A couple months ago I talked about Selling your parent's home. It's a huge job, which often includes sorting through years of accumulated 'stuff'…often culminating in an estate sale for the 'stuff', and finally selling the home itself.
If you are a buyer, these homes can be real treasures…often in need of updating, but structurally very sound. The home in this photo is one of those treasures. They had the estate sale last weekend, and this week have been doing final cleanup and repairs. It will be on the market soon.
As is often the case when finding a "Grandma House", the big maintenance issues have been done. For example, in the last few years this house got a new furnace, new central air and new roof…three of the most expensive items in maintaining a home. A fourth, new windows, are coming in 2010 with a $14,000 package from MAC for new windows and doors.
They lived there for over 50 years, and my guess is the kitchen hasn't been updated during that time, along with some wallpaper…but those can be fun and relatively easy fixes. What struck me the first time I visited the home was the beautiful condition of the ceilings and woodwork (about all I could see with all the 'stuff' around!). The woodwork looks brand new, and the trim corners match beautifully…something you often don't find even in a brand new home!
Especially in this time of so many foreclosures and short sales in the first-time homebuyer price range, finding a "Grandma House" can be cause for jubilation on multiple fronts…usually cosmetic rather than structural updates required…plus no bank mediation means a quicker response and a quicker closing.
Sharlene Hensrud, RE/MAX Results- Email– HomesMSP.com
I love these houses! If a client is unable to make the updates to sell on the retail market, I am happy to make an offer to BUY the property AS-IS.
Always looking for the win-win to help the St Paul Community Prosper!