I'll be watching to see what pops up here, as I also am selling a small home and I also see it as being perfect for the single person, pensioner or couple with no children. The nice thing is my realtor is on the same wavelength as I as far as matching the home with a buyer who might be interested.

I don't expect it to fly to closing immediately, but I'm optimistic about it selling at a fair price before a lot of other homes in the vicinity. The good news is that many single people are now considering the purchase of a home as opposed to renting, for many different reasons, and believe it or not, the majority of single people who are buying homes are women!

My daughter and I did all the renovation on this little house. It had really good bones, but needed major cleaning and tweeking. I gave her free reign on decorating it and came away with a house I believe is gender neutral enough to not limit it to a woman's house, but with the things done most women would want done so that a lot of stuff one would find expensive to contract out is finished.

Do you have a university nearby? I have seriously considered advertising it there for several reasons. A bungalow home in a very modest price range is cheaper than rent. It is, however, large enough for a student to have a room mate to share mortgage and expenses. Loans are so easy to get now, and often with nothing down. After four years, not only can they sell it with a free ride, but also have an equity tool. Presented logically to a parent, it starts to look pretty good compared to throwing money down a dorm room pit. As an aside, the kid's pet can leave for school with them. LOL.

I'd consider listing your house on historicproperties.com. I'd also find a realtor who specializes in historic houses. That type of realtor will find the old home buyers. Also, if your neighborhood has an old home owner's association, get the word out through them, too.

If the town you live in is mostly older homes, people who are looking there are going to be the type that specifically want an older house.

Good luck. May you find someone who'll love your home as you have.

Advertising on Craig's List may help you reach younger singles and DINKs.

Hey Chloe - watch your language!! LOL Sorry, couldn't resist! lol

time2sell - I don't necessarily think that you have a niche market house. Granted it is small and geared towards singles, DINKs or empty nesters, but that comprises alot of the population. You may actually have an advantage since not everyone wants to buy in a family friendly neighbourhood.

"Loans are so easy to get now, and often with nothing down."

Read some of the recent threads about current trends in financing. That may not be true anymore.

In addition, if the location is great...play that up in your marketing...as some folks will gladly forego more space for a great and easy commute...or close proximity to shopping, entertainment, etc...
In addition, if your property taxes are considerably lower than the other homes, highlight that as well..

Last but not least, if required by your town, make sure that you have all building permits and final approvals for the additions....as buyers feel more comfortable not having to guess about the work that was performed.

"Loans are so easy to get now, and often with nothing down."

Read some of the recent threads about current trends in financing. That may not be true anymore.

That's true that it's headed in that direction and frankly, it needed to. But, compared to what it was like a couple decades ago, when I was young and entering the housing markets, it's like the throw money at you. The easy loans are still out there, that change hasn't happened yet, doesn't overnight. The first people who are going to feel the credit crunch, are obviously those who have poor histories.

I was wondering,calliope, if what you are perceiving is that it is now easier for single women to be taken seriously when shopping for a mortgage than it was several decades ago?

I too, have a niche property I will be putting up for sale. Mine is an older, handyman bungalow cottage on 1.47 acres in a great area of town with basically no restrictions. It is hard to find in our area anymore, but the house is small. I need to find a single or couple who are artists, want a large garden and/or livestock, tinker with tools (there is a workshop) or store a lot of stuff on the land with no problems. We're in a smaller town in Florida within easy commute to a big city. I am planning on putting it up on MLS myself, and advertising on Craigslist. Any other suggestions would be appreciated!

Hope the OP doesn't think I hijacked the thread! That little Sear's house sounds charming, I bet it gets sold quickly!

2br/2ba would be good for a couple w/ one kid. Those 2 baths are really great!

Everyone - thanks for responding.

I asked my REA to pull all the comps of houses which sold for under $400,000 in the past 2 months in 2 zipcodes. This is shocking.

There are currently 655 house on the market in my zipcode. 43 are under $400,000, and 2 houses sold under 400 in the last 2 months. In the other zipcode there are 268 houses on the market, 68 under 400, and 6 sold under 400 in the past 2 months. These ain't good numbers. We are dropping the price at this point. He says getting through August is the tough month, and that the Fall is a good selling season.

Caliope - no university close by. A subway stop 3 blocks away which should help. Good luck on selling your small house.

Kec01 - loved! that website. My house is a far cry from historic --- just a starter house in a working class neighborhood.

chloe - thanks for the craigslist suggestion. I'm going to update my posting there right now.

sparksal - thanks for the encouragement. You are right, many homebuyers fit the population I am aiming for.

logic - I don't actually have all the permits, but I think the solidness of the back porch is obvious. They could get the permits from the county - cause I know it was repeatedly inspected.

gypsyrose - Your house sounds very sellable. Yes small, but that's a lot of land for an in-town property. Thanks for the compliment, my house is charming. The problem is that the neighborhood is not. But I need to remember that's why I could afford it in the first place which I am truly grateful for.

Everyone GOOD LUCK IN SELLING AND BUYING!

I was wondering,calliope, if what you are perceiving is that it is now easier for single women to be taken seriously when shopping for a mortgage than it was several decades ago?

You know, I am sure that plays into the equation. It's not just the matter of being taken seriously regarding mortgages, but having rights under the law concerning them. When I first married, very young, in the mid sixties, I wasn't even allowed to give blood until I was 21 without 1) my parent's consent and if married 2) then my husbands! When we bought our first car, he was a student, and I was a postal carrier and that was a big thing back then for a woman and one of the better jobs in our little mountain town. They wouldn't grant a loan to me, but put it in my student husband's name, who was not really employed except I paid for it. My state would not even allow women to work overtime to help pay for a purchase. I could go on and on, but TMALSS........am glad things are easier in that respect for women now.

No, I think another part of the equation are that women are taking responsibility for their futures upon themselves more so now than in past generations. They're not waiting for a knight to come sweep them away for happiness ever after, but planning for their own security. With or without Mr. Knight. LOL.

When I said we prepared our house with single women in mind, I wasn't trying to be a sexist. My daughter and I did all the work on it. I can wire and plaster and work a saw. My daughter is the plumber and a better carpenter than I. We both paint and clean. She can glaze windows and I do screen repair. She's a landscaper by profession and I am in the nursery business.....so the outside is covered as well. But, the time has just not come quite yet when most women would have their own garage full of power tools and hard hat experience. Most with whom I've dealt want a house pretty much ready to move in, save perhaps decorating.

Gypsyrose, if you're going to market your home yourself, please be careful. There are A LOT of unscrupulous people out there. If you show someone the house, have someone with you, and only give out information to those you trust.
I wish you luck.

~Christina

ps before you list on those sites, please educate yourself about the type of scams these people attempt (and often succeed) in pulling, ok?

Time2sell, If you have a Sears house, it's a historic house. Yes, it may be a small starter home, but it's historic. I'd still explore that option - from other old house forums that I visit, you'd be surprised at the number of 2 people households out there looking to downsize or for that smaller, manageable older home.

time2sell: "logic - I don't actually have all the permits, but I think the solidness of the back porch is obvious. They could get the permits from the county - cause I know it was repeatedly inspected"

This may not be as simple as you may believeÂ....as solidness is only one consideration. Often, if finals were not issued, the permits expire...and the process...and the fees involved...starts all over again.

In addition, if code changed during this time, the deck would them be required to meet present codeÂÂas opposed to what was in place at the time. Code changes yearly...so this may or may not affect this particular case.

In addition, decks often require zoning permits as well as building permits to insure the deck as not been built beyond the setback.

Last but not least...I'm not clear on why you don't have all of the permits....but if the deck was built legally with all of final approvals, the addition of such would be on the CO of the home.

Also, depending upon the code in your area, and depending on what permits you may not have in hand, you may be required to dig out footings to document that they were done properly.

The bottom line is that you want to market your home...and you are coming here for advice because you are clearly motivated to sell it for as much as possible.

However, you admit that its appeal is to a niche market.......that being the case, it is therefore unwise to create an unnecessary nuisance factor, in requiring a potential buyer to perform all of the legwork and expense of obtaining the documentation of the permitsÂas well as final approvals.

The added risk is if there is a problem, such as a setback or code issue, it may turn the buyer off on the whole dealÂas there is plenty of other homes to be had on the market.

IMO, you would be well served to get the deck issue squared awayÂand move forward with all paperwork in handÂ.or, risk unpleasant surprises later on down the lineÂand at the most inopportune time.

I just realized that it is a screened in porch (not a deck)...AND a kitchen remodel...all the more reason to get the permit situation squared away..as the kitchen remodel may or may not bring further complications in terms of final approvals....especially if windows or doors were added, moved, removed or made larger...and if any plumbing, HVAC, electrical or structural work was performed.

thanks logic for the advice. I don't think I need these permits and I know the county has them. The kitchen remodel didn't need permits. I'm sure my REA would have advised me about the permits if they were required.

I do feel comfortable knowing that the bedroom bump out and porch were built to code though and inspected as needed. The footings on the porch were inspected as was the final build - I met the guy. As for the bedroom bump out which was before my time - there is no way this could have been built without a permit - I live in a pretty active and involved county.

Gypsyrose - I wish you lived both here now and in the last location I was in because what you have is exactly what I look for. Impossible to find my last location and so far here after looking for 3 months. I'm single, love to vegetable garden and want a few chickens.

"I too, have a niche property I will be putting up for sale. Mine is an older, handyman bungalow cottage on 1.47 acres in a great area of town with basically no restrictions. It is hard to find in our area anymore, but the house is small. I need to find a single or couple who are artists, want a large garden and/or livestock, tinker with tools (there is a workshop) or store a lot of stuff on the land with no problems. We're in a smaller town in Florida within easy commute to a big city. I am planning on putting it up on MLS myself, and advertising on Craigslist. Any other suggestions would be appreciated!"

time2sell: I don't think I need these permits and I know the county has them. The kitchen remodel didn't need permits. I'm sure my REA would have advised me about the permits if they were required.

Regardless of how "comfortable" you may feel, you can't count on your potential buyers feeling the same. Why do you think that they will take your word for it? If the buyer has a good attorney, he or she will not allow them to move forward without you providing all of the documentation.

Last but not least, not all REA's tell you all that you need to know...just ask anyone that worked with a REA, but had a sale either go south or had a long delayed closing because of unresolved permit issues.

To each is own....but as always, forewarned is forearmed.