Unless you're getting this at a "fire sale" price, I would not buy it. It's not a very attractive house from the outside and you will spend a fortune trying to make it look nice.

It's one thing to buy a house where one can add a full dormer to make an upstairs larger, or re-purpose a garage, but this is huge.

Fake colonial mates with split level modern while being assaulted by a snout garage. Walk on by.

To make that into something you will want, will take the purchase price spent all over again. First, the architect. Second, the bulldozer. Third, the the rebuild of something more McMansioney.

I don’t find it too objectionable on the interior. So what that it’s not full of shiplap and gray paint. Thank goodness for small favors.

The exterior looks like somewhere between the 90's and the early 2000's they remuddled it. It probably was a basic 60's split that they made ugly on the exterior.

I don't understand "updating". You can't keep a house NEW. Better to
get a good deal on one that is slightly ugly from just ONE angle that is
already "old" than to pay top dollar for something "up-to-date" that
will itself be an "old" house sooner than you think.

I'd take the wallpaper border out of the laundry room and move in. It's great! Seems like quality materials were used and it looks well-maintained.

I mean, sure, one side of the front is a little goofy, but spend a bunch on landscaping and even that will be okay.

I live in a HCOLA. A neighbor just finished a remodel. It was over $1M. They didn't change the front facade, except to add new steel and glass doors (4 sets, since there's a balcony with 3 walkout French doors). They added about 10' onto the backside of the house (bottom story), with a walkout balcony above. Re-did landscaping, mostly new finishes inside the house.

Best friend lives in No.Cal. in a very expensive neighborhood. They added only 200sf onto a 1,900 sf home, but changed the finishes, opened up the kitchen, and gave the outside a facelift/new roof, to make it a different style house. That was also $1M. Although in that case, the local real estate agent did the comps and told them it increased the home's value by $2M, which I believe.

But in both cases, the remodels were justified by the value of the real estate around the area. So, I think you should do some research locally and figure this stuff out.

Having lived in two split-entry homes as a child, I'm not a fan of the split level, either, but it looks as if the only rooms on the lower level are the playroom (with pool table), and the laundry. I'm with fori--move in, get rid of the overgrown shrubs in front, repaint inside, live with the exterior awhile. I'm all about kitchens, so I'd start there when ready to renovate,

Maybe at some point I'd add a flex room on the garage side to balance the sun room on the right. You could put a door where the small window is in the playroom, leading up to an outdoor party room/kitchen/changing room connecting that space to the pool area. Great for parties for kids/teens, while keeping them out of the main house.

Anyone else think it strange that the huge chimney is visible from the rear shot, but not in the pic of the front?

I think a lot of people would find the interior very livable with just cosmetic updates. The outside is not great but it's not horrendous either. If you are SOOOO unhappy with the interior that you could not live with that layout, then don't buy it. In a HCOLA, you are obviously going to have some gives and takes when it comes to purchasing a home. MOST people in the world have to live with what they have and have to come to terms with the fact that they can't have what they'd really prefer because of costs vs. benefits. Not everyone can custom build their dream home in a HCOLA area (or any area for that matter). If you can't live with sprucing up the home cosmetically and/or a few small renovations (moving a wall here and there or painting the exterior) and you feel the absolutely desire to gut and redo, only pay what you think the lot is worth, demolish the house, and rebuild.

That being said, I've done a gut job on the interior of my home and we are currently sprucing up the exterior in (new woodwork, columns, and painting) in order to get our house ready for market. It's not fun living through a gut remodel, but, in our case, we got a great price on the house and land (7.5 acres 10 minutes from a HOT area and 20 minutes from one of the fastest growing cities in the US). We are going to walk away with a mint after 7.5 years so the additional investment we've made has more than paid for itself because our land and location.

Thanks for the comments.

Some clarification :

House is not 1.5x cheaper than other homes. This house is about 500K cheaper than something that would need considerably less work. However, I have not seen another home WITH a pool so that is a plus with this one.

We we would do all the work upfront prior to moving in.

Just to throw some estimates figures : this house is listed $1.2M. Something “nicer” and newer with at least a 0.25 acre lot is close to or above $2M without a pool

From my reading, this appears to be at least a 500k job? Correct?

Majority of comemnrers note not with the hassle. Better to spend a bit more and get something needing less work?

we have other homes we are considering that I can share for input if you guys like.

Just to be the contrarian voice, I see nothing hideous or objectionable about this house at all. I myself prefer the so-called “dated” home to the trying hard to be trendy home. I truly don’t get why some folks recoil in horror at the “snout garage”. They are practical, use up less of a lot for driveway, and typically deliver guests arriving by car close to a main entry. I had a side load garage home before, and it was a constant annoyance when strangers knock at the closest door (the man door of garage) instead of even trying to find the front door. Well, the bright side I saved a lot of time not answering knocks from solicitors, missionaries and other uninvited pests lol

As someone said upthread, if you truly don’t like it’s style,and think it requires too many changes, let it go. But not everyone looks at this house and thinks Bulldoze the hideous beast!

Can you share the other homes you are looking at? It might help to put this one in perspective.

Balu, no one can tell you how much it would cost to reno because we don't know exactly what changes you want to make, the finishes you would choose, or what hidden issues you might uncover in the process of renovations. Our dear friends just spend hundreds of thousands to gut renovate their entire home only to discover post-renovation that the ancient sewer line (cast iron) was collapsing which made it back up into their house. They then spent tens of thousands to rectify that situation. A kitchen alone will cost at least $35K for pro-grade appliances, custom cabinetry, countertops, floors and lighting. Flooring will be another $25-30K (at least) for all hardwoods.

You need to compare the land value of this lot to the land value of other lots before you compare the actual value of the houses. Land and location is what will appreciate the most versus renovations. Find out how much it costs to install a pool in the other locations (ballpark $$). Those values will help you better decide if this particular house is worth the asking price TO YOU.

I would also caution you to live in the house (making only minor changes like paint colors) for 1-2 years before committing to a full-blown reno. We did that and my mind changed about several things after the two years that if I'd renovated immediately, I would have regretted.

What is it you're planning to do to this home?

HCOL, wut?

High Cost of Living

if you're not in love-don't buy it

gut remodel -I don't know whether you're going to gut but you're also working on exterior-sounds like very extensive changes even without full gut-means tons of money, easily half a million in your case, and can take many months -we spent 27 months paying two mortgages, since one can't live in a house during gut remodel, and at some point also paying rent for MIL-because it all took so long due to hard-to get-labour. It's a boom now in construction, especially in HCOLA you'll wait and wait and wait.

I don't see anything particularly dated in the house but then I'm not there and not a buyer, so..

The exterior is not my thing, but I don't find it particularly bad either. It all depends on what's around. I'm just saying I wouldn't be falling in love with it. No falling in love=clearer vision. Clearer vision=you won't save on buying and major remodeling. Either buy and reduce your scope of projects drastically(it might be still much bigger than you planned-does it have asbestos that has to be remediated if you disturb the house? does it have proper insulation? what about HVAC's condition? lots of unknowns here)-or buy some more expensive property that you like pretty much as is. Maybe it'll lack pool but you'd be able to add one. 50 K instead of 500 K. Two months instead of two years. Depends on your circumstances of course-right now I'm so tired after our remodel can't bring myself to get to finish the hardscaping. It's been more a year since we've moved in. Energy gone. I hope you're more energetic than me.

Thanks for chiming in all.

We we are not in love that’s for sure. In terms of moving in and then reno later : not an option as wife will not move in in this condition.

As a comparison, there is a brand new build, albeit a smaller lot, with a smaller backyard which might not fit a pool, for 800k more. I will post pics soon of this home.

I will also update with some homes that may need less work.

https://www.curbed.com/2018/3/7/17087588/home-renovation-unnecessary-mcmansion-hell-wagner

http://www.remodeling.hw.net/cost-vs-value/2018/