Do you like this house? (Round 4? I think)

[kwynn]

Okay, this is for sale by owner:

pittsburgh.craigslist.org/reo/3569324107.html

I like it a lot. It's a little small.

1. Does anyone have a ballpark at all on finishing a basement with bathroom? I'd say it's maybe a 500 sq foot basement.

2. Any tips or advice or befores/afters on the outside to add a little dimension/depth/interest? I'd like to make it look a little more homey and less flat.

Thanks so much, everyone!

[hannamaren]

Those are amazing sized bedrooms. And I love the hardwood.

I dont get what the square of tile is in the corner of the living room photo. It isnt the kitchen (different tile) and does the dining room attach to the living room?
It is a smallish living space, but I think it is functional. Only you know what else is out there.

Overall, if that house cam up here in the neighbourhood I like, .i would investigate further.

No advice on renos, I have no clue.

[kwynn]

Feb 7, 2013 21:29:41 GMT -5 hannamaren said:

Those are amazing sized bedrooms. And I love the hardwood.

I dont get what the square of tile is in the corner of the living room photo. It isnt the kitchen (different tile) and does the dining room attach to the living room?
It is a smallish living space, but I think it is functional. Only you know what else is out there.

Overall, if that house cam up here in the neighbourhood I like, .i would investigate further.

No advice on renos, I have no clue.

It makes a square downstairs and upstairs. You come in on that little tiled area (I think that's to protect the wood...I've seen that in a few homes here).

To the left is the dining room, that goes into the kitchen at the back of the house. The basement steps are in the kitchen and the basement goes out to the garage too.

It is a cute area, good schools, not a bad suburb.

My family went to see it and I have a few concerns. A LOT of work has been done to the house, I just wish it was a little bit bigger.

[Deleted]

Feb 7, 2013 21:29:41 GMT -5 hannamaren said:

Those are amazing sized bedrooms. And I love the hardwood.

I dont get what the square of tile is in the corner of the living room photo. It isnt the kitchen (different tile) and does the dining room attach to the living room?
It is a smallish living space, but I think it is functional. Only you know what else is out there.

Overall, if that house cam up here in the neighbourhood I like, .i would investigate further.

No advice on renos, I have no clue.

The tile you see is in front of the front door.

I agree about the bedrooms - they're a good size.

Finishing a basement in a house that is already done is oftentimes way more expensive than doing it in a new build. In our new build, with a full bathroom, it was ~$18k for 750ish square feet.

[thedutchgirl]

I really like it. Agree the exterior is a little plain, but it looks to be in really nice condition.

[kwynn]

Feb 7, 2013 21:37:11 GMT -5 @barefootbarista said:

I think it is adorable. A little small, but perfect for you and a roommate.

Are there any comps in the neighborhood?

How far are you from the city?

H is from Pgh.....that city is really growing on me.

There's barely any houses in this town in my range. My realtor is putting together some comps tonight (They're FSBO but will allow a buyer's agent).

It's about 20 miles from the city---my parents live about 11 miles from the city. Takes 30 minutes no traffic, an hour with.

What part of town is your H from? It really does grow on you...everyone there is usually super friendly.

[kwynn]

Feb 7, 2013 21:40:17 GMT -5 Catlawdy said:

I like it, but I'm going to critique:

Outside is really plain and the placement of the windows is odd, but could probably be perked up easily with shutters, window boxes, small things overall.

Is it the picture or was there something weird with the brick between the windows upstairs? Like a skinny rectangle?

The pictures are misleading as to size. Notice how the windows are distorted in some pictures.

We did a lot of work on our houses ourselves and I can honestly say dh is as good as a contractor when he takes on a project (he doesn't do it if he can't do it right). That said, I'm wary of other people's repairs bc people over estimate their own abilities. Get a good inspection, ask a lot of questions about how they put down the tile to make sure it was done correctly.

Love the hardwoods.

Are the bedroom walls in the master textured?

Why is the tv in such a weird spot?

I really like it, very cute. Well staged, so keep that in mind. They have it staged - will your stuff fit?

Thank you for this! I have a lot of the same questions...my sister went to see this for me tonight to see if it was as good as the photos since photos are very misleading.

There IS something between the windows upstairs and that's on a lot of houses in town---the neighbors have them too. I have no idea what it is. If anyone out there knows about houses, I'd love to know what it is.

I agree the outside needs sprucing---I need to add shutters for sure. The door is pretty new so I don't know if I'd want to change it, but maybe something with the porch. I was thinking navy blue and gray for the porch and shutters, maybe. I just don't like the little front stoop.

The bedrooms are decent-sized in real life, they living room is very small. On the listing, there's a big long list of what they did and, on the surface, it appears very well done. Full inspection for sure.

I will ask my sister about the textured walls and why the TV is in a weird spot. I think we'd have to mount it over the fireplace (if possible---I know that can be bad for the TV).

I hardly own any furniture. My living room furniture might be a tight squeeze, but other than that, I don't own much at all.

[kwynn]

Feb 7, 2013 22:00:02 GMT -5 @barefootbarista said:

H is from Churchill. We don't get there too often because road tripping with a toddler sucks.

I know where this is! There are adorable houses for sale in Churchill and I would totally buy one if it wasn't for the schools...even then, for the right house, I'd overlook that!

[countthestars]

I really like it! It's small, but it looks like it would be easy to personalize and make your own.  The rooms are a great size and the hardwoods are to die for!

[rikki]

It's definitely my favorite of all the houses that you've posted!

[krystee]

I really like it, but with your business being run out of the home, it doesn't seem practical unless you can get the basement finished quickly. Ask your agent how much value a basement would add and see if it would be a better value to get a house with a finished basement or to get this house. Good luck!

[heygrey]

I love it! It's small, but so charming.

I think it would look less flat in person, the angle of the first picture isn't great. You can't really see the dimension of the little stoop roof. Landscaping and maybe a coupe small trees in the front yard couple help, too. More depth and varied heights.

I'd be curious to know if you could expand the opening between the living and dining rooms just to open up the space some.

[pitterwoo]

Feb 7, 2013 22:13:59 GMT -5 rikki said:

It's definitely my favorite of all the houses that you've posted!

I agree with this.  It's a cute house and seems very manageable and move in ready.

[sugarbear]

We just renovated our 500sf basement, including adding a bathroom, for ~$30k.

(And I think the house is super cute!)

[kwynn]

Feb 7, 2013 23:48:42 GMT -5 sugarbear said:

We just renovated our 500sf basement, including adding a bathroom, for ~$30k.

(And I think the house is super cute!)

Where do you live (LCOL, MCOL, HCOL)? I'm taking a guess that it's 500 sq feet and I actually figured it would be 30k-40k. Did you do high end finishes? Or just drywalled and you did the finishing work? Thanks so much!

It's a lot...but it would be great to have.

[sugarbear]

We live is Seattle, so HCOL. Our finishes were middle of the road. Cabinets from Ikea, but the carpets, flooring, shower, etc, are a step up from there. We did some of the work ourselves, it mainly painting, etc.

[mollz007]

I think it is really cute, and I agree that the hard wood floors are really beautiful! I have no suggestions on how to personalize it though. Good luck!

[smiley]

I think the house is cute with character. I think it is cozy and you could always buy smaller furniture. The furniture in the house seemed a little big for the area.

The only con I saw was the tiled kitchen counter. NMS at all.

[smiley]

I also want to add.... with the small size would you be comfortable living there 5-10 years? What if you can't sell again in the future? (bad market etc)

[womet]

I think it's perfect for you!! Go see it abd put in an offer.

[Deleted]

This is my favorite house that you have posted.

[LoveTrains]

This is also my favorite house out of all the ones you have posted.

The nice thing about finishing the basement is you could put your TV down there and then not worry about it on the first floor.

[lime]

I like this one the most out of everything you've posted.