Buying A Home
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Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
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2 similar houses
My husband and I looked at two houses today. Both are priced the same. One has a finished basement with a fourth bedroom and bath. The roof is new but the siding is rotting by the garage and the appliances are older. The kitchen has laminate and there are four different kinds of carpet upstairs.
The other one has hardwood upstairs and newer kitchen appliances. The house is slightly larger but the basement is unfinished. It also has a huge deck off the kitchen. The roof probably needs to be replaced soon but the siding is newer.
My husband thinks the finished basement is a better buy and I think we could add more value finishing the other basement.
Any ideas on deciding? Our pros cons list isn't helping. Thanks!
Re: 2 similar houses
For house two, does it also have four bedrooms and are they all on the same floor? A bedroom basement would be a deal breaker for me.
Finishing a basement and putting in hardwood floors are probably close price-wise, depending on how high-end the basement is. I like the idea of doing the basement yourself so that you can make it exactly what you want/need. Redoing flooring is a big pain whereas the basement is more out of the way.
Appliances really wouldn't sway me one way or another. I'd rather replace them all and have my own. I do not want to wash my clothes in someone elses washing machine - who knows what's been in there?
A deck is also a nice feature, especially if it's one of those composite ones with low maintenance.
How do the streets and yards compare? Does either have a fence or back up to open space? I think layout and location are most important since they're hardest to change.
Both houses are one the same street in a nice established neighborhood. Both have three bedrooms upstairs. The unfinished basement could be completed to add a fourth bedroom. Layout of the houses are the same and yards are almost identical.
Wow. Alright, I can see why this is so tough!
If it were me and I liked the flooring better in house two, I would try that one first.
The fact that they're so similar means that they're competing with eachother. I would talk to your agent and try to guess what the lowest possible price would be for each, and offer that amount for whichever house you decide is your first choice. If those sellers countered, I would make the low offer on the other house and see what they came back with. Depending on your market you could really make the situation work to your advantage and get the best price possible.
Which house requires less money to fix? If the basement and new roof is less than siding, ripping up carpet/installing flooring, and re-doing a kitchen, then I would go with house 2.
I like PP's suggestion of just trying to get the lowest possible price on either one, and just fixing what you need to.
Is there anything else that sets them apart from each other? Layout or square footage, anything?
I would go with house 1. New roof plus already finished basement is a much better deal. You can easily replace flooring and appliances. Plus, neither of those things are "emergencies", whereas if your roof starts leaking or falling apart you will be in trouble!
Have you looked into how much it would cost to replace the siding? That would be my only concern with that house. Also, depending on your financing, the sellers may need to fix that before you can buy anyway. And you could always ask for it.
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Finishing the basement could be tricky. Do you know with 100% certainty that they don't ever get water in the basement? And does your town require permits to finish a basement? Ours does upfront and they come inspect it afterwards to deem it occupiable (important when you eventually sell down the road).
It's not just drywall and flooring to consider, you also need to think about heating/cooling an area that may not be set up for it. Are you planning on putting a bathroom down there, even a powder room? That could drastically add to your budget as well.
Also are they both walkout basements? Because in either case (finished or not), a bedroom in a non-walkout basement would be a deal breaker to me.
Both are walkout basements. The 1st house has a sump pump the other one does not but has not gotten water in the basement. The basement in the 2nd house has a bathroom (toilet, sink, and shower) but it is just on cement and not finished the way the other one is.
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