How much do you think it would be to update this house?

[shopgirl07]

That's a big house, the kitchen looks small, awkward and dated. I'm guessing you'll need to reconfigure the space and move plumbing, etc. I would budget $50K for that.

For the bathroom, $10K for a smaller bathroom, $20-$25K for a large master.

[jane6672]

Sooooooo pretty

[MixedBerryJam]

I don't think you understand what "fixer" means. That house is gorgeous! The bathroom isn't exactly my style but I had to wipe the drool off my face looking at the rest of it.

[youhadmycuriosity]

I would say about 50+, but with anything, it depends on what you want to do. I am doing a renovation on a house I plan to sell in a couple years, and am spending 15k- if I planned to live here long term, I could easily spend 60k on making it what I want. If I was in your shoes, I would take tally of the major things you would want to do (kitchen, if you want to knock out walls, etc), get a rough idea of the price, and add 50% to cover smaller things like paint, trim, light fixtures, etc. I am by no means an expert, though. Curious to see what others say.

[EmilieMadison]

This house isn't a "fixer" (requires work in order for it to be livable), it's "outdated" (perfectly livable, but is dated or not at all your style).
Depending on whether or not you change the layout, what finishes you choose, and your COL etc, I would expect to spend at least $50K for the kitchen and all bathrooms. Minimum.

[MixedBerryJam]

I particularly like that the garage doors are around back. I hate hate hate when the garage door is the biggest feature on the front of the house. I hate that.

[PeonyParty]

I'd say go for it. That house is amazing and the issues you have are easily fixable right now without doing an overhaul. I would repaint cabinets, maybe start with replacing a sink in the bathroom and go from there. Sometimes it is hard to make plans without having lived in the house a while. Sometimes you need to get used to the space before doing anything major.

[moolarkey]

That is an amazingly beautiful house and grounds. Some updates would be desirable (but not required) and estimating the cost would depend on how high end you want to go, if you are using the same footprint or doing things like moving walls.

If wiring and plumbing are good and no footprint changes, then I'd think 40k to 60k and the difference in that might be the cost of your appliances and how high end they are.

The thing is - you could move in and live it in without spending any money until you "know" the house and what you want to do and then you might be able to do it in phases so as not to have to pay for it all at once, unless you want to roll your remodeling costs in to the house loan.

Beautiful house and I would want to tour it for sure.

[Deleted]

OMG it's beautiful. And I think you could tackle it a bit at a time.

[moolarkey]

Maybe it stated but I didn't see it, be sure to find out how big the lot is. I see it adjoins a nature preserve, I'd want more information about that. The Chicago area really seems to have a lot of park/preserve land and that is a positive.

[nomad100]

Depending on what you wanted to do (just update vs more extensive reno - moving walls, moving plumbing, etc.)

Update: at least $50K. More extensive: at least $75K.

This isn't what I would consider a vHCOL area but it is HCOL and so will definitely imact the labor costs.

[DotAndBuzz]

50-60k for the kitchen and bathrooms, minimum
another 15k-ish+ for painting and wallpaper removal/new carpet in places (if you want). You could easily hit 100k for updates here, especially once you start thinking about light fixtures, furnishings, window treatments, etc. But the good news is, it's all aesthetic. As long as the house has good bones, none of it *needs* to be done asap, you know? You can pace yourselves and go bit by bit.

We bought a SUPER outdated house, totally liveable, just coated in wallpaper. We decided to strip the wallpaper and paint, and replace all the carpet upstairs before we moved in and I think when all was said and done we were around 14k. Maybe a little more.

But that didn't touch anything in the kitchen except wallpaper removal and paint. I still have my awesome 90's cabinets and fruit salad back splash, not to mention grandiose as fuck triangular column in the master bath.

Heavy renovations are expensive, and always cost more than you think. But that house is incredible, so I'd put that pretty high on the list, if I were you!

[DotAndBuzz]

Something else to consider - depending on the motivation of the sellers, you could negotiate a lower price based on the aesthetic needs. ours knew the wallpaper and such was, a, um, situation, and knocked 10k off the price to buffer that cost to us just to get rid of the house. So if you love it, it never hurts to ask.

[MixedBerryJam]

Feb 1, 2015 18:42:25 GMT -5 moolarkey said:

Maybe it stated but I didn't see it, be sure to find out how big the lot is. I see it adjoins a nature preserve, I'd want more information about that. The Chicago area really seems to have a lot of park/preserve land and that is a positive.

I didn't notice where it said that, but I abut 2500 acres of protected woodlands and omg it is fantastic. Now that I'm really only a few years from downsizing (which I've been looking forward to for years) it breaks my heart to think I'm going to have to leave these woods. The woods in back of my house are the woods in the song, "Over the rivr and through the woods to grandmother's house we go."

[Chiquitita]

Welcome to the area ! I love the house and knowing the area any updates you would add to the value. The area is some what of a HCOL so it might cost you a bit more. I would expect to pay a bit more.

[DotAndBuzz]

Feb 1, 2015 19:33:52 GMT -5 rvan0905 said:

Feb 1, 2015 19:11:08 GMT -5 DotAndBuzz said:

Something else to consider - depending on the motivation of the sellers, you could negotiate a lower price based on the aesthetic needs. ours knew the wallpaper and such was, a, um, situation, and knocked 10k off the price to buffer that cost to us just to get rid of the house. So if you love it, it never hurts to ask.

That is probably going to be our plan if it is as awesome as it looks in the pictures.  It has been on the market a long time, so I'm hoping the people are motivated to sell.

if it's been on for a while, make sure you get a really good inspection.  There could be a big reason why such a beautiful house hasn't sold yet, you know?  So be excited, but proceed with caution, you know?

[rachel6789]

What/how much are you wanting to fix in the kitchen and bathrooms? My H is a contractor, and I can ask him if you have any questions.

[eb777888]

The house is really, really beautiful!! I'd do cheap updates on stuff if that were my house. Like others said, you can do as little or as much as you want but I get why you want to spruce up that kitchen. It needs it.

[themoneytree]

I love it!

That house needs a higher end kitchen so I'm going to say $75,000 - $100,000.

Let us know what you think of it when you see it in person!

[rachel6789]

Feb 1, 2015 19:53:00 GMT -5 rvan0905 said:

Feb 1, 2015 19:42:15 GMT -5 rachel6789 said:

What/how much are you wanting to fix in the kitchen and bathrooms? My H is a contractor, and I can ask him if you have any questions.

I just want to update the bathrooms and possibly add more storage, and I'd want to gut the kitchen.  I'd probably move the sink in front of the window (and replace the window), and then design the kitchen around the "triangle" we could make with the new sink location.  I cook a lot, and we entertain quite a bit too, so I need something a lot more functional that the current one.

Ok. He said he'll look at the pictures you linked after the game. My mistake interrupting football. 

[DotAndBuzz]

Feb 1, 2015 19:59:59 GMT -5 Que? said:

Feb 1, 2015 19:50:00 GMT -5 themoneytree said:

I love it!

That house needs a higher end kitchen so I'm going to say $75,000 - $100,000.

Let us know what you think of it when you see it in person!

Agreed, this house isn't one you would cut corners on.

Keep windows in mind; that house has specific windows and if any need to be replaced you're looking at many tens of thousands to maintain the architectural integrity.

YES.

We knew we'd need to replace windows when we bought ours.  Sellers agreed to cut more off the price to accommodate that (they were highly motivated to sell).  We gave them a number.  We SEVERELY underestimated the cost.  Like, a lot.  Curved/custom windows are no joke.  Beautiful, but crazy expensive.  But you have to do it if you want to keep the look of the house. 

Also - keep in mind that every little thing in a house like that costs a lot.  You can't just change out the entry chandelier.  You have to have an electrician with an extra tall ladder do it, and oh those?  Those charge by the hour, and then every 15 minutes.  When we did ours, the electrician was nearly equal to the price of the chandelier.  Ditto for that driveway.  It's huge - so think about the cost of having it sealed and maintained (and shoveling, because um, Chicago gets a lot of snow). 

Not trying to dissuade you.  Just go in knowing that big houses cost a lot of money to keep up.  This is why I still have the kitchen that is 90's fug, but perfectly functional.  Things that you think would be little projects aren't so little, and suck your money away from the big fun projects. 

[cville]

I feel weird. I look at that house and see not a single room that doesn't require wayyyy more than minor change. It's so grandma's carpet and wallpaper boutique right now. So I say budget about $450k. Ha.

[Deleted]

Holy shit I want that house

[themoneytree]

Feb 1, 2015 20:03:38 GMT -5 rvan0905 said:

Feb 1, 2015 19:50:00 GMT -5 themoneytree said:

I love it!

That house needs a higher end kitchen so I'm going to say $75,000 - $100,000.

Let us know what you think of it when you see it in person!

I will!  I am so excited about seeing it!

Do you think if I did a more moderate kitchen it would detract from the house?  I think I could get DH on board with under $75k, but more than that he may balk at.

It depends. Is this a forever house? If so it doesn't matter a whole lot what you put in. Also I don't know the value of an updated house in your area. But if I was buying that house I would put in a nice kitchen. No doubt.

[sparkythelawyer]

That is such a great town. Amazing schools!

[shell24]

The house has great curb appeal. The bathrooms are in bad shape. For the kitchen and bathrooms I'd budget at least 100k.

And the wallpaper removal alone will cost you a fortune-it goes to the ceiling in the 2 story foyer!

But Northbrook is a great location so if you can afford to make the house what you want, you should go for it.

I have the name of a really good, inexpensive painter in Glenview if you're interested