Family can't move into house they bought

[Frazod]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

I like watching those shows on HGTV where people are shopping from homes in different cities. There'll sometimes be comments made like, "this is open space so there'll never be houses there".

I don't trust those statements. Things change all the time. Unless it's a national park, and maybe even then, it just takes a vote of a random council or committee to change things.

On that same note, it just takes a vote to eliminate our historic district around our house. I hope it'll be around for my lifetime at a minimum, but it wouldn't shock me if some powerful developer eventually screws the district over.

We were first time homeowners, and certainly learned some lessons from the weasels we bought from. The most important is that sellers are only interested in selling. A few things they told us about the area that were beyond their control ended up being pie in the sky. We're still here, and I'm generally happy with the house and location, but if the time ever does come to relocate I'll damned sure know what questions to ask and what answers to question.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by Frazod

We were first time homeowners, and certainly learned some lessons from the weasels we bought from. The most important is that sellers are only interested in selling. A few things they told us about the area that were beyond their control ended up being pie in the sky. We're still here, and I'm generally happy with the house and location, but if the time ever does come to relocate I'll damned sure know what questions to ask and what answers to question.

Gonna need some deets here.

I recently caught some sellers who turned out to be pretty untrustworthy IMO.

"We cleaned the sewer line. It looks good!"

Plumber: "Yeah this is going to cost you $6k to fix."

[KCUnited]

We've always tossed around the idea of keeping a condo in Chicago after we relocate our primary residence within the next 3-5 years. With money cheap and a surplus in downtown, its very tempting now. Currently there's 3bd/2ba for under 400 and 2bd/2ba in the 200-300s happening now for downtown properties.

They go quickly but it seems like a limited opportunity to get in as the 2020 dust is still settling.

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by Hammock Parties

Gonna need some deets here.

I recently caught some sellers who turned out to be pretty untrustworthy IMO.

"We cleaned the sewer line. It looks good!"

Plumber: "Yeah this is going to cost you $6k to fix."

This may be silly, but if you're thinking of buying in an area that's anywhere close to commercial area or busy street, you might consider a quick call to the county planning office to just ask if there are any long-term changes that might happen. They're generally friendly people who don't mind talking to the public, and you can find out if there's an application for a sex offender home or a big apartment complex or a road widening. They won't know everything but they often know if something big is happening.

It's probably not necessary if you're looking at a place that's buried in the middle of a subdivision surrounded by similar homes, but as noted earlier if you're overlooking a golf course or an open space, it doesn't hurt to ask if it's going to be gone in a year.

I had a relative who bought a restaurant once, and he didn't do this. A few months after he made the purchase, a major road widening project started and made it a huge hassle to get to his restaurant. It was a disaster. I figure the seller knew about it, which was why he sold.