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July 03, 2004

real estate

Owning the westy has made me start to think, in the forefront of my brain, "I want a garage. Better parking. A paved driveway."

Thursday night I sat down and wrote down my current set of requirements for a house. The first thing on the list was garage/workshop.

Friday I decided to drive down Monmouth to see if anything was for sale. There is a beautiful cottage for sale, with a 2-car garage that has heat and a/c, and a wired workshop already built into it. There are other very attractive things about the house. The price is probably do-able.

Today I hashed this over with Dave and Shayne while helping them paint.

Financially, I don't know about moving right now. This was supposed to be the year I padded my savings account out, after the car payment went away. Moving with no savings account seems like the height of stupidty, possibly impossible. There are costs associated with moving.

Getting my house ready for sale would be no small task. I'd have to do everything on the big crazy to-do list, or hire someone else to do it for me. That will cost money, too.

I feel guilty that this house has seen little improvement, and in some ways has degraded severly since I moved in. I feel like I've used the place up, and now I'm ready to go take another neighborhood showplace and trash it, too.

Shayne pointed out that I have made some improvements, and have done maintenance. Which is true. Not big things, but some things. It's just all hidden beneath the insane clutter piles.

Sometimes I think I should chuck most of my worldly posessions, sell the house, and go live in a little apartment in a big apartment complex where everything is beige and my biggest worry would be whether my Tivo worked that day or not. Or, well, I should chuck the Tivo, too.

Stop doing web sites outside of work, and stop going to car shows; stop dj-ing at the radio station, stop throwing Halloween parties and do nothing but work, work out, cook and watch tv.

Ok, obviously, I would never seriously do that, but right now I do feel awash in a sea of work that I want an easy out from.

I'm totally open to advice on this one. It's a given that I should work on improving my house, reclaiming the landscaping. Should I call my mortgage guy to find out if moving would be possible, what I can afford? Should I call Christa's realtor friend and ask her to show me the house on Monmouth? What will benefit me financially in the long term?

Posted by lisa at July 03, 2004 05:40 PM | TrackBack

Comments

the only argument I can think of in favor of moving now is that interest rates are supposed to start going up. On the flip side, there are many many reasons not to move when you don't have the (financial, emotional, time) resources to do it.

If the big problem is wanting a garage for 9 Westy, you can get these tent things that will at least protect it from the elements. Or maybe if you want something more permanent you could build a carport over the driveway.

Posted by: Sarah on July 3, 2004 05:55 PM

the driveway is extremely cramped. in fact, I believe my driveway is my property line, or right at the property line. i think there is no room for a carport.

i have considered the tent thing, and will probably consider it again if i decide to stay in this house a while longer.

there are several reasons for wanting a garage/workshop. one is to protect both the cars, from the elements and from crime (lots of car break-ins in my area).

another is to have a protected place to work on them, that is sufficiently spacious, and where my tools will be stored with the cars.

i have also wanted workshop space for some time, for small construction projects for the house. also, dry, secure storage for my garden tools would be nice. my lawnmower is getting a nice bath as I write this.

i actually wanted a garage when i first bought this house, and decided to compromise on that point. 9 westy is definitely bringing it to the forefront, but it's not a new idea. in fact, when christa was considering her house, i said that if she didn't buy it, i would, and i was not totally joking. the main reason was the garage.

Posted by: spacegrrl on July 3, 2004 07:03 PM

would it be possible to convert part of your backyard into a carport/garage? is there enough room along the side of your house to drive a car? what's behind your property line? any potential access for a car?

Posted by: christa on July 3, 2004 11:23 PM

there's definitely no room along either side of the house to drive a car. I thought about trying to get an agreement with one of the neighbors that have yards that back up onto the side of the backyard, but it really looks unfeasible. one has a tall fence, the other has a garden between their driveway and my yard.

i don't think there's any way to come through the woods to the back of the house... or at least, not a simple way to find out who owns that easment, and actually communicate with them. 'cause i think that would be the railroad company. plus then again i'd need to come through a neighbor's yard to access it.

yeah, i've racked (wracked?) my brain on that one, and i don't see a way.

my thinking right this second (and we all know how i love to change my mind) is that a house with a garage is something i should plan for in the next two years, and work toward, in terms of getting my house and finances ready. and i'll just have to live with the current situation as is until i am ready.

Posted by: spacegrrl on July 4, 2004 12:15 AM

fwiw, you can find out who owns the property around you by visiting durham's GIS website:

http://gisweb2.ci.durham.nc.us/scripts/esrimap.dll?name=sdx1&Cmd=Start&dlayer=11&dlayer=5&x=62&y=70

just type in the address at the bottom of the page.

Posted by: christa on July 4, 2004 02:40 PM

it's a snap to find the owner of the easement crossing your property. your parcel is lot 16, block 31 in plat book 7, page 206. you can run down to the register of deeds, glance at your plat on the microfilm, and it should describe the owner of the easement.

if, however, the plat was recorded BEFORE the easement, you should still be able to find the easement's owner. the book and page of the easement should be on your owner's title insurance policy. if you go to the durham r-o-d website, you should be able to pull up a pdf of the easement:

http://207.4.222.118/localization/menu.asp

if you ARE interested in finding out where your property begins and ends -- and don't want to do all that work -- i might be able to fit a free title search into my [ahem] packed schedule.

Posted by: rick! on July 6, 2004 03:12 PM

I know the joys of having a garage. I love mine, despite the fact it's not attached to the house.

Have you thought about renting garage space? That way you can save up for the new house and prep the old one.

A non-heated 10×20 storage unit is $145 a month in Carrboro.

http://www.village-self-storage.com/index.php?pg=units

You might be able to do much better some place else. I know someone who is renting space in Hillsborough, which is probably cheap. I can asking him about it if you like...

Posted by: Mr Pinky on July 8, 2004 01:15 AM

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