Tag: real estate sales

Why Yes, We Still Buy and Sell Houses: Ross

One of the things we’re learning lately in our real estate business is that it is not easy to quickly buy or sell property, even a cash sale! Way back on April 10, I wrote about selling the Ross Avenue Victorian house in Cameron to two fellow renovators. We finally closed on the deal yesterday.

The house when we first saw it. We since trimmed bushes back.

When we bought the house, it took three months to close “as soon as possible” but that’s nothing! This one took five months! The buyers could be excused for getting anxious about it. We knew it would take a bit longer than usual, because we were only selling part of the land we originally purchased. The buyers got the house and the lot behind it, where the garage is.

The other side.

We kept the lot across the street, which is pretty straightforward. We’ve had a big sickly tree removed that was threatening to crash down either on this lot or the poor man next door, so it’s in better shape now.

The lot across the street, me with blue hair, and scary tree.

We also kept the middle of the block, and that’s what took a while. We had to survey the property, have plans drawn up to subdivide the property, and get the plans approved by various entities, including the City Council. So, Lee has been quite busy working on all this stuff and getting our ducks in a row (probably whistling ducks, Cameron’s favorite fowl). It all went well, but took a lot of time. Then, of course, one entity or another “forgot” to do some of the things they needed to do, and title underwriters kept asking for one thing, then another, and then another. All this required a lot of patience on our part, the title company representative (Kimberly has been so helpful), and the buyers.

This is NOT EXACT. I am NOT a surveyor. But you get the idea of how we divided the property. You can even see the shadow of the tree that is no longer there, from Google Maps.

All the time since we bought the property, we have had to keep maintaining the property, of course, mowing all that grass, keeping it looking presentable for the Code Inspectors, etc. We did get something good, though: my tack room was originally the workshop on the part of the land we kept!

Kathleen of 2020 in the lots we kept. The building at right with the white window frame is my tack room.

I have had to keep quiet about all this, since we were not wanting to say we’d succeeded until money changed hands! Things have just been going so wrong this year that we didn’t want to risk it. But Hermits’ Rest Enterprises has now sold a house and has a mini-subdivision of three houses plotted out for the future. Hooray.

We were just a little giddy after the closing, at least Kimberly and I were! Lee looks relieved.

I just can’t wait to see what the new owners can do with the house. They do amazing work.

More on this house and our former plans for it

A NEW Project to Distract Ourselves (March 2020)

This Old Ross House, Part 2 (March 2020)

We Have a Date (June 2020)

Ross Is Ours! Kathleen Is Overjoyed (June 2020)

Checking in on the Ross House (June 2020)

We Wouldn’t Sell to Just Anyone

We own a beautiful old Victorian house in Cameron that we’ve been making various plans as to what to do with. Kathleen wanted to live there, but that won’t work. We thought about making it part of the personal assistance service, but COVID happened and we downsized our plans.

My favorite view of the Ross house, looking into the dining room.

Lately, as Cameron is getting more popular, there’s been more interest in it. We didn’t want to sell this wonderful place to someone who wouldn’t know how to finish its renovation.

This has to be preserved and improved on!

But, when folks approached us who have fixed up many old houses and whose skills we’ve seen for ourselves, Lee decided to let them look around the Ross house.

The glory of the doors

This afternoon, we had a grand time going through the place and its surroundings. The woman of the team owns an antique mall, so she and I both got really distracted by lamp fixings, pieces of stained glass, old letters, and mirrors. I could see dollar signs going off in her eyes.

This is the grate to a heater we found. Dragons!

We also enjoyed the garden area, where I helped her see the good bones and the icky plants that have to go. It was a pleasure to show the place to someone who appreciates it as much as I do.

What a view off the front porch.

Lee told them they could have the lot the house is on and the one next door, but that we want to keep the land behind the house and across the street. Happily, they didn’t want all that land to maintain anyway!

Random shopping cart in a garage

We parted ways with the partners saying they’d let us know tomorrow what they thought. Well, in the time it took for me to go on a walk with the young folks, Lee got a call saying they want it. They know as well as we do that the house is in good shape for its age.

NOTE: This does not mean the house is sold, just that we showed it and they are interested. No deal is done until money exchanges hands, as we are aware. Sorry if that wasn’t clear.

Old wallpaper in the attic. Our friends want to make it a primary suite, like we did.

We will miss the house, if the sale goes through, but since we are keeping the adjacent lots to build new houses on (yes! A plan!), we won’t be far away and will remain friends. This is just great! I just love buying and showing properties to good people.

There are many possibilities for this fixture!