Big question---what does your spouse think of the idea?? If he's open to it then explore the possibilities. Consider how you could use the house. As a close by "get away" it offers a big yard, small pool, and lake access. Great things for a family with 3 boys. It wouldn't be too far away if you did have a kids ball game to attend. Owing it would allow for the option of you parents relocating and living in it, or perhaps just staying there part of the time. Or, you might find after living in it part time that you like it so much you want to move into it as is or do a sensitive addition. Or, you might find that after owning it for a while that 2 houses are a pia and decide to sell it! You could do any, or all, of those things while you owned it. But you can't if you don't own it. So should you rush to buy it? NO. Like any real estate purchase look hard before you leap. We had our 2d home inspected BEFORE we bid on it. That gave us a good idea of what was needed and how much repairs/renovation would cost (of course there were many surprise problems) and if we really wanted to pursue it. I checked county records re sales prices, taxes, easements, etc of it and surrounding homes. We talked to the neighbors. We also looked at at least 6 other places after discovering this one to make sure it was a good choice and value. We went from my husbands long declared "I'd never own a second home" to his "Honey, what would you think of buying a house on a small lake and oh, by the way I paddled by one for sale today" to buying it in less than 2 weeks. Now it has been 2 years (and lots of renovation) and every time we are out there (frequently as it's only an hour drive)I comment on how glad I am we bought it. Besides the lake, I love its bright contemporary feel as opposed to our traditional in town home. The lake house better reflects me and makes me happy so I understand your falling in love with such a neat mcm home. In summary, if after you both think it through and are interested, look carefully, come up with an estimate of repair/remodel costs (x1.5 to be realistic!), figure out how much you are willing to pay/market value considering those costs then go for it. If you can't get it for a realistic price walk away. If the condition turns out to be too deteriorated--walk away. Either you'll get another opportunity when no one else buys it or you can console yourself by thinking about all the negatives/ impracticalities/second yard to keep up/ etc. that you missed. Let us know the outcome. PS- If you don't buy it you should suggest they list it on the mcm website Lottaliving.com to help it find an appreciative owner.

so i called lowes and mentioned the scratch and they offered me 15% off or a new machine. i took the 15% off...i don't know if they could have even ordered another one for me but i def wasn't going through another delivery process just bec of a scratch on the machine. i'm very happy with the 15% off. then i called the 3rd party delivery co's guy i had been dealing with all along...(way back i asked abt compensation for the hassle from lowes they said its the delivery company's responsibility so at the time i asked this guy i was dealing with and he said he def would be giving me something.) so i called and asked for compensation he said he'll get back to me...that he has to speak to lowes etc so i mentioned that i got the 15% from lowes for the scratch bec i never mentioned the scratch to him so i didnt' want him to be confused. and told him that when i asked lowes abt compensation for the hassle they said the delivery co is responsible. anyway he called back and offered $75 in lowes gift cards. I tried saying its so little, i'm getting that much back for a scratch and this was a huge hassle and totally avoidable had the delivery guys not dumped the machine and ran...if they would've just read the instructions they could have done it properly, and then on top of it they lost the feet etc that it was not a mistake, it was laziness and negligence etc...but he still said all he can do was $75 so i said fine... lol so assuming the above comes through it will cost me $356! still would not want the hassle of the feet, not worth the aggravation but the scratch is prob worth it ;) on a side note, when i called the delivery guy i've been dealing with extensivley, i introduced myself saying "hi, i'm the lady with the rubber feet" haha

I agree with Jan Moyer mostly except for the shipping costs—-I have always been billed the exact amount for freight / shipping of all fabrics with our ID. That said, he was perfectly clear that frieight was a separate billable, at cost. Transfer of knowledge is a hidden benefit of hiring a professional like an interior designer.....or maybe transfer of taste? :) There are thousands of fabrics that could have looked just fine on your windows. Based on her taste and experience in how fabrics look in different treatments and sizes of treatments (huge difference in curtains pleated at the top or not in terms of how much of the pattern shows, same with Roman shades) she narrowed that down to a manageable choice. Our guy always gives me at least three possibilities, and as many as six if there’s only one fabric involved. I would not feel comfortable taking that knowledge and purchasing the fabric outside our contract, although I would definitely ask him for a lower priced workroom if the costs were ridiculous. With reupholstery I have used my own guy and the fabric was shipped to him. However, ID did not guarantee hose products’ quality or timeliness. That said, after paying him a flat fee (and one I considered a lot of money) to do a floor plan / furniture placement, I purchased my own curtains (combination of off the rack and custom) and saved at least $15k on window treatments alone doing an entire house from scratch. I did not use any of his suggested fabrics. If I had I would have bought the fabric, at least, through him. FWIW, I like the first fabric you posted. It is definitely more of a type, but looks more refined (for lack of a better word) and has more colors to pull from when accessorizing the right side of the rooms picture. Is that a sitting room, or hearth room? I remember your family room redo year ago , wasn’t your husband involved with the beautiful moldings and trim?

Sorry but I have no further info to add beyond what I've already said. The best decisions I made were to hire what turned out to be very busy contractors based on reputations and a few references I checked. I asked a few questions about their bids before making the selections and I was out of the way but present as the work was being done on both jobs. I felt I was in good hands. When both contractors I chose (one in the Bay Area, one in SoCal) determined prior equipment was oversized and recommended sizing as prescribed by the load calcs, I knew I was in good hands. The passage of time and the (limited) changes of season have confirmed that the equipment installed is properly sized and they, together with the duct sealing, provide more comfort and economical operations than what it replaced. At one home I had a cool experience with the building inspector who came for the final inspection. He had a copy of the HERS test with him, it had been transmitted to his office electronically. He said "please show me the compressor", I did. "Please show me the electrical panel". I did. He said something like "Everything looks good, thank you". I asked "Don't you want to go into the attic to see the new furnace, coil and connections?", he responded by saying " No, that won't be necessary. I did need to look at a few things but I know XYZ Company's work very well. It's one of the best in the area. We never have had an issue with any of their jobs".