Homes I love in NJ

As I mentioned in my previous post, this time I was going to get an old home and there are some great ones in this area.  I had certain requirements including wide hardwood floors, not renovated to remove all the charm and 100 plus years old but other than that I was open.  Mark not so much!  His list included no huge renovations needed , laundry services not outside in dirt basement and indoor bathrooms he could turn around in....oh and no cemetery in the yard.  This turned out to be harder than I first thought it would be to locate because I could see the charm and potential in almost all the homes but couldn't get Mark and in some cases the realtor, Peter to see it.  They have teased me, made fun of my vision and even made me cry on a couple of times but in the end we found the best home for us.

Here's a few that I might have shed a few tears over:  This one had 1 very, very small bathroom and to do laundry you had to go outside to the dirt basement along with an operating outhouse were enough to make Mark and Peter laugh their asses off while I sobbed.  The woodwork was original and those enclosed staircases were worn.  Ok it needed a kitchen but I could just imagine my life in this house but the guys not so much.

Next came this beauty and if it hadn't been in active flood plain I might have swayed Mark over on this one.

 

This next home is one we had to cancel the contract on because there were so many issues with the home inspection that could not be resolved.  It was  built in 1830 as a school house and the stone walls and window sills were amazing.  But the kitchen was going to have to be redone because you could barely turn around in it, there weren't a lot of storage/closets and no septic system but we were willing to work thru some of it.    The monkey wallpaper was going to have to go right away but I could see the possibilities and so could Mark.  However when the inspection was done there was no way when the Radon reading was 66 and a high reading is considered a 4.  

This next one was a dream for me complete with barn, carriage house, chicken coop, ect…..but alas it is a foreclosure that has sat so long without utilities that radiators had burst but oh the possibilities were endless in my mind.

These were just a small sampling of the great places I saw but in the end I found the home that meets almost all of mine and Mark's requirements.  It was just meant to be!