New Hampshire – Page 30 – New England's Narrow Road

Buying A Foreclosure Means Work

glass slider with caution tape — Caution! The First Step is a Doozy

I recently bought a foreclosure house that was built in 1972 and it seems to have been neglected over the years. It has also been empty for almost a year. Thankfully that lowered the price to the point where the bank would give me a loan, but now I have to bring the place up to par and that is going to take a while and cost me some big bucks.

That seems to be the story with buying a foreclosure, but if you have to go with an FHA loan, you might have to put money into fixing things before you even own it. I had to get the back of the garage painted and have some electrical issues fixed with almost $1,000 of my own money before they would okay the loan. The door, seen in the picture, is my back slider. Since the steps were gone and there was a three foot drop, caution tape had to stay up with the door nailed shut, to satisfy the bank.

Now, I’d like a deck off the back so I can use the back door, but my contractor is too busy to add one until November! So it might be a while until I can “step out back”.

Although I now pay less to own a home than I did to rent a home, I will be forking out lots of money to make the place livable. I live in New England, where the cost of living is high and the price of houses has not seemed to go down much even with the big housing crisis in full swing. I looked at a few scary places in my price range and ended up being able to get this place which looks like a palace in comparison.

The inside of my house is in pretty good shape. The kitchen is updated and nice and big. The white cabinets and lots of windows, make it bright and sunny. It’s the best feature of the house although the floor is noticeably slanted.

The two big rooms upstairs are fantastic areas for my son to hang out, and my office is large (and still very cluttered) but sunny as well.

Water is an issue here. The living room has a water stain in the ceiling and the chimney and roof are in the process of being repaired. Every time it rains, I get water in the basement but I have someone scheduled to come fix that (hopefully). Until then, I throw towels down to soak it up. I’m also looking into adding gutters.

Another big issue is the siding on this place. It’s clapboard, which I call “crapboard” and it has not been taken care of and there are holes and lots of rotted placed all along the front of the house. It looks horrible and is probably harboring all kinds of creatures.

I new I’d have lots to fix when I moved in and I was prepared to spend money, but finding contractors to do the work I can’t do has been an issue. It almost seems like no one needs the work around here. Then yesterday I used a site called Service Magic and got some results. I have two companies giving me estimates on new gutters, and a couple are coming for the siding. Maybe I’ll find someone who needs the work and will do it in a timely manner!

So I spend most of my days looking for help and getting quotes and of course – working to pay for it all!

It took time and effort to get in here and it’s not time to relax yet, but it’s worth it, because I own a home.

Short Sale vs. Foreclosure (realtorkaera.wordpress.com)

It’s Almost Fall, But I Am Planting To Beautify My New Yard

fence and rock garden — Trying to Beautify the Yard

Well, I am all moved into the new house and I’ve been busy trying my best to get the place fixed up. Some things I am doing myself, such as yard work and planting. I’ve already weeded and made a small garden in the rocks by the driveway and along the old fence which I decided to keep. At first I thought I might paint it, but I’m not sure, and that would be something that can wait anyway.

Fall is a great time to plant perennials so I’ve been checking out the local farms and stores for some to add to the yard. Tenney Farms (one of my favorite places) has a bunch of perennials that are overgrown and not so pretty, but I’ve picked up some good stuff in the past few weeks. I added a red rhododendron to the side yard and a couple of peonies (one is white) to the fence garden, along with tall, red daylilies and little stella d’oros (which I love too), and a white phlox.

I found a great looking Astilbe at the farm too and that is in the front near all the trees. I have a lot of shade in the front from the tall trees that line the road and the sunny, but small, back yard was full of blackberry bushes that I have been pulling out. Not fun! I’ll keep the raspberries which are not in the way, and not as nasty.

I planted a red coneflower and yellow daisy back there which will grow among my veggies next spring. Fall is a good time to get ready for next years growing season so I feel like I am accomplishing something and in the Spring there will be at least some color in this yard.

The only plants worth much that are already here are a few leggy lilacs, and I found two, small azaleas that look like they are barely surviving. I’m moving them into more sunny areas so hopefully they will do better. Already I am looking forward to next Spring, for the first time in years.

This is what I have spent most of my time doing, that and getting my son ready for school which starts next week.

How to Plant Perennials (homeandgardenideas.com)
Planning A Garden: Sunny Spots (hydrangeasblue.wordpress.com)

Fall… and Christmas… Already?

Why are we always pushing things. Can’t we just enjoy what is in the here and now? I am just beginning to enjoy summer and it’s almost August. I worked for 5 hours in my yard yesterday to get some clean up done and some flowers planted. I suppose most people have done this in Spring and now they are off vacationing or doing fun things during their summer Saturdays, but I am behind.

Then I got a notice that I had sold 100 beach Christmas photo cards! Wow- some people do plan ahead. In the online shopping and selling world, it is really too late to begin making Fall items to sell. The items will take some time to get “out there” for people to find, but I opened a new Zazzle “Fall Colors” wedding store anyway. Most of my fall wedding stuff is hidden in my main store so I thought I’d get it all together, along with new things, to make it easier to find.

I love the Fall season and cherish every moment of it. Now that I have moved I won’t get to see the color around the lake, but look forward to seeing what this new area has for color. It’s an opportunity for new photos. But, today I will enjoy the summer day, and not think ahead.

A Camp Style Bathroom

green and yellow bathroom — Camp style bath

Now that I have moved, I have to get used to new things all over again. Or should I say, “old things” that are new to me? I love that I have windows in both my bathrooms, even though the one downstairs only opens a few inches, due to the fact that I am not strong enough to shove it open more. Almost all the windows in the house are old and balk at being opened. A bathroom without windows is pretty dumb. It’s the one room that gets steamy and needs fresh air the most, so why is it that houses are built without considering that? I lived for 3 years in a rental with a tiny bathroom and no window, so having windows now is like heaven to me!
The upstairs bathroom (in my picture) reminds me of being at camp. Why on earth anyone would paint their bathroom bright yellow and dark green is beyond me. Even the stall size shower reminds me of going camping and taking showers in the hideous camping bathrooms – except that I love my shower. It’s small, but the water gushes out and it feels so good. Then I put up my window fan and pull in the fresh air and give thanks that I am standing in my own house – camp bathroom and all.