Totally agree with cpartist. I'd much, much rather start with that than be expected to pay a premium for something like this:

http://www.estately.com/FL/Mango_Groves,_Lake_Worth#listing-718-n-m-street

or this:

http://www.estately.com/FL/Mango_Groves,_Lake_Worth#listing-531-n-k-street--3

Writers block, at least with that first one they kept the old tile in the bathroom and some of the old trim. Most in my area of FL have anything charming stripped out and "modernized".

Yes, cpartist, but look at that kitchen and living room! There's no going back from that.

Writer, that's not bad at all. The house doesn't have the usual flipper cheap white cabinets and gray & white speckled countertop. MG I'm sick of that.

I'm itching to do another remodel. I have never remodeled at house of that age. What a fun project Cpart.

Oh, it's definitely flip grade, justerrilynn. It's just the flip of several years back, back when alderwood was all the rage.

Sad to think of someone living in that dirty place. I hope someone else can restore it.

Wouldn't it be kinda dishonest to clean and paint and up the price 100K? In this condition you have a better idea what you are dealing with . And if you knew regardless of cosmetics the seller would have wasted 10K in time and materials and the buyer 100K to the budget. I do wonder how people live like this for long periods of time when everything around them changes.

Writer, when I first moved down here in 78' I rented a little house on N. E street. I moved shortly after the chainsaw massacre on J st where the head was found at Ryan's bar. And, also after my house was broken into.

I have tainted feels about that area even though it was looong ago.

I don't think it's been cleaned since 1925! Surely a realtor would advise sending in a commercial cleaning company to at least make it sanitary!

I do wonder how people live like this for long periods of time when everything around them changes.

I see two possibilities. It could have been a rental, a bit of a slumlord special. That was the situation with the unit I'm in now. I was rented out hundreds below market rent. The renters never complained out anything that needed fixing because they didn't want to rock the boat, and the landlady was blithely unaware that there were any issues with the unit (or maybe willfully put on blinders).

The other possibility stems from the ethnic and income demographics of the neighborhood. In the 1950s it was a predominantly Chinese neighborhood with lots of immigrants, not terribly high income. Between not having a lot of money for upgrades, and culturally not being engaged in keeping up with US trends (or even being very vested in keeping up with the Joneses), as long as stuff was working it just didn't get updated.

Given the dirt, I think the former situation is more likely, although low-income senior homeowners can let things go if they don't have the physical ability to keep up, don't have money to hire someone, and don't have family nearby to help keep on top of things.

no 10K would be enough even for cosmetic improvements. you can't cut it here with cosmetic improvements either. it would be same 100K..ok maybe 50 depending on the area. but I find it hard to believe

As a buyer-yeah..I'd rather pay less for the house, spend these 100K (probably more from what I can see..most of inner.. workings are probably goners) myself to do what I see fit

IMHO they did right..

also-maybe this house is such a burden on whatever level they really want out of it asap, instead of putting time and money into it, in a hurry and all

this thing works if you're a flipper, and it's your livelihood..

when you're the owner..not so great

we did see a house around the same time we saw ours

same neighborhood a bit further in(less walking distance but more privacy). it had a nice facade and had a view. but inside was all empty broken and ..like it had a fire at some point?

and I said "oh no..that's just too much work!!"

well little did I know. lol

$10k would get the house cleaned and the interior painted, and could make a big difference people's perception of the house (assuming there aren't structural issues). I haven't seen a single-family home in this neighborhood for less than $450,000 in a while. You can't rent a 2 bedroom in the neighborhood for less than $2500.

I think it's crumbling..kitchen, bath..hard to clean crumbling

you need to refinish it all. why to refinish something that's crumbling

oh you can if you call a restoration specialist that knows what he does but it won't be 10K

and what they've got also doesn't warrant a restoration specialist..

and I don't know whether it has structural issues but it will have some issues. I bet. If nobody touched it-of course it will have issues. House is a constant maintenance. This one is to be 100 years old soon.

I also rather will have a very clear perception..ok that's an old house..probably built pretty well..but it needs tons of work. Am I ready or not? For this amount of work?

As in my example-I passed on the house that looked like this one(probably worse) and picked the house that was livable and seemed less demanding (we did buy with an intent to remodel)

I ended up spending same money if not more. And probably more time than I'd spend have we gone with the house that'd tell us from the very beginning all the info about itself

Not that I have many regrets..

Too late for this lol

Well I guarantee it has knob and tube wiring and a completely inadequate number of circuits and outlets. If you have to do anything at all that touches the electrical that's at least $10K all by itself. You'd want to do some earthquake retrofits in the basement. The foundation may need replacement. All of that is pretty much par for the course of a home of this vintage.

We replaced the foundation on our house (and did earthquake retrofits) shortly after we bought it. My unit (downstairs) has all new wiring, but the upstairs is still knob and tube. Both units have galvanized water pipes, which at age 100 is a ticking time bomb. I have clay sewer pipe that has some misalignment and a bit of root incursion. We had to replace the main water shut-off valve to the upstairs unit a few months ago when it started leaking. The plumber pointed out that if a problem arose with the supply to my unit, he would have to replace the supply line all the way to the street, because of how it was configured. Keeping my fingers crossed on that one.

My point is that many of the issue can and will continue to be unaddressed by the new owner.

what I'd do-I'd change the fence..the fence is very psychologically oppressing, to me at least..but I guess if I'm not in the mood to change anything I'm probably not in the mood to change the fence either

I'd never buy it anyway..why to buy a house where you can see neighbors' window? Condo is much better. Less maintenance. And maybe even less chance to see neighbors window. But I'm very not-neighborly, truth to be told. I don't know why I'm like that..big city kid and all..probably just tired.

exactly, cawaps!! that what I was trying to say..only my conclusion is the opposite: the new owner will address it because it begs to be addressed..you see such house-you start calculating..)))

while something improved only very superficially, even when bought as a fixer upper..you'll calculate, and then it will appear you've made some crucial mistakes calculating..

I've got to say that I think I see more bathrooms and kitchens that are completely original, often including semi antique appliances in urban California real estate listings than anywhere else in the country. Possibly because of the draconian code and permit requirements people leave things as is.

"draconian code and permit requirements"-haaaaa!!!! very nicely put

Code permit requirement, but also it's such an expensive real estate market that the people who would buy in this neighborhood struggle just to buy something--they have to stretch so much that they don't have anything left over for remodeling. It's also a crazy expensive remodel market (never mind the code issues, since unpermitted work is rampant), so the Midwest's $30,000 kitchen remodel is our $75,000 kitchen remodel.

I'll take the vintage sink from the bathroom! Too bad there isn't a claw foot tub. Maybe this tub was actually put in at some point? Or maybe that is a claw foot, and they built a surround around it.

The house I lived in when I was little, my parents/grandparents, also had the stove and the vented space heating to the outside like that. I don't remember where the water heater was, maybe in the bathroom?

Too bad there isn't a claw foot tub. Maybe this tub was actually put in at some point?

By the mid 20's clawfoot was the extreme low-budget choice, so yeah, the tub is almost certainly original. Here's a 1924 Crane ad, for example:

I LOVE THAT HOUSE! We would buy it in a minute if we lived in that city. Having so many original features is a gift!!! We have done the work ourselves in restoring a few 100 yr old homes and the work has been both emotionally and financially rewarding! I hope that whoever buys it doesn't paint everything grey/greige/beige.

Yes, cpartist, but look at that kitchen and living room! There's no going back from that.

Writers block, I was trying to give some kudos for preserving something in the house. I agree with you. DH and I looked at old houses for 2 years in our area hoping to snag one that we could fix up. Alas it would have meant huge dollars just to put back any charm, if that charm could have been found. It's all been stripped away in every old house here.

I would rather have the original charm and dirt like that along with knob and tube wiring, than have it like the fixed up versions that are devoid of charm. If I'm going to put that much time, money and work into a house, I want what made it wonderful in the first place and not some contemporary idea of what millennials want.

I'm itching to do another remodel. I have never remodeled at house of that age. What a fun project Cpart.

They were fun projects when I was younger. My first house was a 1927 bungalow and we bought it from the original owner's daughter. When it was built, all the woodwork was painted, so we knew we didn't need to strip it because it wasn't quality wood. However it did have beautiful maple floors with walnut edging around the rooms, original glass windows, original subway tile in the bathroom and kitchen, the original ironing board in the kitchen and coved ceilings in the living/dining room.

That house was on a tiny 40 x 100 plot and to date, it's still my favorite house of all the ones I've lived in. If the school district had been better, we might have stayed a few more years, even though it was only a 2 bedroom/2 bath house. (Note this picture was taken after we sold it. Colors are different. Windows were changed unfortunately and we had no lions. LOL)

Maybe this tub was actually put in at some point? Or maybe that is a claw foot, and they built a surround around it.

No that tub is original to the house. I had one like it in my 1927 house and also one in my 1898 house

I know that some of you are really handy and know how to fix everything but MY GOD that thing is HORRIBLE! UGH! I swear I can smell the "STANK" just looking at the pictures. How could that cost $375,000? You would have to gut the thing just to remove the stench (I'm guessing). GAG! I'm pretty sure I got germs on my monitor just looking at the pictures...HA!

How could that cost $375,000? That's probably not a mystery to anyone who lives in a high cost-of-living area. It's a house. In Oakland. Where it would cost you $2500 to rent a 2 bedroom house anywhere in the city. Where the next cheapest house costs $450,000 and is still not all that great. That's how.

In my neighborhood an entry level house larger than about 1000 square feet in okay condition costs about $500K now. An empty lot that you could build an infill house costs approximately the same. That's how something like the above can cost $375K. It's not the older house, it's the parcel that has the value.

There's nothing like that where I live. If a house was in that shape, they would condemn it and it would be torn down and a few trees planted. No one even wants to live here....HAHA! BTW, I'm not in Arkansas, I'm in NE Ohio.

I've lived in worse. I think it's cute! except that front yard looks pretty bad.

The house I told you about..the one that looked like it was burnt inside..it was high 500 s I think..but it was a bigger house, and as I said nicely located.

So yes..it's a lot, first of all. The land. Very expensive around here.

You can go a bit further inland and will become cheaper...and some of it will be actually beautiful..very beautiful. We have magic places around here..

But. You'd be further from work, schools, doctors..if driving distance is important to you-you'll pay for something less serene much more..

Of course there are places that have both. Usually non-affordable..well not to 99% of population

Wow ... I'd buy it in a flash. It hasn't been "remuddled", modernized, or flipped. original built-in buffet, fireplace, etc. That basement could be easily ruend into another bedroom or even a rental flat.

And I'm not seeing any signs of unfixed roof leaks.

I've been giving more thought than I should to buying it as an investment property, but I can't swing the down payment on my own. Plus, I suspect it will sell for well over asking (again, assuming no major structural issues). I'm going to go look at it at the open house on Sunday, regardless.

Let us know what it's like in real life, please.

Cabinet vented to the outside--is that a California cooler?

http://www.thekitchn.com/old-school-wisdom-the-californ-143568

Yes, that is exactly it. I had never heard them called that.

When they took out the old cabinets in the upstairs, they just left the vent. At one point a workman got it in his head to pressure wash the louvres, and I had water pouring onto the counter from behind the cabinet. That was fun. The upstairs kitchen is still that way (in the downstairs unit we expanded the width of the window into the louvered opening.

While the article talks them up, I am sure that they do not meet California's building code, as they put a big (window-size) hole in your home's thermal envelope. Plus in the home in question, I think the vent faces SW, which means it isn't likely to be very good at keeping its contents cool.

Remember that shack in San Francisco we spoke of a couple years back~Sold for $408,000

My lovely very ordinary home that was quite lovely when I lived there and completely trashed after I left (ex wasn't very good at housekeeping and the trashing was terrible) was sold, as is, for $900,000. A four bed, 2 and a half bath, 1800 sq ft on a small lot. Bay Area, California. Bought by a couple, with two kids. I believe what sold it are the schools.

i took my money and ran. All the way across the country. The prices are almost obscene in California.