The Unreal Estate Game: Alabama
 

We'll see if people are interested in this or not. I think it could be fun.

Assume that you idly buy a state lottery ticket while getting a doughnut at 7/11, and voila! You're a winner! You win your choice of one the five houses that will be shown.

I'll give you five houses in a state, and you vote on the house you would take.

Background rules:

Assume that your job situation won't need to change - you can find an identical job or work from home or whatever, so jobs don't matter.

The house and all taxes (one-time and ongoing) are paid for.

Consider the house itself and the location and anything else that's important to you (schools, restaurants, lot size, etc.). Feel free to do a google map search to check out the neighborhood and the area.

You cannot sell the home, and you're required to live in the home for the rest of your life.

All houses will be in the $900,000 to $1 million price range.

If you wouldn't move into any of these homes, you can instead accept a cash prize of $50,000 (tax free).

We'll start with Alabama. Here are your five houses:

Abbeville (I accidentally called this Anniston in the poll. Forgive me.) http://www.realtor.com/realestateand...0_M77806-66350

Gulf Shores http://www.realtor.com/realestateand...2_M70246-61101

Huntsville http://www.realtor.com/realestateand...8-57762#photo0

Talladega http://www.realtor.com/realestateand...0_M87710-07732

Theodore http://www.realtor.com/realestateand...-1000000/sby-2

None.

Huntsville has NASA and a lot of smart people.

After much debate, my rankings are:

#1 - Gulf Shores - Nice style in a good location. I don't need ocean views, but they're nice.

#2 - Theodore - I can't figure out how this place has a 13-car garage. I like the interior style and the indoor pool, though I've heard that indoor pools can smell up a house. I can't decide if I like the front of the house with those garages or not, which knocked it out of the #1 spot.

#3 - Talledega - The back of the house is really cool, and the river is a nice view. The front of the house isn't very appealing, and the house style doesn't work overall other than the rear.

#4 - Huntsville - The forest views are very nice, and it's a nice location in a city that's close to services. But overall, it's just a big suburban house.

#5 - Abbeville - 125 acres seems neat, but I don't know what I'd do with 125 acres, and the house doesn't wow me.

I've heard that Huntsville has a fair amount of culture because the captured German rocket scientists wanted it.

Spent a year and a half in Alabama. Won't go back if I can avoid it.

ROFL

That's what I picked - 'up and coming' city

Wherever is closer to FMB so he can cook me weekly meals.

I went with Abbeville because of the land. I don't want any neighbors too close and it could also be a cash maker by selling some plots on the outskirts of the property.

Abbeville

Give me the 125 acres..I can rent some of the land out and then still build trails to ride my 4 wheeler around drinking beer all day in my sweet overalls with one strap undone

And people will stay the **** away from me too

Where at?

Out of those options, I'll take the Huntsville home.

Rucker.

That's what I assumed. I thought I remembered you were army. My second time at Rucker, I got detached to Troy to work on the airport up there. That wasn't a bad gig. 23 years old surrounded by tons of pretty college girls. I'll always have fond memories of Alabama because of it.

"you're required to live in the home for the rest of your life"

That statement kills it for me. I'm too adventurous to ever say I will live somewhere the rest of my life. Doesn't matter how nice the house is, I couldn't live within that restriction.

Talladega House, right on the river with all the windows to the river-side.

River feeds into the inlet feeds into the ocean. You can build a slip for a vessel to take you directly to Cuba if you wish.

The others seemed subdivision bound, outside the oceanside apartment. Talladega house is your own little doorway between civilization and the great wide open.

The gulf shores apartment is alluring for the urban/oceanside setting.
The Theodore house is alluring for the huge garage.

But the lack of personal/playground space at the apartment, and the dull subdivision setting of the Theodore house both detract enough to put Talledega over the top, the other two offer little to interest me above the others whatsoever.

I spent a year in Alabama one night.

You Talladega people realize that you actually have to click the button to vote, right?

How much on utilities do each of these houses run?

I think I'd take Gulf Shores and rent out a couple rooms to pay for the utilities and I'd do a lot of Gulf fishing.

Hmm, good point. I was trying to close the loophole where people would take the house and then sell it. Maybe I'll replace that clause with "you can live in the house as long as you want, but you lose the house if you move out".

Hmm, let's assume that they're cost-neutral with your current utility bill. It's part of the prize.

That makes a huge deference because I'd be afraid my paycheck would be taken for utilities alone. I'm sure it wouldn't be cheap to do mowing and maintenance.


If you get a water leak who pays for it? What if your cousin Eddy shows up and takes a huge shit clogging up the toilet? Who pays for the plumber? Plumber will be seeing $$$

Let's assume that everything will be cost-neutral as part of the prize, compared to your current home. However, if you want to hire a maid in one of those little black uniforms with the frilly white apron, that's all on you.

The only way that I would consider moving to Alabama is if I were stuck living someplace worse, like Mississippi.

If I move there, do I have to **** my sister?

I thought football season would slow down all your polls.

I was wrong! ROFL

Fun game.

I liked 1 , 4 and 5 ....leaning towards 5...but the 125 acres....

Also I would love to advise you if you do a California edition, and request you separate northern California from southern

The only people who want to move to Alabama are all the poorer people from Mississippi.

I was actually kind of pondering that. There's a lot going on in that state.

Been here for 6 years. There are pros and cons, like any place. I'm in a good position with my company, wife and I like our home and community, so no major complaints.

I'd do Gulf Shores.

I gotta say, I was in Gulf Shores, Alabama, earlier this year, and it had one of the nicer beaches I've seen. It was beautiful white sand.

Santa Barbara , San Diego, LA ...ventura...Pismo beach...carmel...monterrey..yosemite


Vs

South Lake Tahoe, sea ranch, St helena/napa/calistoga/Sonoma, Sebastopol/bodega....., Russian river....jenner....chico....auburn....arcata/Humboldt

So many options....

Row tad

Stay.

Proper pronunciation is "Row todd, row."

That stretch from there, through Pensacola, to Destin is as beautiful a beach as I have found. And I've seen a lot of them.

My GF and I used to cruise that strip, find a a spot get ****ing hammered, party and ****, and there wouldn't be another soul in sight....good times.

The sand is white because its made of pulverized quartz.

The Theodore and Huntsville homes are absolutely beautiful but, IMO, you can't beat a penthouse overlooking white sand beaches.

Gulf Shores without a second thought. It's actually probably my favorite choice of all heats thus far.