Took adavantage of the housing market crash

I'm in the process of buying my first house. Found one we love in a great neighborhood that is perfect for what we need, here's the stats:

3 bedroom bungalow, the master bedroom upstairs is awesome with ceiling fan and recessed bookshelves

1 +1/2 car garage wired for electric with shop lights, work bench, plenty of cabinets and boards to hang tools..etc

All hardwood floors

Newish roof (less than 5yrs old), new hot water tank, new central air, solid furnace less than 20yrs old, new windows, copper plumbing

Nice yard that is ready for a garden

Less than a 10 minute bike ride to work

BIG kitchen which is nice since I'm a chef and the wife-to-be is a gifted baker, yet she works in retail...lol

Finished basement with drop ceiling, paneled walls...and get this...a bar!!:drunk:

New stove, newish fridge, older washer and dryer but they are Maytag and in great shape, small yet beautifully tiled modern bathroom, new reach-in freezer downstairs

The former occupant was an older lady who upgraded the house before passing away. Her sister took over the estate and was asking just the balance of what was left on the mortgage. She didn't want her sister's legacy to be a home left to the bank in foreclosure and was hoping a younger couple looking to start a family would pick it up...that's us.

I made an offer a couple grand under asking price, but the sister made a counter offer for full asking price. She isn't making any money off of it, just wanting the balance on the mortgage which I was prepared to deal with, so I signed the counter offer with 6% back. The deal is sealed and my mortgage is approved so we are waiting for everything to process for closing.

I'm nervous and VERY excited!

Any advice for a first time home owner would be GREATLY appreciated.

I'm already planning what flashlights will be placed in what rooms for emergency use should something happen.:twothumbs

No advice but hope it goes well for you!

I could have thought of many things to tell you before you closed on it, but no matter what may go wrong (or right), you bought it....so enjoy it.

Homes require a lot more work and maintenance that people ever realize. Everything eventually breaks down, so get a good workshop, start buying tools, and start learning how to fix things. If you hire an electrician or plumber, watch them and learn.

Hopefully you got a home inspection including insect and termite inspection (especially with wood floors), also of the roof, attic, foundation, cracks, water damage, etc. Hopefully you had a complete title search to make sure it is free and clear of any mortgages, liens, or incumbrances. Hopefully you know your neighbors, reputation, crime records, school system, and values of surrounding properties. Hopefully you had the HVAC & water system evaluated and the insulation verified to help with energy costs. Hopefully you have a good understanding of the utility expenses, taxes, insurance, and other mainenance required.

If so, then enjoy your new home!

Good Job :thumbsup:
Sounds like a great deal if she didn't owe too much.
Nothing like having your own yard to mow and you can turn up the radio half way without upsetting off the neighbors.

+1 to what Lux said. Check it out well. A house is the biggest purchase/investment most people will make.

If you are somewhat handy, you can tackle most of the fix-its yourself.
Here some of the problems I've tackled in my 13 years at my place:

Replaced cast iron section of waste line with PVC and new clean out.

New motor capacitor and contactor on AC unit (different times).

Frozen and busted copper pipe. Learn how to "sweat" pipes.

Dried out electrolytic cap in furnace controller caused erratic operation.

Electrical. All kinds of wiring projects.

Shingle repair after high wind storm damage.

...And so on.

I can't imagine all the expense if I called someone each time to fix all of this!

I've had service people out to fix things I could not do, like feon in the AC, a new gas valve in the furnace and a new garage door. I need a new roof soon and new waste and water supply lines. There's a bunch of small projects I want to do and, oh yeah, I want to paint the place.

Trust me it NEVER ends!

Along the lines of Lux, learn to fix it properly. This means never doing something 'good enough' or 'for now.'

Touch it once, do it right, move on.

In any job, preparation is > %80 of the time spent. paper / pencil / eraser start every job - what is the job, what is required, how will it be done - this avoids head-scratching later on when you come back from a beer break and wonder what the hell you were doing.
For example, painting a wall largely involves surface preparation - clean with tsp, sand, repair damage and fill holes, sand, wipe clean of dust, tape / edge. So the first few hours of painting don't involve any paint what so ever.
Each process is like this, from laying ceramic tiles to running plumbing and electrical for main-floor laundry.

Over ventalate your attic. Theoretical peice many people (contractors, builders) do not understand is that your ceiling insulation + vapour barrier keeps the house warm. Your attic should be as cold as possible to preserve the life of your shingles. Ensure sofit venting / air intake is not plugged up with insulation. When you go up there in the afternoon and the sun is beating down on the roof-top, there should be enough of a convection current inside your attic that you don't break into a sweat. If your shingles get too hot (this is %95 of all roofs out there) they bake and dry out, and so '25 year shingles' crack in 15 years. Easiest part of the investment to protect, just keep them cool and they'll keep the rest of your investment dry.

Sounds like a great first house. Nothing like home ownership. Like everyone says, get ready for some troubles, but having your own house is worth it.


Geoff

Flying Turtle said:

Like everyone says, get ready for some troubles

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Let me clarify. Sure it's work, but that's the good stuff!
Land-owner ship is great. It's the only thing they're not making any more.

Best,
Linger

Sounds good. You might want to consider a water pressure reducer...even more so with hard wood floors. A leak can cause $$$$ damage to them. They are sold at home depot for around $50...made by a company called "Watts". Add a water pressure gauge for around $10. Unregulated the pressure in my area is around 70 pounds. I run mine around 27 pounds (PSI). But you might be happier around 35. Before I installed mine I was having about 3~4 pinhole leaks in my copper pipes per year. I installed it around 7 years ago and have had 0 leaks since. Many of my neighbors have had to have their whole homes replumbed...PPVC. And spent a lot of $$$$ in repairs in addition.

It`s my closely guarded super secret secret. Don`t give it away or the plumbers will loose their jobs and come after you. :wave:

I had an A.S.H.I. certified home inspector from a reputable company that's been in the business since '75 come out on Friday. Took him about three hours to do it as he went through EVERYTHING. He even took the furnace apart and showed me how it works and what to have serviced, how often and why. He was very thorough and answered all of my questions. I was involved in every step of the process and despite there being nothing seriously wrong, I was given a 26 page report on CD-ROM that broke everything down. The only problems were that some electrical outlets need to be replaced per current code and I have an easily fixable cement issue on the porch.

There was some insulation stuffed into vent areas in the attic and he explained why I should pull it out which I will do.

A complete title search was done with no red flags and I know the neighborhood quite well as I've worked in the area for over five years plus my GF grew up here. If anyone is familliar with Dearborn, MI (west side near Greenfield Village/The Henry Ford), that's where we are moving to.

Badbeams3 said:

Sounds good. You might want to consider a water pressure reducer...even more so with hard wood floors. A leak can cause $$$$ damage to them. They are sold at home depot for around $50...made by a company called "Watts". Add a water pressure gauge for around $10. Unregulated the pressure in my area is around 70 pounds. I run mine around 27 pounds (PSI). But you might be happier around 35. Before I installed mine I was having about 3~4 pinhole leaks in my copper pipes per year. I installed it around 7 years ago and have had 0 leaks since. Many of my neighbors have had to have their whole homes replumbed...PPVC. And spent a lot of $$$$ in repairs in addition.

It`s my closely guarded super secret secret. Don`t give it away or the plumbers will loose their jobs and come after you. :wave:

Click to expand...

OMG....I have an old house, and the city water pressure is 92psi. I wouldn't reduce it for all the tea in China. No leaks except some valve handles wore out. Being able to take a luxurious mega head shower (also with the lame flow restrictor plastic piece removed) until the 60 gallon hot water heater is emptied is heaven. Only thing I needed to reduce the pressure for was my self-installed reverse osmosis water purification system that needed between 40-80 psi to work.

ypsifly said:

I had an A.S.H.I. certified home inspector from a reputable company that's been in the business since '75 come out on Friday. Took him about three hours to do it as he went through EVERYTHING. He even took the furnace apart and showed me how it works and what to have serviced, how often and why. He was very thorough and answered all of my questions. I was involved in every step of the process and despite there being nothing seriously wrong, I was given a 26 page report on CD-ROM that broke everything down. The only problems were that some electrical outlets need to be replaced per current code and I have an easily fixable cement issue on the porch.

There was some insulation stuffed into vent areas in the attic and he explained why I should pull it out which I will do.

A complete title search was done with no red flags and I know the neighborhood quite well as I've worked in the area for over five years plus my GF grew up here. If anyone is familliar with Dearborn, MI (west side near Greenfield Village/The Henry Ford), that's where we are moving to.

Click to expand...

Congratulations, and brilliant work. Very few home buyers will have taken those steps.