Month: April 2016

We looked at a property, were discussing a bid, then learned we had already lost out. Here is how our last house hunt went.

Pam had seen a listing for a property that came out on Monday, April 25th.  Address was 1335 SE 3rd Street in Cedaredge. We contacted our realtor and made an appointment to view the house on Friday, April 29. Knowing the listing was highly desirable (stream! and moderate price!), we tried to view the house earlier in the week after work, but the realtor is also a mom and had after-school activities on her calendar.

Lest we had forgotten, the high country is still locked in winter. Here is a shot of us crossing Grand Mesa on our way to the Friday appointment in Cedaredge.

Crossing Grand Mesa on Friday, April 29

The greyness in the photo is falling snow, enough to accumulate a couple inches by the time we made the return trip.

The house was in a tidy and upscale neighborhood, 3 bedrooms with frontage on Surface Creek, sitting on a 1/2 acre lot. We found the house very attractive both inside and out but needing some cosmetic updating and cleaning, particularly in the yard. Here are a few photos I took of the visit.

Pam views Surface Creek frontage

Living room featured cathedral ceiling and fireplace

Back yard needed cleaning and pruning

South West style home with attached 2-car garage and paved driveway

We were impressed enough to start the process of offering a bid. While discussing our strategy in the kitchen of the home, the realtor received a phone call; another offer, better than ours could ever be, had already been placed! The other offer was for nearly full price, cash, no contingencies, and close in 14 days. We can’t compete with that.

Considering the number of months over the winter we have been house hunting, getting beat out before we even hardly started was a bit hard to take. While not the perfect property, Pam and I agreed this place had 80 percent of our wish list items and we could have been comfortable there. Eventually I would have wanted an additional detached garage, but just about all other projects would have been cosmetic in nature, not structural.

So, for the moment at least, we are in down moods. We thought we would have a pretty good shot at this one. Unless the offer does not go through (highly unlikely) we are out of luck. Bummer.

I guess the search will go on but our enthusiasm is kind of at a low ebb today.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

House hunting is a game, and we don’t have enough money to play it well. In the end, getting what you want involves timing, yes, but mostly money.

Happy Trails.

This past Wednesday, after both of us finished dental appointments in Grand Junction, we drove to Montrose and met our realtor, Linda, to view the inside of 4 houses we had identified as being “potential” retirement properties. The results were a mixed bag; I’ll start with the worst and work up to the best.

The worst was the 1930’s era fixer-upper bungalow in Cedaredge. (820 West Main.) The place is in pretty bad shape and there were no architectural details worth saving. We left quickly.

Holes in the roof at 820 W. Main

The next property was the peach and cherry orchard on Weaver Road outside of Austin. While the house had some nice features, like the kitchen and entry, the place was very “chopped up” with a very strange floor plan (due to making the main house into two rental units). Excellent views of the San Juan and West Elk Mountains though, but no garage or outbuildings.  With some reluctance we decided the orchard could be eliminated from consideration.

Entry and kitchen of orchard house

Overlooking Austin with West Elk Mountains in background.

Next on the list was the Marshall’s Road property. We had high hopes for this one but ran into a couple of major issues. We knew, from the listing photos, that the walk-through galley kitchen was not what Pam wanted and would require a major renovation to modernize it.

Marshall’s Road kitchen

The kitchen space could be expanded into a bedroom that shares the right-hand wall. This would leave two small bedrooms and one bath on the main floor, but the cost of a kitchen renovation is generally quite high. Plus, in a house built in 1909, what would be behind wall #1? Touching the electrical during such a renovation would likely require bringing the entire house up to code, which would mean losing the antique ceiling fixtures in the living and dining rooms.  Bummer, there goes the charm.

Then we descended down a steep and dark stairwell with minimal hand rails into the cellar, where we fund a truly antique furnace. Coal-fired with an automatic stoker, this thing is a monster.

Coal-fired furnace with stoker

I estimate it would be about a $5,000.00 job to replace this unit with a modern gas furnace. Again, by itself not a deal breaker, but over-all the cost (and labor required) to bring this place up to our standards would be quite high. And not just in major projects…the windows are the old style sliders that use a weight-and-pulley system; some of the windows had broken cords and the windows did not work properly. While not difficult to repair, it does mean every window would need attention.    The costs would add up since we would not have the time (and knowledge, in some cases) to do the work ourselves and would have to hire contractors.

And not just inside work…the 3+ acre lot also needs attention. For example, this old cement block building would have to go. So would the tree house behind it.

Old building would have to go

Still, the yard and views are very attractive – the front lawn is almost like a park.

West Elk view from driveway

And many rooms in the house were appealing, such as the dining area.

Dining room features antique light fixture

While not eliminated from consideration, this place would not be at the top of our ‘pick list’ unless the price dropped significantly. There are many high-priced renovation projects involved in moving forward.

The last property, on Tulip Circle in Montrose, was nicer inside than the listing photos indicated. Because of the price and the way the property is marketed (it’s a foreclosure, over $300,000 asking price, being sold at auction through a 3rd party) we did not initially consider it a real possibility. I didn’t take photos so will use a couple of the listing photos.

First, the way this property is being sold is… ah….unique to us. The listing company, Hubzu.com, takes on-line bids and submits them to the property owner, in this case I am guessing a bank. The bank can accept or reject all bids. If all bids are rejected, the bid process is re-opened for another round of bids. (So far this property has been through 3 bid cycles.) The kicker is that Hubzu collects an additional 4.5% of the winning bid price as a closing cost (essentially, this covers the Seller’s usual Broker/Realtor fee payment plus some profit for Hubzu). The percentage adds many thousands of dollars to the price of the property — $11,250.00 on a winning bid of $250,000.00 for example. Closing costs might, or might not, be financed as part of a loan on the property. If not, this means the Buyer has to have a lot more cash up front, a problem for us as it would be in addition to the 20% down payment. We are going to get more information on this process and see if it is a viable avenue for us to pursue, either for this house or some future one.

The house itself is about ten years old and quite contemporary, with upgrades to bathrooms and kitchen. It does feature two bedrooms on the main floor, each with an attached bath, along with a laundry area and a main floor bonus room (probably office). Upstairs are a couple more bedrooms with a shared bath.

Kitchen in Tulip Circle home

Master bath on main level

On the other hand, the living room is quite small and there is no defined dining room. The dining room table would end up in the kitchen area, potentially disrupting the traffic flow to the rear deck.

Living room

There are also HOA (Home Owner’s Association) fees and regulations, most of which deal which appearance of the property. Since there is no outside storage at present (there is an attached 2-car garage) it remains to be seen if an additional detached outside storage structure to house my toys would be permitted. We are checking (through the realtor) about this.

So, while we initially thought the Tulip property was beyond us (originally sold for $420,000 a decade ago), we were impressed enough to look further into the auction system and how we might be able to move forward. The odds are against us; we believe the minimum the bank would accept is more than we have to offer, but the longer the place stays on the market the better our chances become. Watch this space!

Around our current house on the high desert, lilacs are just staring to bud and, for the first time ever, the white lilac bush looks like it will flower. A Mother’s Day gift to Pam a few years back, the lilac has grown well every year but has never flowered. A few white buds are beginning to open and maybe (assuming no more freezing nights) there will be quite a show of flowers in the coming weeks. White lilacs would be excellent, but the plant’s main landscape attribute is an amazing growth pattern that now provides screening for neighbors’ ugly properties.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

Two of the retirement houses in contention above represent a tug of war between the heart and the head.  The heart says 1909 historic Grandma house, absolutely.  The Seller has a photo of the original building standing treeless on the property in 1909; it has remained in their family for over 100 years. Truly a property worth updating (kitchen, furnace, electrical).  So says the heart.

On the other hand, a newer home like the Tulip house perhaps makes more sense for the older folks we are becoming; it has an updated charm, and is on a large lot in an upscale subdivision.  The auction process is unconventional and may or may not be something we can pursue due to cash on hand.  But a newer home would likely result in fewer large and costly renovation projects and (potentially) fewer maintenance issues over the next few decades.  So says the head.

And the winner is? Maybe neither one.  I think I could use a time out.

Happy Trails.

In addition to weather (more in a moment), there are just a few comments to make in this post.

Weather:
Denver and the high country received national attention due to a storm that continues today. Here in the western part of the state we received some rain and wind; we can see the snow line up higher but the storm had little effect on us. Denver is a couple hundred miles away and on the other side of the mountains so the weather is often quite different than what we experience here in De Beque. It has been a cold and wet couple of days, though, which curbed some of our normal weekend activities. Our furnace, after not being used for a couple weeks, has been running occasionally overnight. A warm-up is forecast for later next week so conditions will improve.

The improvement will come at a good time for us as we plan another “home visit” trip this coming Wednesday. Pam and I have identified 4 homes that we would like to have our realtor show us. (Links will take you to the Realtor listing.) The first is a small house with a garage and pond (biggest attraction is the pond). Address is 15977 6100 Road in Montrose. The second is an orchard property near Austin, 21761-59 Weaver Road. With 600 fruit trees (a full working orchard), we are hoping the property has views and a roomy house — the fruit trees, not so much (but trees are trees, plus the acreage is totally deer fenced). The third possibility is the Marshall’s Road property I have mentioned in an earlier post. This one has a variety of trees, nice yard, and a few storage buildings plus a view of the West Elk Mountains. Street address is 8903 Marshall’s Road. The final house is also a property I have mentioned before, a newer house in foreclosure on Tulip Circle in Montrose. With a large lot and closer to town, this property has some attractive features, including an attached garage and an underground sprinkler system. Buying a $420,000 property for closer to $250,000 could be a prudent investment, but we’d need to wait for the bank to keep lowering the price. The address is 20391 Tulip Circle.

We also plan a drive-by to take a look at a total “fixer-upper” property in Cedaredge. In town but with a large lot and independent well to supplement city utilities, this 1930s-era bungalow features a dilapidated but salvageable shop, trees, and a low price point. Again, we would consider buying low and fixing up over a couple of years before we retire. The street address on this place is 820 W. Main Street, Cedaredge, CO.

Look for many photos of these places as well as our reactions in my next post!

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

The Winter’s retirement home search is winding down.  Viewing the interiors of two of the homes we have been watching, plus two more, may be [close to] the conclusion of this round of house hunting.  Sellers/realtors are anticipating more Buyer activity as the weather improves, and may be less likely to lower their prices and “deal.” Unless we find a property we cannot refuse, it may be the end of Summer/Fall before we start up the active search again. Our Summers are always busy with high country trips to Sanderling and De Beque yard maintenance anyway.

Happy Trails.

We have tulips blooming in our yard. I guess this means spring has arrived! I will be mowing the lawn later today, weather permitting, as there is a 40 percent chance of rain in the forecast. Could use the rain – already.

There are a few topics today including some tech news, house hunt, and a bit longer comment by Pam.

Pam is trying out a new style of computer mouse, generically known as a “vertical mouse.” Evoluent is a leader in this style of mouse which is supposed to reduce strain in your mouse hand and arm. Initial impressions are good; we will see how it works once the novelty wears off. The unit pictured is a “small” mouse which fits ladies’ smaller hands. The company also offers a “Large” version, a wireless version, and a Macintosh version of it’s mouse. (My hand in the photos, not Pam’s.)

Vertical Mouse – side view

Vertical Mouse – top view

I installed additional memory in the Mac, upgrading from 8gb to 16gb and the computer seems to be responding a little snappier than in the past.

House Hunt.

Not a lot new as we don’t plan a trip this weekend to drive-by potential properties. I do, however, have a few more photos from a couple properties we have driven by in past trips.

This first is on Knight Road and features a newer, ranch-style home. Drawbacks are few trees and no views, but it does have a large garage. We do not really care for the “zero-scaping” (no lawn) approach to landscaping; we really prefer grass and trees!

Knight Road home

Knight Road garage

Pam says we are not buying a property based on the garage, but along with three bedrooms and two baths, a substantial garage would be very nice to have.

Another “fixer-upper” we looked at is an older four-square farmhouse in Eckert (on the way to the Grand Mesa) that has been added onto. Advantages are large trees in the front yard, a couple of outbuildings, and an irrigation ditch that runs through the front yard. Can you say “pond potential?” But the place would require a lot of work, emphasis on a lot of work.

Old farmhouse on 5 acres

Out buildings on farmhouse lot

Yes, that is an old tractor tire that needs to go away, as well as the old mobile home sitting behind the shed. As I said, a lot of work…but it represents the “buy and fix up” approach we have been considering. I am at least a couple years from retirement so buying a not-ready-for-prime-time property is something we have considered. We could use the time to fix up a place and spread the costs out, but I’m not sure that we want to take on such a project. Still, we may request to see the inside of this place, although we know it probably has steep stairs in the original structure which would not be a plus for us. But…5 acres, trees, irrigation water…could be worse.

Pam’s Two Cents Worth (or maybe Ten Cents):

Why are we looking at larger homes (1,500 square feet +) you may ask?  (Well, I guess you did ask.) No, we are definitely not hoping the children will return.  Besides a place to store stuff (some of it is said children’s stuff), a requirement which will hopefully decrease as the years roll on, I would like space to foster animals.  It’s amazing to me how much room crates and carriers take up.  Also, when fostering a mom cat and litter, privacy is necessary so the mom cat doesn’t freak out with activity coming and going – each is very protective of her litter.  Hence, a dedicated room. I see myself getting back into fostering (likely on a more limited basis than in the past) when I have more time to do so, and I’d like to have room for all the fostering accoutrements.

Add to that a space for cat boxes, cat feeding station, and dog beds for the current pets.  Pets take up a lot of room.  I look at the houses we consider with more attention to how the pets will fit into the floor plan than I ever did.  (Fields, of course, looks at the garage and/or outbuildings with attention to how all his machines will fit into those spaces. Unlike animals that eventually “age out,” Fields’ machines are always with us.)

Finally, I am responsible for a small colony of feral cats, currently living in the garage.  Several are the moms of past litters I rescued from the streets of De Beque, one is a stray that attached himself to us in our previous residence. These animals are aging, and live in the half-world between tame and wild; it would not be fair to leave them behind when we move and expect them to survive in their declining years. They need to relocate with us.

Bees – am I still allergic? Don’t know.  I have grown flowers for years, but I stay clear of the bees.  Just last year I purchased an Epi-pen to have up at Sanderling, in case I should get stung up there.  (Medical response is more than three minutes away in the mountains.) So, regarding the house in the orchard, bees are just one of the (many) considerations.  Fields didn’t like the orchard location because there was no mountain view – he is hung up on having another “view.” Sanderling, apparently, is not enough?

First floor bedroom/bathroom/laundry room for our geriatric years, space for animals (indoor and outdoor), enough outbuildings, a pond, a view, some character, all at a price we can afford…  Can you see why it’s taking us so long to find a retirement location, with all these considerations in the mix?

Happy Trails.

Even though it’s not high spring yet, weekends are getting busier with the improving weather. Yesterday (Saturday) I did a number of routine taks, including:
Digging out dandelions
Changed oil and filter in the RAV4
Washed the RAV4
Changed oil and filter in the Honda
Moved the RV from the neighbor’s yard to ours
Mowed a bit of lawn
Weed-wacked around the storage shed and house
Walked the recycles over to the town’s recycle station
Walked over to the Post Office to get the mail
Took my morning 1 3/4 mile “health walk”
And did all this before lunch!

However, I also took a bit of time to start a fire in the fire pit and enjoy a nice hot cup of tea. Here is the fire in the fire pit:

Morning fire

And here is my cup of tea:

Morning tea

After lunch it was time for a shower while Pam drew up a shopping list, them off to the grocery store (64 mile round trip) to get our stuff.

The evening was a bit quieter; Pam made tacos for dinner then it was time to watch a bit of TV and keep an eye on the sunset.

Not quite a typical day but not that far off, either. I always have some projects or work to do around the place that keep me busy pretty much every weekend.

House Hunt:

Last week we drove by a few properties in the Delta/Austin area. Our realtor had sent us a few listings and Pam found others on-line. Having not been in this area before we were curious as to what we would find. To our surprise, the area offers more than we had thought it would, including some views of the West Elk Mountains and the San Juan Mountains plus some trees and irrigation water.

While we eliminated many of the drive-by properties, one has “potential.” Since it is on Marshall’s Road, we have taken to calling it the Marshall’s property.

The big draws at Marshall’s are the trees (a variety, some very old) and larger yard (about 3.2 acres) this property features. There are outbuildings that would work for garage(s) and storage, as well as limited views of the West Elk range. Drawback, from what we can see in the realtor photos, is a very small and somewhat cramped galley walk-through kitchen. However, a bedroom+ bathroom +laundry appear to be on the main floor. We would like to tour the inside and will contact our realtor to see what can be arranged. (The realtor is on vacation so the visit won’t happen for a couple weeks.)

Here are some photos I took at Marshall’s:

Marshall’s property front yard

Closer view of the house

House from road

Storage structures behind house

West Elk view from end of driveway

The Zillow real estate listing for this house is 8903 Marshall’s Road Austin CO

Nearer to our target price range, Marshall’s also has irrigation water and fenced in areas where the dogs could run. There appear to be enough living spaces on the main level that steps would not be an issue (most of the bedrooms and one bathroom are upstairs, however). While yard maintenance would be high -at least for the first year or two – the number, ages, and varieties of trees already on the lot is a real draw for us and would outweigh the labor that cleaning up and managing the lot would require.

We continue to drive by other properties and another possibility is a ranch style home on Coogans Bluff Road. This property has a unique entrance…you drive through a line of orchard trees to get to the house!  The orchard could be a problem…Pam was allergic to bee stings in her youth  and she still has an Epi-pen available in case she is stung. Living with dozens of fruit trees around may not be a good idea, but the ranch house is on a large lot with a garage. Listing is 9467 Coogans Bluff Road Austin CO

More to come as we continue our house hunt and get ready for spring.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

So I contacted my credit union in Boulder (been a continuous member since the 1980s) to find out about mortgages.  Closing fees/insurance/pro-rated taxes for a home purchase have gone up from our previous high of $2,000 (closing on Sanderling, so land only) and are now in the $3,000-$4,000 range. Paying these exorbitant fees always makes my blood boil.  Of course, it means we must save an additional $4,000 on top of the down payment.  Ugh.

And, the Universe laughs. The actual remnant of the old town of Austin, CO (which we drove through today) is, if anything, more junky and run-down than De Beque (already a very low bar).  Which is why a purchase in town is o-u-t; only properties in the rural area will be considered.

Happy Trails.