand may not be available when you need it & then you'll be in a tiny house. At least in the bigger house if you fix up as your family grows the space you use will be nice & you won't have to stress.
Are you staying in the same area as your co-op?

Re: decisions, decisions

Definately the smaller house just because it is liveable! If you don't have the funds to completely gut a house right now, it is not worth it! You can buy some time in house #1 & truly decide what you want to do with an expansion & can do it down the line

Re: decisions, decisions

We recently had the same choice... ironically enough, they were both on the same block. One was in pretty decent shape, but it was smaller,, and on the same lot. The other was a gigantic fixer-upper (3100 sq/ft). We picked the fixer-upper just because (a) we LOVE doing our own renovations and saved a LOT of money doing it - we put $20k into the renovations, and now we have our dream house, and ended up saving close to $50k by doing the work ourselves, (b) I wanted more space because we have a baby and are thinking of another, and (c) we just don't like moving into someone else's "style". I like fixer-uppers because we can literally make it into exactly what we want it to be...

Re: decisions, decisions

I would take the bigger fixer upper - but everyone is different. You really need to evaluate how much work needs to be done and figure out if you can handle living thru the construction. Personally I love to pick things out and have everything done exactly how I want it.

Re: decisions, decisions

I would also take the fixer upper. In the end, I think it's more affordable to gut an existing space than to expand and add on. Plus, like lulu, I like picking things out and having projects and making something exactly the way I want it.

Good luck with your decision!

Re: decisions, decisions

Id go w/ the fixer upper. I tihnk it's nice to be able to do your house the way you want /your own style. But definitely find out how much it will cost you to redo the house or at least the parts you need to do right away.

Dh and I gutted the kitchen, bath, basement of the house we bought and it's giong to cost more and take longer to finish than we expected. We are staying in our apt until everything is done though.

Message edited 8/4/2006 9:52:22 AM.

Re: decisions, decisions

Personally, I would keep looking. If I had no other choice than these two homes, I would pick the bigger one.

Re: decisions, decisions

im all for buying a house that needs work, but how much work exactly??

i purchased my home needing excessive COSMETIC changes. It was totally live-able. It just was not my taste at all.

I also had a very cheap apartment that was month to month. so while the house was being fixed up, I had a stable place to stay.

The house you describe sounds like it is not live-able. I would go for the house you can live in, and do the minor work when you can. The other house sounds like a total wreck.