Hullo from the "there be dragons here" area of MA

[lovesickest]

The interior of the house looks really good, and it is remarkable that the woodwork was not painted. There are so many original details - even the bathroom sconces. It looks the wood floors upstairs are original, while there is some laminate on the main floor ? I love that the original kitchen cabinets and sink are there.

I am not sure what is going on with the exterior siding - was this put over the trim around the windows ?

In Toronto I don't think you could even buy an extra parking spot for your downtown condo for this price.

The house looks spacious and well laid out. The yard needs some work - whatever.

If you are seriously interested, then I guess you will need to ask some questions about the bigger ticket expenses - roof, furnace, plumbing, electrical - and whether any of these require urgent updating.

[Lily left the valley]

Fun first, unexpected emotions after. (If someone had told me that what happened today would happen...I would have thought they were bananas.) Some folks might find the latter half too much information, and no worries! I just want to write it down because I'm still reeling over such a thing happening.

I put up a gallery of some of the shots I took today at the bungalow: http://www.thehistoricdistrict.org/app.php/gallery/album/16

Some are neat finds, some are things I don't understand or have concerns about. I tried not to dupe anything that can be seen in the listing ad I linked above. I would have taken more, but something really odd happened during the showing and it sort of threw me for a loop, so some pictures I know I meant to take just sort of got lost in the molten mess my brain turned into.

First, let me say that after we did a quick round of the first floor, we went down to the basement. There had been a showing last eve, and apparently they never shut the door from the basement to the backyard. The agent was quite distressed to find it wide open. After I took some shots down there, we headed up to the second floor. Just as I stepped on the stairs, I heard a plaintive mewl.

I didn't think anything of it, since I assumed it was coming from outside, the mewl was so soft, and then turned my head up the stairs to go to the second floor as I heard a short series of mewls. Just then, the agent starts wigging out. What I see when I look up is a fluffy black cat resting a step below the landing, like it belongs there, but looking rather sad. The agent, it turns out as she soon tells me, has a lifelong fear of cats. Although we quickly tried to figure out what to do about said cat (no collar), who might be sick, given the mewling and lack of "oh I'm outta here" response, the agent was having a hard time keeping her wits about her.

Although I know some folks won't understand what I'll soon tell--and I don't fault them for that--those who do will understand why I was doing my darndest not to burst into tears in front of a realtor I was meeting for the first time for the remainder of the viewing.

First, I do not have children. Have been pregnant, but...no children. The cats that came into my life during college did turn into sort of surrogates over the years, especially as the last of those three is now 19 years old.

The first to come into my life "post house I grew up in pet" was a black Maine Coon kitten with a deeply dark grey ruff that I caught myself on a sprawling old farmland property in western NY when the professor in question who lived there with her partner realized the mother had kittens under their currant bush. We (friend and I) were supposed to get there before they started roaming more so we could get them fixed, but we were too late. So there we were, chasing all these black shadow kittens around the forested edge of the old farmstead, and Og was the only one I caught. My friend caught another that day, and later went back when I couldn't with another friend and they did eventually get them all.

I had wanted a cat, knowing a dog was out of the question with my college schedule. Og was more than that. Og was my pooka. He was a Houdini, able to go wherever he wanted no matter what stood in his way, especially when he wanted to hang outside under a bush for a while (a habit he would do from time to time). No matter how many windows or doors were locked and closed, he always found a way--no matter where I was living at the time (and I moved a lot). He was so smart that when my boyfriend at the time went home for thanksgiving break, it wasn't until the exact length of that break that Og would start running to the door during Xmas break when he heard footsteps on the hall stairs to see if it was said boyfriend.

Although I dearly love the other two who came later, Og was everything to me. He actually played fetch with my antique marbles (the red cats eyes I bought in Pittsburgh were his favorite), and many other things that I still keep close to my heart. He died, completely out of the blue, from seizures way too early, in the most awful apartment we ever had in downtown LA when spouse and I moved to California. Old business conversion, concrete hell with horrid lighting and echoes everywhere. We lost him on Thanksgiving day. Twice, he died in my arms. I had hoped beyond hope when he revived on the way to the emergency vet that he would stay that time, but he didn't. There was no comfort when the vet told me there was no way to prevent it. I was devastated.

The cat on the stairs? Looked identical to him. Of all the cats that could have wandered through the open basement door, this one had to look just like him. Yet here I was, discussing how to get this cat out of a home I was considering buying. I felt like I was the most horrible person ever. In my head, I knew it wasn't him, but how crazy is something like this? Meanwhile as I'm staring at it and trying not to cry, the neighbor the agent wrangled from next door to enquire if she knew who's it was just walked in, picked the cat up by the scruff of the neck and rather unceremoniously though not unkindly tossed it on the side porch before nudging it down the stairs where it ran off mewling, furthering my hurt. I almost ran out after it.

I know it sounds insane, but I somehow managed to get through the last bits of business, and as soon as I saw the agent get into her car, I called spouse (and I never do this when he's delivering because he's not supposed to be on the phone) because I thought my heart would burst. I was blabbering so badly I had to repeat three times "I just threw a cat that looked like Og out of the house" before he could grasp what was going on, and then he was apologizing that he couldn't stay on the phone and comfort me, but as soon as he got home he would. He misses Og as much as I do. Wrote an entire book about him, actually, being a Pooka and all without my asking or anything. The last thing he said to me is, "So does Og want to live there?"

I, although calmer now by far than I was wiping tears from my eyes on my walk home, feel like the world's biggest fool. I know how crazy I sound. I was so nuts that as soon as I got home, I tore through any box that looked like it had pictures until I found one of Og with Mendel (also passed) when the latter had just come to our home and was a wee kitten. (We had stopped unpacking when we thought we were buying 42, so many packed boxes to be had.)

I can't believe I'm actually wondering if this is the sort of sign where you say, "Yeah, this is the house," or is this the sort of sign where you book an appointment with a shrink and stop looking at houses for a year? Right now, I just don't know.

Here's the picture I found.

[Don M]

Maybe both? It does seem a sign----!

[lovesickest]

Well, this may or may not be the house for you BUT - speaking as a cat rescue volunteer - I suggest you go back with noisy food, cat treats, a bottle of water and a bowl, etc. and have a look for that cat. This may be the cat for you. Put up a few paper posters in the area with your phone # and a description of the cat, to see what you can find out.

This may be a neighbour's cat, but it has got you feeling on a really deep level about the house.

[Texas_Ranger]

Have you tried rapping on the siding with your knuckles? That ought to tell you what it is. I'd expect asbestos to give a relatively bright sound (as it's a very hard and dense material) and masonite to be more muffled, especially with the insulation behind. Also check the broken edges - asbestos cement should be dark grey, like cement, while masonite is probably brown.

[Lily left the valley]

We're not quite at the "Yes, make it so" stage. That may come when he can view it (hopefully next week since it seems he's getting a day off afterall.)

We're now playing the "how much should we offer?" game. I'm fretting over the potential time line because after Halloween, things will be steady crazy for spouse at the PO. Not the best time for such things. We do know that buying in late fall/winter is in our favor here--less chance of competing offers. He's of the "$90K should be a good starting point" mind, I'm more hrmmm...that would be nice if they take it, but if someone offers asking, we lose. I do know it was a "less than $100" inheritance house from the deeds I found online. But I also know they took out a Line of Credit to the tune of $40,000 in 2006 (?) on the home. No follow up paperwork clearing that as of Jan of this year.

I'm also trying to convince him that we need to either contact the buyer's agent we dealt with for 42 or find a new one. He wants to forgo that because he feels still burned by how poorly the process for 42 went, and got dragged out too long when it was a simple issue that just wasn't made clear enough. I reminded him that this place is not Fannie Mae, would not need a reno (minus an ugly complete surprise at inspection), and is more typical of what that agency deals with. He's still not convinced we need one, and less so about them. He thinks we'll be fine with a RE attorney. Back to square one there.

Our prequalification letter is expiring this week. We will have to get another if we decide to move forward.

I'm simply terrified because it's our first buy, and I'm having a hard time trying to look at the already reduced rate from town assessment, and trying to figure out how much of that was the obvious stuff like the roof may be sort of new, but it's definitely not recently new; missing radiator/appliances in the kitchen, et al.

Need to make some math time in the coming days.

The one good thing about the travails of pursuing 42 is I already know some of the stressors simply will not exist with this home, though I know others may rise to take their place. It also helped me not forget to check some things today (before cat surprise melted my matter).

Spouse actually thinks the kitty is a good sign. (Although he admitted as soon as he got home that he honestly could not understand what I was trying to tell him on the phone--he was totally bewildered. He only knew something had greatly upset me and he was stuck at work so he couldn't stay on the phone longer to figure it out and/or soothe me in any way. He still managed to say things that helped, despite feeling like he had no idea what was going on at the time. )

The interior of the house looks really good, and it is remarkable that the woodwork was not painted. There are so many original details - even the bathroom sconces. It looks the wood floors upstairs are original, while there is some laminate on the main floor ? I love that the original kitchen cabinets and sink are there.

I am not sure what is going on with the exterior siding - was this put over the trim around the windows ?

In Toronto I don't think you could even buy an extra parking spot for your downtown condo for this price.

The house looks spacious and well laid out. The yard needs some work - whatever.

If you are seriously interested, then I guess you will need to ask some questions about the bigger ticket expenses - roof, furnace, plumbing, electrical - and whether any of these require urgent updating.

Yes! I'm so thrilled about the unpainted wood I could squeal--especially the kitchen. The hardware on those cabinets---loooooove it. The steel cabinet, sadly, is rusted as feared, and although I couldn't see any leaks off the pipes, that's something I'll have to ponder later if all goes forward.

All the lighting fixtures were a bit bittersweet. On one hand I was all "WOOHOO" and then reality set in and I find myself thinking "Do I have to rewire those? Why are there no bulbs in the sconces? How difficult is it going to be for me to get that one ceiling fixture down and how would I paint it so the details really stand out? Cripes I hope the globes that are missing are hidden somewhere because I have no idea how to replace those."

That reminds me, I found a maker's mark in the built in up front in the top drawer. Angle something? I was still spacey and didn't take a pic. If some ninny had painted or worse sticky papered that drawer, I might have never found the mark.

The home to the east is very similar and has the expected trim. https://www.google.com/maps/place/260+Baker+St,+Gardner,+MA+01440/@42.5700589,-72.0040913,3a,75y,153h,90t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sikNHxq6bLGKmDjKXVP3h1w!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo1.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DikNHxq6bLGKmDjKXVP3h1w%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dsearch.TACTILE.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D86%26h%3D86%26yaw%3D153.83221%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656!4m5!3m4!1s0x89e1592112bae97b:0xf4acd28b467c8d50!8m2!3d42.569621!4d-72.003798!6m1!1e1?hl=en

I have heard about Toronto prices. Average home price was one of the reasons we chose Gardner to move to in MA.
We wanted to be able to still have some money for restoration plus other homey bits we'd like.

I actually found myself oddly pleased with the layout as well. (The dining room being right off the side porch makes me ponder if that's really a mud room or something since the built in ironing board is there.

The only oddity is the top landing of the 1st-2nd stairs is tightly fit, so turning left to go in that room, you have to step up to go in. Then if you have to go from there to bathroom, it's step down, half a step, step up to the hall and turn right. I was still in a my cat surprise daze, and forgot to take a picture of that although I sketched it on my 2nd floor totally not to scale floor plan. Holy closets is all I will say. Walk in closets like I never imagined in two of the upper bedrooms.

Speaking of stairs...the basement stair treads had funky linoleum on them. Never seen that before.

Yard work is EASY compared to some of the things I know I'll be using foreign curse words for later so as to not offend the neighbors. I just wish they hadn't planted those holly bushes so darn close to the porch. Folks always forget to plan for mature growth!

RE: roof, furnace, plumbing, electrical
Roof is listed as "newer" but it's looking like "possible end of life cycle in some spots. It might be part of the price consideration (below town assessment). Boiler and oil tank look very new/recent. I checked the date on the boiler and promptly forgot it as I noticed the two cabinets. Electrical was upgraded to 100 breakers, with room to spare, but there are still plenty of two prone outlets and again...lights. If I saw any extant knob and tube, I forgot about it when I was looking for water damage under the kitchen bath in the basement. There are some siding pieces and part of the...argh forgot the word but the wood bits that run perpendicular to the roof (and normally would be exposed since it's the open side for a bungalow.) There are two triangle somethings in the attic line, one seems to still be glass, the other wood, so perhaps the window broke. I thought that would be ventilation for the attic though. Forgot to look for the entrance to the true attic if there even is one from the 1/2? 2nd? floor.

Still not sure who is right about the siding...tax card or listing. I have to look at my pictures again and see if it's more brown than grey poking through (hoping!)

Maybe both? It does seem a sign----!

Hee.

Well, this may or may not be the house for you BUT - speaking as a cat rescue volunteer - I suggest you go back with noisy food, cat treats, a bottle of water and a bowl, etc. and have a look for that cat. This may be the cat for you. Put up a few paper posters in the area with your phone # and a description of the cat, to see what you can find out.

This may be a neighbour's cat, but it has got you feeling on a really deep level about the house.

Right now we're at the "we can see ourselves living there for the long haul, and hope like heck the neighbors stay as nice" stage. Hopefully if he gets to look at it next week (and I get a no surprise in the middle look), we'll know much better which way our sails want to lean.

I almost did go back, but then spouse was home and we were talking, I was crying and explaining and then we were snuggling and it was dark. Tomorrow. Although when we met he made me promise no more cats past the three I had then, he was 100% open to the idea of taking in the Og look alike on his own--no prompting from me which shocked me. (After testing...I'm always paranoid about FIV.) Kira (last survivor of the college triumverate) may be highly displeased. She's been the sole owner around here for a while. Yet if the cat is always that mellow, she might let it slide.

Spouse actually wondered if there was a chance the cat belonged to the tenants that got evicted earlier in the year. I also think maybe they fed the cat sometimes, as some neighborhood cats have their "rounds". The posters are a good idea if I can't catch the neighbors to ask.

Have you tried rapping on the siding with your knuckles? That ought to tell you what it is. I'd expect asbestos to give a relatively bright sound (as it's a very hard and dense material) and masonite to be more muffled, especially with the insulation behind. Also check the broken edges - asbestos cement should be dark grey, like cement, while masonite is probably brown.

I did, but I was still in my "did that really just happen" daze, and forgot what I was supposed to be listening for. Pic of it:

That's more brown than gray, right?

[lovesickest]

Cat Soap Box: FIV is difficult to transmit. Intact cats who are mating, fighting and having kittens are the main routes of transmission. SNAP tests for FIV (quick blood tests, like early pregnancy tests) have a substantial rate of false positives. I have had a few FIV+ cats within my household as foster cats, and they were no more and no less delicate than my non FIV cats. If you can find this cat, get him or her fixed ASAP. FIV poses zero risk to humans.

While you are considering this house, go by once a day and leave some food and water for this cat in some sheltered place nearby. If it was left behind by former tenants, it could really use some kindness. I always recommend cat posters have a phone number on it, as elderly or poor people may not have a computer or internet access at home.

p.s. Old light fixtures are No Big Deal to rewire, etc. and most have components that are standard size and easy to find.

[JRC]

There's a lot of content here!

I lost my cat last summer, and ever since, I get emotional any time I see another tortie. So, I understand where you're coming from. Others have already given good advice about that situation.

I definitely like all of the original features of this house.

As for the original light fixtures, there is very little wiring, at all. Maybe the light bulbs are missing because the sockets are non-functional? But, the replacement sockets are often still standard, and direct replacements are still sold today. Also, they may not have had globes. I have an original ceiling fixture in the living room that never had globes; I just use globe light bulbs.

Is the contact paper on the metal kitchen cabinets covering severe rust? Is the cabinet floor rusted through? I wouldn't worry about surface rust--especially inside the cabinet. Keep in mind the kinds of things that were probably stored in that cabinet, that would cause rust. (e.g. harsh cleaners, wet rags, etc.) As others have said, surface rust can be refinished. If they're rusted through, that's a different story, and probably wouldn't be worth the trouble to fix. If that's the case, keep an eye on eBay and Craigslist for a replacement unit.

Asbestos removal laws vary too much by location to give any sound advice about removal. If I had asbestos siding, I'd probably remove it myself. If you're careful, and keep it wet, you won't release a lot of fibers, and because it's outside, there's even less danger. But, again, laws are different everywhere, and you might have different requirements for removal and disposal, where you live. I guess what I'm saying is, don't be scared off by the word "asbestos."

Just a few thoughts...

[Lily left the valley]

Cat Soap Box: FIV is difficult to transmit. Intact cats who are mating, fighting and having kittens are the main routes of transmission. SNAP tests for FIV (quick blood tests, like early pregnancy tests) have a substantial rate of false positives. I have had a few FIV+ cats within my household as foster cats, and they were no more and no less delicate than my non FIV cats. If you can find this cat, get him or her fixed ASAP. FIV poses zero risk to humans.

While you are considering this house, go by once a day and leave some food and water for this cat in some sheltered place nearby. If it was left behind by former tenants, it could really use some kindness. I always recommend cat posters have a phone number on it, as elderly or poor people may not have a computer or internet access at home.

p.s. Old light fixtures are No Big Deal to rewire, etc. and most have components that are standard size and easy to find.

Love, thanks for that info about FIV. Years ago, the shelter I volunteered at then never explained it like that. They made a huge deal about separating them, right down to the open play rooms. I was led to believe the chances of transmission for kitties was much higher--was never worried about getting it myself.

When I brought Mendel and Kira in, both lived in the bathroom until they could get their vet trip for the necessaries. Kira, a rescue, had to stay sequestered when I wasn't home after because she was still very aggressive and afraid at first. Her former owner was the girlfriend of a drug dealer who dosed her with everything he sold because he thought it was fun . We got rid of my grandparents tinsel tree I inherited because when the timer clicked on the color wheel, you couldn't keep her away from sitting and staring at it until the timer clicked off for the night. She wouldn't even leave for a moment for food or water even.

I'll be heading over there in a bit to kitty search. Yes, phone number on poster was planned.

Good to know about the fixtures. The oldest I've dealt with so far is 60s.

There's a lot of content here!

I lost my cat last summer, and ever since, I get emotional any time I see another tortie. So, I understand where you're coming from. Others have already given good advice about that situation.

I definitely like all of the original features of this house.

As for the original light fixtures, there is very little wiring, at all. Maybe the light bulbs are missing because the sockets are non-functional? But, the replacement sockets are often still standard, and direct replacements are still sold today. Also, they may not have had globes. I have an original ceiling fixture in the living room that never had globes; I just use globe light bulbs.

Is the contact paper on the metal kitchen cabinets covering severe rust? Is the cabinet floor rusted through? I wouldn't worry about surface rust--especially inside the cabinet. Keep in mind the kinds of things that were probably stored in that cabinet, that would cause rust. (e.g. harsh cleaners, wet rags, etc.) As others have said, surface rust can be refinished. If they're rusted through, that's a different story, and probably wouldn't be worth the trouble to fix. If that's the case, keep an eye on eBay and Craigslist for a replacement unit.

Asbestos removal laws vary too much by location to give any sound advice about removal. If I had asbestos siding, I'd probably remove it myself. If you're careful, and keep it wet, you won't release a lot of fibers, and because it's outside, there's even less danger. But, again, laws are different everywhere, and you might have different requirements for removal and disposal, where you live. I guess what I'm saying is, don't be scared off by the word "asbestos."

Just a few thoughts...

I'm naturally verbose. When I have time, I usually can edit myself down at least a bit.

Kira is a tortie.

As to the features, the bungalow does have some I'd thought of putting into 42 like the chair rail and such. Work already done!

Thanks for the further info on fixtures. I did notice the lower bedroom has globes.

I didn't see any completely rusted/missing bits--even in corners. I'm hoping it will all be surface as that's just a TODO thing instead of a full replace.

I'm not scared of asbestos, I just know that here you have to pay extra for disposal and keep it wet for transport. We're not in a rush to replace the exterior siding, I was just wondering if that's what it definitely is so I should include later removal in my math pricing wise.

I've already been exposed to lots of it when I worked as a theatre tech. Most older lights had asbestos based cording. I learned to look out for the twinkle in the air as you worked so you'd know to grab a mask for the cords that were the most worn and shed more. Of course the older hands would laugh at us youngun's for wearing the masks. Newer lights have the wiring sheathed in plaited Teflon.

[Lily left the valley]

Ran some errands, finally picked up that chair I'll be working on, sat down with a cold soda and opened the listing for the bungalow to see the for sale had been changed to pending.

First I tried the selling realty # since the agent I met with had said she'd be away this weekend. Straight to voicemail. Then called the agent I had met with anyway though I really wasn't expecting to catch her, and when I got her voicemail I asked her to call me when she could.

No idea what to do now. I've heard you can still make an offer while a sale is pending. Yet spouse hasn't seen inside first hand yet.

If the sale is considered pending, there's no more showings, right? We were hoping to go see it Thursday when spouse will be off from work.