Buying a fixer-upper for a first home?

BBear13 · July 2012

Hi everyone! My husband and I are late-20's newlyweds - we have been together for 7.5 years, and we were friends before that. After living frugally, in order to save, in the same apartment for almost 6 years, we plan to buy a home within the next year.

As a little background, we are both active people, and we work well together on projects. During premarital counseling, we talked about how one of our strengths as a couple is our open communication and ability to work as teammates and partners, something we each really value. Our wedding coordinator actually told us we should go into business together since she'd never seen a couple so consistently prepared and on the same page, and calm throughout the planning process.

We don't have a lot of standing commitments in so far as working long hours or on weekends (we are both M-F 9-5 ers), we don't have kids and aren't planning to, (if we do, it wouldn't be for about 5 years) we're done with school, etc.

We both hate moving so we'd like to stay in our first home as long as possible. Most of our relatives in their 50's and 60's, including his mother, still live in the first home they bought as newlyweds, which is something we would love for ourselves.

We've started looking at homes, and love historic houses with character. We came across a beautiful post-war cottage style home with an enormous yard that we adore. It is listed for about $100,000 less than the range we were looking for homes at. (We live near DC, properties are expensive.)

It has had some recent remodeling and upgrades, such as the kitchen which has new cabinets, counters, and appliances, the attic which has been converted into a fully finished bedroom suite with full bath, and a finished basement room suite with a nice updated bathroom.

Still, it definitely needs some work:

1. unfinished laundry room with no machines

2. no ceiling fans (with my asthma, these are a must, at the very least in our bedroom as I need circulating air to sleep)

3. it needs painting in just about every room

4. needs more overhead lighting

5. possibly at some point installing central air (currently uses window units for air and radiators for heat)

My question is, are we crazy to look at buying a home in need of improvements as first time home buyers?

Has anyone else done this? I am a little afraid of all the worst case scenarios (house becomes a money pit, we start to resent each other for all the money, time and effort we have to pour into the place)

So for our first home should we just go with a tidy, ready to move in place? Or go with a house in need of a little hard work and love? I don't want to put undue strain on our new marriage.

I'd appreciate any advice from people who have done this!

Thanks!

razdazzle · July 2012

Hey - I'm in a similar situation, first time home buyer in the DC area. I would like a move-in ready, my husband would like a fixer-upper. We've compromised and are looking for homes that are move-in ready but not brand new everything so that over the years we can add our own touches. That being said - we figure anywhere we move to, we will paint the walls (unless we love the current color - which is unlikely). And if there is carpet we will put down wood floors.

My advice would be to figure out the costs of those repairs first, and what you could afford to put towards adding those now vs. waiting to do it later.

Some of the things you mentioned I think would be fairly easy -

-buying washer/dryer

-painting walls

-adding fans and lighting

Not sure about adding in central air - I think you need to make sure there are air ducts in the home already?

Nechie122 · July 2012

We bought a home that might be described as a "fixer" but everything we've done so far has been purely cosmetic (i.e. there was nothing we HAD to do to move in, it was just out of date). We ended up gutting the kitchen, taking down a wall to give it an open feel, refinishing the hardwood floors, putting in some new fixtures, and doing lots and lots of painting. We still need to add/replace some window treatments and recarpet the bonus (play) room. Long term, the bathrooms need to be updated.

Most of the things are your list seem minor with the exception of installing central air. I'd meet with a contractor before making an offer (which is what we did) to get an estimate of time and money. Whatever he tells you: double it. That is how much it will actually cost and how long it will actually take.

Then you need to make sure you have the cash to pay for it. Getting a home improvement loan on a newly purchased house is tricky if not impossible because you have no equity in it. It's better to pay upfront.

Second, you need to decide whether you'll hire a contractor or whether you think you can do it yourself. The pros and cons are fairly obvious on this one.

Third, you have to ask yourself how long you can live in a construction zone. We were lucky to have 60 days left on our lease after we closed so we had another place to stay. Even still, our kitchen took nearly the ENTIRE two months -- despite being given a 28-day estimate. I was going a little out of mind with construction workers coming and going six days a weeks.

In sum, the kitchen looks great now and I love the way everything is new and our taste, not someone else's. However, I'm more than happy to wait on the bathrooms till we rebuild our funds -- not looking forward to strangers working in my master bathroom for two months.

katharine25 · July 2012

My first home was a foreclosure - It was the cheapest house on the market. The renovation costs equaled the purchase price, and that was still below market value. We gutted the entire building, moved the kitchen & 2 bathrooms, installed completely new electrical, mechanical, plumbing, lighting finishes - It's a brand new home. We had contractors do all the hard work and delivered the home to us taped & primed, 8 months after we closed (we lived in a rental in the meantime, which wasn't ideal financially but there wasn't any other option)

We paid for it through our mortgage, it's called a renovation loan. Google FHA 203K , that's essentially what we did (but not through FHA)

I spend most of my free time working on it - painting and such, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

YourNJRealtor · July 2012

The items that you mentioned are often done to make a "home yours". Picking out paint colors, fixtures, etc can definitely give you the pride of home ownership! Best Wishes!

LoveKiss · July 2012

I wouldn't even consider the things on your list as qualifying for "fixer-upper" status. Most of those things are regular parts of homeownership. The central air is the only big ticket item on there. Definitely check the home's ductwork (if it already has forced air heating). I had a 1953 home, and installed central air in it. However the ductwork was simply not up to the challenge of getting cold air to the 2nd floor spaces. It was always too warm on the 2nd level, and we had to supplement the central air with window units on the really hot days in the area (we're also DC metro, so I know how bloody hot it gets here). I wish I would have spent more to get the ductwork completely re-done.

BTW... welcome to the DC housing market. It sucks.

LFish2010 · July 2012

Welcome to home ownership! Ahhh, the joys.

This house you are talking about sounds pretty good. Hopefully, with the newly remodeled bathrooms and kitchen, they made sure the pluming and electric were up to code and in good shape. Those are big concerns with an older home. Also, foundations, roofing, termites, asbestos, brick in chimney condition, insulation, and lead paint to name a few. The best thing to do is hire an inspector to thoroughly check the place out before you buy it. Make sure they climb on the roof to inspect it, fully inspect the attic, basement/crawl space, etc. This person can tell you what is in good shape, what will need repairs, and what you need to budget for in long-term repairs. He can also tell you what it will take to put in central AC. They'll have to run duct work (since it is on radiators now) and you may want to consider the +/- of switching to central heat as well and have it all done at the same time.

If the electrical is in good shape, putting the ceiling fans and extra lighting in should be a simple task for a professional. I say professional because I don't have electrical experience and I don't want to burn my house down.

Painting: It doesn't matter what house you buy, you will be painting. Especially since you plan to live there a long time.

My question is, are we crazy to look at buying a home in need of improvements as first time home buyers?

No, not crazy. My first home was a 5 year old fix-er upper when I bought it. The previous owner finished it himself. The "bones" of the house were good, just the finish work was very poor. I met my husband in the middle of my project and we ended up finishing out the remodel (new floors, all new trim/moulding, doors, kitchen cabinets, counters, lighting, garage door, and paint) at the same time we built our new house. What made it easy on us was the fact that our styles are so much the same. Our two biggest conversations were over the new kitchen sink and fridge. He wanted a drop in sink so the granite would not chip around the edges and I wanted a french door fridge. We both stated our cases on our picks. I decided that it wasn't that big of a deal on the sink (and he was right) and he decided to let me pick the fridge (and he really likes it now that we have it). Communication is the key. Oh, and our house is 19 months old and we have already made improvements along the way. It is the joy of making it your home.

Best Wishes!

agreg521 · July 2012

My childhood home was a fixer-upper. It was a perfect fit since my dad works construction and did all the work himself. He purchased the house for only 17K. When he had it appraised last year, it was valued at about $120K. (We live in rural Tennessee, so homes are cheaper than other places.) That said, I have an emotional tendency to be drawn to old farm-style houses. But I'm the kind of person who has a "do-it-tomorrow" attitude, and I know that the fixing up would never get done if I purchased a home like that.

Since you and your H are both active, though, it might not be as much of a problem as it would for me. And it doesn't sound like the work the home needs is particularly grueling.

BBear13 · July 2012

Thanks for the feedback and advice, everyone. The idea of owning a home is at times exciting, and other times daunting, so I am trying to be as prepared as I can. Thanks especially for suggestions on things to look out for, like lead and asbestos since it's an older home.

You ladies rock!

Buying a fixer-upper for a first home?

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