Monday, April 09, 2012

A to Z Challenge - H

http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/p/2012-to-z-challenge-sign-up-list.html


H...        Home

For those of you who are new to my blog, I recently bought my first home. My fiance (now husband) and I got the opportunity to buy his great-aunt's home as she was in need of more daily care than she could get alone.  So, we bought the home and provided her with some income. Good deal for all...

Or so we thought!

We moved in prior to the paperwork officially going through because it was a family deal and could, and also we had to rent our existing condo to ensure the mortgage.   

Being a bit more anal than my fiance, I demanded we get a home inspection and low-and-behold the house needed "some work" (above and beyond the obvious pea-green rug, wallpaper, and tacky plastic-aqua counter-top issues).  


Peeling paint (bad paint job with no primer), the roof "dipping" a bit (due to broken rafters holding it up), electrical systems that needed upgrade, leaking plumbing, a disgusting carpenter ant problem (ick!), and then we discovered a huge whole in the porch floor...WTH?!?! 

Can you say Money Pit?

We spent weeks freaking out about whether the house was worth it. It is a really small, neglected, dated interior, ranch on a teeny-tiny piece of land...on a quiet dead-end street in a very, very nice neighborhood, less than two blocks from a gorgeous lake and a beautiful downtown area, with a fireplace (that had actually never been used), and beautiful woodwork - all a short drive from Boston.  Ugh...what to do?!


Eventually, we worked out a deal that would benefit everyone.  The house stayed in the family, but we are actually able to afford to fix the thing, and the deal went through. 

As this was being processed, I broke my foot! My fiance got unmotivated and nothing got done until almost the end of last the summer. Then, his buddy (read "Godsend") and he spent several weekends fixing the roof, fixing the porch which had not been waterproofed and was just rotting beneath us (and which we discovered was the source of the ant problem), and patching the paint to just make it through the winter.


As spring approaches, we have a lot of work ahead of us! But the work we will do this spring will actually be visual and obvious - outdoor paint job and some much needed gardening (curb appeal), indoor painting and "vomit-rug" removal, replacing the nasty kitchen linoleum with something new and clean. These changes will really make it begin to feel like our own home... 

I am actually getting excited, kind of.

I guess you're just going to have to come back to see the "after pictures" later this summer!

8 comments:

Denise said...

I can't wait to see the 'after' pictures. I'm sure it will be great!
You're quite right to be getting excited about it. It's a fab opportunity to really put your mark on the place and make it yours.

Good luck!

Gail M Baugniet - Author said...

Definitely a money pit situation for your. Glad everything is working out.
http://gail-baugniet.blogspot.com Theme: A World of Crime

Graciewilde said...

Location, location, location - a neglected house in an otherwise very, very nice neighborhood , TWO BLOCKS from a gorgeous lake and close to a beautiful downtown? Sounds ideal for investment in the future!

Stephsco said...

Hi - stopping by for the A to Z challenge. If you have an ugly duckling house in a good neighborhood, I think that counts as a win.

There's a blog I've followed for years that is so cool and inspiring, I hope it helps you out (it's not my blog, btw). http://www.younghouselove.com/ is a couple who have refurbished two mid-century ranch homes into total awesomeness. They do much of it themselves on a budget though you'd never know by looking at it.

Miranda Hardy said...

Glad you were able to work something out. I did like the movie The Money Pit, though. It was so funny.

Danielle L Zecher said...

Looking forward to seeing the after pictures. Good luck with all of the repairs. I know it's not fun. We disccovered a horrible leak within our first month of buying our first home. It does get better.

I found your blog on the A to Z list, it's nice to meet you.

T. Powell Coltrin said...

I love love love doing renovations. Lucky you. I say this knowing you can't slap me.

Teresa

MamaMunky said...

We are about to be in a very similar situation regarding a new house. And I can't wait to make it my own! Where are you guy's located? I'm in Haverhill. We are buying a house in Derry NH though. Thanks for sharing!

Lindsey from www.babiesbooksandsigns.com