#house flips

Case in point, there’s a flip a few doors down from me that I looked at while house hunting last year. It has all the (relatively) cheap cosmetic improvements typical of flips: granite countertops, stainless appliances, jacuzzi tub, surround sound speakers, security system, recessed lighting, ceiling fans, etc. What they didn’t do is spend money on the much more costly serious problems, like obvious major structural issues (I think the whole house is sagging in the center?), and a roof that is such a joke I looked at it and started laughing. Roofs and structure aren’t sexy, but they’re very costly repairs that home inspectors catch and will bounce the house right back on the market (like this one has been, multiple times). Plus, the place is horribly laid out, probably in an attempt to make it a three bedroom rather than two, which I learned makes the house much more marketable. The problem being that in this case there’s no space left for a table/dining space, and the “living room” is hardly more than a passageway.

There’s an open house this afternoon, and I’m watching all these identical sport utility vehicles heading in that direction (does everyone buy the same SUV when they’re ready to buy a home?), and then heading away, presumably with disappointed occupants.

Light of a million mornings

Today  is never too late to be brand new. (more…)