House

Well after over a year it looks like we might finally be selling the house (fingers and toes crossed).
Didn't get asking but close enough.
Now we get to start looking for a smaller one. Got 5 maybes.
We get this done and pay off some bills and I can finally get a new Mac.
Put this HP aside and use it for gaming and Second Life.
I'm thinking a Pro but possibly a 27" Retina iMac. Really haven't decided yet.

Congratulations Craig. At what point in the process are you at the moment? Did you get an offer…and accepted it? Or are you further along in the process?

- Nick

Got an offer. Going to sign papers tomorrow. They want to close in August.
It seems like they really want it. They can have it, I'm ready for something much smaller.

The housing market around here is the pits. What I don't understand is folks grabbing up the new homes which are going for an average price of $350K and higher. Lesser priced units (older homes) are not selling at all. I guess with interest rates so low the more expensive homes are selling well. My house is too big for us also but I have no intension of selling, moving, and buying something else. Getting too old for that stuff anymore.

chscag said:

The housing market around here is the pits. What I don't understand is folks grabbing up the new homes which are going for an average price of $350K and higher. Lesser priced units (older homes) are not selling at all. I guess with interest rates so low the more expensive homes are selling well. My house is too big for us also but I have no intension of selling, moving, and buying something else. Getting too old for that stuff anymore.

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The whole market has changed on us . . . no one seems to want the smaller (under 2000 sqft) homes anymore.
I remember, starting out that 1400 sqft was a decent sized home. Kids today don't see it that way.

We're empty nesters now. So, our house is bigger than we need, but at just under 2000 sqft, isn't real attractive to house hunters.

This one is right at 1700. The ones we're looking at range from 1000 to 750 sq. ft.
I just turned 61 and the wife is 6 mos. older. We don't need such a big house, even with 3 dogs.
Getting lazy in our old age I guess. All the brand new ones around here are huge brick things. Some could be called mansions they're that big.
Property taxes are going to be a ***** for them.

chscag said:

I guess with interest rates so low the more expensive homes are selling well.

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I'm guessing that this is, in part, because people can get more (seemingly) for their dollar and/or they want something that will have significantly more value in the long run. Then again, I've never purchased a home.

RavingMac said:

I remember, starting out that 1400 sqft was a decent sized home. Kids today don't see it that way.

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I think, generally, I would agree - people in a younger generation (me?) often seem to want more than people who are older. That said, I think part of this also depends on where you live which shapes what you expect from a place. Living downtown, people don't expect quite as much as they do in the suburbs.

I have a son and a nephew who bought homes over 2,500 sq. ft. - with no kids, yet. Our house is about 2,300 (our second house - first one was smaller) and we have lots of extra space, but no plans to downsize.

I can certainly understand why younger folks (Bryan) would want a larger home. It's better to have a larger home that can accommodate family expansion. I can remember our first home - a three bedroom of about 1400 Sq Ft which was fine for a small family. But as the kids start coming and you accumulate "stuff", you can quickly outgrow a small home. Right now we're living in a 4 bedroom 2200 Sq Ft home which is too large for my wife and I especially when dealing with the upkeep.

chscag said:

I can certainly understand why younger folks (Bryan) would want a larger home. It's better to have a larger home that can accommodate family expansion. I can remember our first home - a three bedroom of about 1400 Sq Ft which was fine for a small family. But as the kids start coming and you accumulate "stuff", you can quickly outgrow a small home. Right now we're living in a 4 bedroom 2200 Sq Ft home which is too large for my wife and I especially when dealing with the upkeep.

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Ah yes, the old start small, go bigger and downsize. I've seen this with my parents, who were in an apartment, moved to the suburbs to get a bigger home and then slowly downsized to the bungalow that they now have.

We're in the same house we bought in 1977 - a 2400 sq ft ranch style w/ a full basement and a large add-on porch - 4 bedrooms, using 3 at the moment - only one son who left over 20 years ago - retired and almost 70 y/o but still enjoy the house and the locale - we have a yard service and cleaning gals who come in every 2 weeks - not sure what the market would be here but 'new' houses w/ larger kitchens & bathrooms (and better electronics wiring) seem be the attraction. Dave

Ok, for all that have been keeping up with this (all none of you ;D) we now have a new (to us) house.
We closed Friday, spent a week (almost died from the heat) moving, finally got the power turned on today and are enjoying the AC.
We went from 1700 Sq Ft. to 780 Sq. Ft. so currently cant walk in the living room at all.
Will take a while to get settled in so will be busy for a few weeks. At least we wont be bored.

Well, at least you should get great WiFi connectivity throughout the house with just one router. We did the opposite and had to purchase two boosters to get coverage.


Sent from my iPhone using Mac Forums.

cradom said:

We went from 1700 Sq Ft. to 780 Sq. Ft. so currently cant walk in the living room at all.

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Congrats Craig on the new place! I know exactly how you feel. I downsized from a large home to a new place that's probably 33% or less the size of the old place. Boxes...boxes everywhere…floor to ceiling. I also have three self-storage units (which ain't cheap). Trying to liquidate as much as possible as fast as possible. In order to get rid of the storage units…and have a "normal" livable home!

Hang in there…one box at a time!

- Nick

p.s. Another BIG positive of a smaller place (in addition to what Rod mentioned)…hopefully those utility bills will be much smaller!

Congrats on the new house . . . a big uncongrats on the moving and unpacking. ;P