Owning an (old, old, old) house

It might be a beautiful home with some childhood memories attached to it, but just signing your life over for the first time to get a mortgage comes with a steep 90-degree anxiety-inducing learning curve in and of itself.

And no matter how many episodes you might've seen of "This Old House" or any of its offspring have inspired that romanticize the restoration business, even the most experienced homeowner can never, ever be prepared for the craziness that might, I mean, will ensue.

A house that old is bound to have a myriad of issues that need addressing, and I'd guess many of them aren't visible to the naked eye. That is, foundation issues, electrical, plumbing. Those can be incredibly costly repairs, ones that you can't see as readily as new windows, a new front door, landscaping, paint, et cetera. Ones that, while necessary, don't have instant curb appeal.

The adage that remodeling/restoration takes twice the time and twice the money is absolutely true. And if it winds up being a project that takes an extended amount of time, please, consider the toll it might take on you and your family. It's a financial burden, an emotional burden, a convenience burden...I swear, you have no idea.

With all that said, I just finished remodeling my second house-I'm about to put it on the market. I personally love the results and can't wait to buy another house to remodel, but I also lost a long-term girlfriend in the process.

In the end, us breaking up was way, way, way for the best, though.

If you really want to buy something, buy a place that needs some TLC, but doesn't have "select-all, delete, reboot" written all over it. That'll get you in the zone to see how you like doing it with having so many emotional and financial variables at stake.

 

First, thanks for all your responses. It's a great start for me to look into.

(I say this now), but I do enjoy being the handyman here. I take pride in starting a project and seeing it from start to finish and knowing that you were the reason for the way it looks. I restored a '67 Land Rover a couple of years ago and that was a labor of love, let me tell you.

I'm hoping to take a walk through the house in the next week or so. I haven't been inside since I was 5 or 6 - I'm 32 now - and I remember it being very old-looking inside back then.

 

There's a lesson here: Romantic entanglements are costly, difficult and usually not worth the trouble.

 

Make sure when you take a walk-through to look for any loose planks on the floor, odd-shaped doors in the closet, etc. You might find a body or two.

 

See if there's a little door, a portal, like in 'Being John Malkovich.'

 

I'd sure love to see some pictures, if you wouldn't mind posting them after your walk-through.

 

Ask spnited. He had it custom built.

 

Whatever you do, get a home inspector. Obviously, a 300+ year old house will have its problems, but an inspector will be able to point out some flaws that may not be apparent at first.

 

Like whether or not the termites have eaten away at the wood plugs that took the place of nails.