choosing tile

We're in the process of choosing tile for the master bath. We thought we knew what we wanted, but then realized that we were a little overambitious. The thing with choosing finishes is that, assuming you know you will eventually sell the house, you have to make sure that the things you pick are 'sellable'. While yes, this does mean that you probably shouldn't go with the lime green permanent tile or the bright blue carpet in the bathroom (our first house had this - bizarre), what a lot of people don't realize is that you should also think about your neighborhood.

Specifically, you should make sure that you don't overimprove your house for the area it's in, particularly if you want to recoup your costs. In some cases, it's fine to go big, especially if you know you're going to stay in the house for a while and will enjoy it - get the french door fridge, spring for the soaking tub. But for certain things, you have to think about the 'comps' - the nearby houses that will affect your eventual selling price.

Comps are a huge factor in house pricing - it's unfair, but that's the way it is. So if there isn't a single house in your neighborhood priced above $200K, good luck selling yours for $400K - it's not going to happen, no matter what luxuries you've stocked it with. It's just not that kind of neighborhood.

If our house were located about twenty minutes south, in Columbia or Ellicott City, it would be worth at least twice what it's worth here, and I'd have no compunctions about putting in luxe finishes and getting my money back. But it isn't. It's in a quiet neighborhood of old houses, most of which either haven't been updated or have been updated only to 'rental grade'. Our crowning glory is our huge property sizes and commuter-friendly location around here - not marble bathrooms.

So the travertine we wanted is out, and we're going with porcelain instead. It's exponentially cheaper, but we've found several options that mimic the look of stone without being tacky. And we're springing for one upgrade - we're putting river rock down as the floor of the walk-in shower. Just a few square feet isn't a huge splurge, it's an elegant touch, and it comes in neutral colors that won't alarm buyers. Now we just have to make a final decision on the tile that will go with it, and call our tiler!

totally unrelated

I don't know if anyone's looking for a house in Bedford, PA, but this place is just screaming for a houseblogger.

(Never you mind why I'm looking at houses in strange places.)

oh, O's...

We went to the last Orioles game of the season on Sunday. The boys in orange, as usual, lost spectacularly to the Yankees. The Ravens lost, too -- Camden Yards knows its crowd and made sure to put the NFL scores up on the jumbotron, so we could all mutter dispiritedly as we saw Jamal's new team beating our other birds as sorely as the Yanks were beating the O's. Alas.

On the plus side, it was perfect baseball weather and a gorgeous day, so it was nice to be outside. And the Orioles are a fantastic community ball club even if their outfielders dropped the ball THREE TIMES. Before all of the games, there are a lot of kid and family-oriented activities, including cute ceremonies where kids get to go out on the field for the national anthem, or get to receive players' jerseys, or be shown on the jumbotron, or what have you. The club has maintained a very honest community feel at the games, which is really nice. Definitely the sort of thing you take your kids to (although Don is already plotting the best way to teach them to sprint 90 yards in the time it takes to throw a fastball -- he takes things a little further than I do).

So, a nice afternoon spent at Camden Yards. And no, we didn't buy any six dollar beers. (Six. Dollars. For Coors Lite! Good lord.)

Afterwards, I had a chance to chat with my mom for a while, and she mentioned that a house down the street from hers is for sale. I know the house; it belongs to a family friend who was a teacher of mine at one point. I used to occasionally goat-sit for them when they were on vacation (yes, they had goats -- cute ones!). Apparently they're moving, so the house and land are up for sale. The price they've got it listed for is decent; it makes me wonder what my mom's house will sell for, if she ever sells.

Now that Don is officially employed again (or at least soon-to-be -- he starts in the middle of the month), we're tentatively making plans to move forward with the house. Much depends on timing. I'll keep you posted.

property values

Just heard from Don's parents that a house on their street -- ten blocks away from us -- has sold for $375,000. And it was just over half the size of our house, on a smaller lot (although recently rehabbed, if it's the one I'm thinking of -- and they did a nice job). That's good news -- it means our house will be worth quite a bit when we're done with the renovations, and it's worth the money we're putting in.

The breakdown so far:
Our house is about 2200 square feet, on one third of an acre of land. It's got three bedrooms, and by the time we're done renovating it'll have either three full baths or two full and one three-quarter bath (depending on who wins that argument), an open floorplan with a main floor family room in addition to the living room, and a moderately "gourmet" kitchen.

We paid $220,000 for it in January of 2006 (it was listed as a four-bedroom, which affected the pricing somewhat then and will affect pricing later by its absence but not absurdly so), and have so far spent (or committed to spending) just over $50,000 on a new roof, new windows, and central HVAC. The cost of the rest of the work we're doing, both structural and finishing, is comparatively negligible, since we're doing it all ourselves and don't need contractors. [Example: we've completely changed the floorplan of the first floor, both removing and adding walls, replaced all the floor joists, and installed a level subfloor for about $1200 -- just the cost of supplies.] This isn't to say that, for instance, the entire house's supply of drywall isn't going to be ridiculously expensive -- but comparatively speaking, DIY is always cheaper. If you know what you're doing. Hospital bills can add up, if you don't.

We plan to live in this house for at least the next ten years or so. But if we don't, at least we'll be able to afford to sell it. Mind you, I'm not endorsing real estate inflation. I'm just grateful that we managed to get in early enough that we could get the house for a reasonable price. As a fixer-upper, it was (rightly) discounted some. But I've seen fixer-uppers now selling for finished prices, which sucks. If you're in the market to buy, be mindful of neighborhood property values and trends, and make sure you're really getting what you're paying for. It can still be done in the market now, it just takes some research.

real estate roundup: may 2007

Every so often, I put together a list of homes currently for sale in our neighborhood. If you're looking to buy a house in the Baltimore area, our little area is a great place to look. Since almost nobody knows about it, it's still really undervalued compared to the rest of the area's market, especially because it's in a prime location: within just a few minutes of downtown, with easy access to all of the major roads (including interstates 95, 695, 195, and 395, the Baltimore-Washington Parkway, and Route 1). It's seriously family friendly, safe, and has a friendly neighborhood vibe. Most of the houses tend to be bungalows; all have decent-sized yards, and generally speaking they tend to be well-maintained, though most could use some cosmetic updates (what they like to call "putting your own stamp on it" on HGTV). Just because we chose to gut our house doesn't mean that the houses around here need it -- ours was perfectly livable, we're just weird.

Anyway, here's the real estate roundup of homes currently for sale that you ought to check out.

If one of you people doesn't buy this house, frankly, I may never speak to you again. This is just a few blocks from us, and simply put, it's amazing. The great room addition at the back is phenomenal (I have a weakness for windows, what can I say) and the kitchen is spacious and updated. Hardwood floors, a phenomenal master suite, and a freaking fish pond! Seriously. Buy that house. It's even got a big backyard with a patio for entertaining. Which means you can invite me over!

This house is about seven blocks away from ours, and towards the back of the community; a nice location. It looks like it's in great shape -- the only work you'd have to do would be painting and personalizing. To be honest, I think it's a little overpriced for the size -- but real estate is always negotiable! Depending on how long houses have been on the market, sellers may be willing to take a lower price. And I have to say I think the curb appeal on this house is just adorable.

This fabulous cottage isn't actually in our little square of gridded neighborhood -- it's across Annapolis Road. But just look at it! This is a real case of undervaluing (although, to be fair, it's only got one bathroom and I haven't seen a home inspection or anything). But it's got half an acre, a pool, some nice landscaping, and what looks like decent space. This would be a fantastic house for people who want to make minor improvements indoors and enjoy their outdoor space.

This one's literally two blocks from us -- you could walk over and visit any time! Or, you know, vice versa. This place was built in 1922, but it appears to have been renovated fairly recently, and it's in great shape. It doesn't have a huge lot (comparatively speaking -- it's got 0.11 acres, which isn't nothing!), but it does have over 2500 square feet of interior space, with four bedrooms. So you've got the space you need. This place is actually bigger than our house (we have 2200 square feet, although we do have a bigger lot). It looks really nice from the outside, definite curb appeal. The inside, what little the pictures show, appears to be pretty nice as well, definitely well-maintained. They mention an aboveground pool with a multi-level deck -- that sounds promising!

This is ten blocks from us, on the other side of the neighborhood, and it looks like a fantastic renovation. It's 1900-some square feet with four bedrooms, so I don't know how big the rooms are, but I'm definitely impressed with the thought they've put into the renovation. Hardwood floors, elegant fixtures, and neutral colors are a seller's best tools. The exterior is attractive, and the location is great.

This house is for sale for just over $200K, but to be honest, I wouldn't buy it. It's very small, and it's being sold "as is" -- always a red flag (unless you are as insane as we are, and even then this just isn't that good of an investment for the price -- look for more space if you're going to be paying that much). It's also at the very back of the neighborhood -- right across from the light rail. If you dig it, though, more power to you.

Here's a decent first-time home buy: this place is on the market for just under $220K. It's got nearly half an acre of land, which is great for the price. It's just two bedrooms and one bath, so it's probably not suited to anyone who needs a ton of space, but it's a really good value. It's towards the back of the neighborhood but not close enough to the light rail to be a problem, and it's about eight blocks away from us (laterally, anyway -- if you add in the distance from front to back of the neighborhood, it's probably another three blocks, but meh, no biggie).

This one's on our street; it's another small one, with two bedrooms and one bath, but it's got a partially finished basement and about a quarter of an acre. Probably another decent starter home.

Here's one a few blocks away; I don't have much to say about it, since I'm not sure which one it is. It's got four bedrooms but only one bathroom, and from the look of things it needs some updating. I'm not sure what the total square footage is, although the lot is almost a third of an acre. So I really don't know if it's worth $265K, although generally speaking in today's market any house with four bedrooms on a third of an acre that isn't falling down is probably worth it to some degree. When you're buying a house, you have to remember that it's not just the price you need to think about; you have to think about how much work you want to put into a house, and what you're willing to dedicate to it in terms of your time and money. If a house needs a lot of work, that list price is only the bottom of the barrel of money you're going to need to tap. So you have to strike a careful balance when you're calculating what a house is worth and whether you can afford it.

Here's another house for sale for $265K. I have a feeling this one will sell more quickly than the first, because the sellers are doing more things right here. First of all, they've put up a picture of the exterior of the house, looking cute, as houses are wont to do. Second, this house is four bedrooms and two bathrooms on a quarter of an acre. Marginally less space, but as the HGTV gurus will tell you, bathrooms sell houses. The only flag on the play here is that this house is being sold "as-is", and you have to wonder why. Incidentally, this house is just a couple of houses down from us -- not quite our next door neighbor, but nearly. And no, I don't know why it's as-is, I haven't been inside, sorry. If you check it out, let me know.

This house is two bedrooms and two baths, but it's over 1800 square feet, plus it has an unfinished basement. So it sounds like there's some room to grow there. I don't know if that really makes it worth $275K, particularly on a relatively small lot size for the area (0.14 acres), but if it's in really good condition it could be. It's over on the other side of the neighborhood, closer to Don's parents than to us.

This place is new construction, and the price shows it. Three bedrooms and two baths in just over 2000 square feet is nice and all, but I think you can get a better deal with an older house. Plus, I hate split levels. But again, there's a house out there for everyone, and if this is what you're looking for, go for it. New construction does have a few advantages, after all -- it certainly won't need updating yet!

We're getting up into the spendy-spendy range (for around here, anyway), but this place is available. It's got three stories -- most of the houses around here just have two -- and both a swimming pool and a one-car garage. It's definitely big, and on a decent-sized lot, but take note that it does not have central heating or air conditioning. If you're okay with both that and the price, have a look. But remember that that sort of thing can be a hidden expense in an already expensive house.

That's it for now. You'll note that not one of these houses was over $400K, and most were in the 200 to 300 range. The market's gone up since we bought our house a year and a half ago, but this little area is still definitely below average. The Baltimore Sun reported earlier this month that the average home price in the metropolitan Baltimore area was $310,323 -- although single family homes in residential suburbs (which is what our neighborhood is) tend to go for significantly more, since the "average" metropolitan Baltimore house is actually a townhouse or rowhome. So while this neighborhood is still an 'undiscovered gem', take the opportunity to check it out.

If you want to do your own MRIS search (or whatever), just do a zip code search for 21227 and find the houses listed as being in the Baltimore Highlands or Rosemont subdivisions. Double check to make sure they're on streets named after states, and you'll be in the right area.

historic property

At some point soon I'll do another local real estate roundup, for those of you who are interested in buying in our fairly undiscovered neighborhood (yay for below market pricing!). But while I was perusing the various Maryland listings, I came across one I am simply lusting after. This 24-acre historic estate in Monkton, MD was originally settled by Josiah Sparks (after whom I believe the town of Sparks, MD is named) in 1798. It's got this great house (six bedrooms!), a guest cottage, barn, and a whole bunch of other stuff -- and it's exactly the sort of place I'd love to own someday, where I'd have enough space to be really private, enough room for friends to come and stay whenever they wanted, a historic home to make my own, and near enough to civilization to not be totally isolated.


It's going up for auction (the previous owner has sadly passed away) on May 17th. I wish I could afford to bid.