As promised here is the video walk-through of our potential Ninja abode. Like an idiot, I shot the video vertically which makes it a little squished. Next time I’ll be sure to film in landscape mode. Go ahead and watch the video below, then scroll down for my comments…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-KL24KU8abM&feature=youtu.be
So will we be putting in an offer?
Nope.
After walking through a second time we left being sad about our sadness. Haha, does that make sense? We really wanted to love the house. It for sure has a ton of potential and is cuter than a puppy licking a baby. That said, there were some serious concerns.
First and foremost, the busy road.
- We were in the house from about 4:30-5:15, right when people were commuting home. Since the house sits on the corner of a relatively popular street, the road noise was pretty evident from inside the house, especially considering the living room sits on the side of the house nearest the road (could you hear it in the video?). What’s more, the backyard/porch is definitely the biggest bonus to the property. We imagined ourselves sitting on the back patio, sipping some lemonade, and reading a book. Peaceful right? Not so much when there is the sound of a huge truck driving by every 10 seconds.
The bedrooms all have issues.
- The downstairs bedroom is pretty large, but it’s also in an odd location (off the living room and dining room). The “master bedroom” doesn’t have a door and can’t be closed off to the stairway. The closet in the master is also the smallest closet I’ve ever seen. The third bedroom isn’t really a bedroom. It would work for a nursery, but I’m doubting a twin sized mattress could fit comfortably. It’s also only about 10 feet away from the master bedroom, which is a huge concern considering there is no door on the master. Mommy and Daddy Ninja’s room will be a child-free zone 😉
We also had to think about resale.
- If the house was in Seattle, we would buy it in a second. Edmonds, however, is more suburban. Not too many Edmonds buyers are looking for a two bedroom (since the 3rd bedroom is technically not legal) one bath house, on busy roads, with no garage or driveway. Makes the house a tough sell when someone can buy a 4 bedroom 2 bath house for the same price two doors down.
I think Girl Ninja took it the hardest. She loves the house, but after walking through it again, realizes is is a superficial, and not a deep seeded this-is-the-best-house-for-us, love. There is no denying its charm, the size of the lot, or it’s relatively good condition. I’m sure it will sell, we just wont be the ones making an offer. Goodbye first prospective Ninja pad. Hello new opportunities.
What did you think of the place?
Because I’m not familiar with Seattle, I will have to use your judgement in regards to location. Apparently, Edmonds is not a hot spot for real estate, even though from my perspective it looks like it and costs like it too. I really thought the land it sits on and proximity to the water would be well worth it. I like the house but like I mentioned before, the main road and power lines probably would’ve been a deal breaker for me. I actually thought you would buy the place.
I’m afraid you will fall into my trap and will either have to move far away or increase your budget to get what you want.
Edmonds is totally a hot spot. It’s not city living like Seattle, but its definitely not cookie cutter suburbs. It’s probably our target area right now. This house specifically just had too many things we couldn’t change (road noise, bedroom size, demographic of buyers).
We looked at a 2bd 1bth, 890sqft right near the heart of downtown edmonds. Listed for $339,000. Prices in the desirable cities up here are crazy.
That said, we could live 15 minutes from where we currently are. In a low income, commercial zone, for like $100k for a three bed two bath piece of crap. So there is definitely cheap real estate up here too.
Oh and here is the zillow link to the property. You can look in the surrounding area to see what else is for sale nearby.
http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/38522713_zpid
It’s tough to use Zillow because it’s usually out of date. The real estate market there is tough because you have cheap houses next to expensive houses. This tells me that the land is more valuable than the house that sits on it. I’m surprised that this home has not been rezoned for commercial considering it sits on a main road. Build another house next door and rent this one out or sell it to a developer who can turn it into a commercial spot?
I’m sad that this home didn’t work out, but I’m excited to see what will come next 🙂 Good luck!
I called the city and the lot is not subdivideable as all lots in this zone must be 12,000sqft. Directly across the Main Street however is commercial zoning with apt complexes and a gas station. It’s really unfortunate, but I guess if this wasn’t the case, the house would be $50k more.
Very awesome that you took the time to call and get those details!
Edmonds is one of the most desirable, if not the most desirable town, in the entire county.
Good decision. that’s why you do a second inspection. it amazes me sometimes when people spend so much money buying the house, but so little time actually in it. go with your gut – when you find the right place you will know, but don’t settle because you will be living in it for a loooong time.
After watching that video two more times, I couldn’t help but to LMAO! I thought that the two smaller rooms upstairs was for extra storage or maybe additional closets, NOT a bedroom!
BTW I really like your stupid tax video because I’m a bass head too. Addicted to subwoofers 🙂
I just found your new house! I expect a commission of a home cooked meal at your new house when I visit ya! 😛
720 Caspers St, Edmonds, WA 98020
Haha. Caspers is the same busy road. We drove by that house and I’ve looked at it many times on redfin.
Doh! But the pictures are so beautiful, that kitchen is sick! The driveway and garage should shield you from the street noise too? Oh well…
Even without seeing the video, I’d agree that “Nope” is the right decision. You’ve only seen about six houses. Wait until you’ve seen 30, 40. The more you see, the more you know. Don’t rush into this.
After watching your video and reading your post, I learned that we should do a second (or maybe even third?) inspection on the property we are planning to purchase. BTW, I agree with you that the exterior of the house and its spacious yard is indeed charming. I am sure you will soon find the house that is perfect for you and your family. Good luck!
Cute noisy house, maybe you can learn to live with earplugs 🙂
Just Kidding, move on and don’t look back. The right house will come along. Be patient.
The nice thing about this is that you and your wife agreed, completely that it wasn’t the house for you. It is always bad when you move it into the “maybe” category! This way there are no doubts and looking back.
You are right about sitting on the deck, it would never be relaxing. Weekends are pretty bad too, especially in the summer with the festivals and beach-goers driving down that road.
What’s up with that really slim cupboard on the other side of the stove? What could possibly fit in there?!
Those slim cupboards are great for storing cutting boards and cookie sheets (vertically, of course!).
I’m glad you are taking your time and not rushing this. You are looking at houses with a critical eye and aren’t settling. That is so important!
We looked at probably 20 houses inside before buying ours (and basically ALL of the other ones online, with plenty of drive-bys). We were focusing on a small geographic area and so our options were somewhat limited.
When we found our house, it just had a price drop, bringing it to our price range. We had a few drive-bys before we could get inside, and only had time for one tour before we knew we had to put an offer in on it (there was another, eep!).
Fortunately, it didn’t get into a bidding war. We won because we had 20% down and the other party didn’t (so I’m told).
I do think a second tour is ideal, but I also think once you’ve seen plenty of options, once you know, you’ll know.
After watching the video, my first thought was that you’re the smoothest camera phone operator in all the land.
No doubt it’s charming. But space is only as good as its usability. And a few of those last rooms you shot don’t seem to fit that bill. Having lived in NYC for a five years, I actually find ambient traffic noise soothing, but I’m weird, so disregard that.
Smart to go with your gut. Especially when you’re dropping six figures.
Although the house is cute, you raised some valid points (busy street, weird bedroom with no door, small closets) that would have me looking elsewhere, too. As others have said, be happy you walked thru it a 2nd time, but move on and don’t look back… the right Ninja house is out there somewhere… you’ll find each other 🙂
The upstairs layout was so confusing to me, I couldn’t tell if those were two tiny bedrooms or 2 walk in closets. I most certainly couldn’t deal with a door that didn’t close for my bedroom.
I think you learned something from this exercise! You have to always take a second look before you make a decision. In some instances, you may need a third look. It takes the emotion out of the decision. Happy hunting!
If the extra “bedroom” (loose term here) wasn’t needed as an actual bedroom, it would be great to use it as another closet area (or maybe small office?). A door could then be placed at the bottom of the stairs to provide privacy for the master bedroom/suite.
Of course it wasn’t the house for you…there was no dojo attached. Everyone knows a ninja needs a dojo! 😛 Hope you guys find what you’re looking for without too much trouble!
I think it was a nice place. I have lived on many main roads though, so the sound no longer bothers me. (Honestly, one time there was a HUGE car accident outside on the main road (4 teenagers I knew, all not wearing seat belts, which saved their lives..I was sleeping in the “Arizona Room” and I slept through it all.) So, I guess for me a busy road isn’t that bad because I can sleep through anything…
Best of luck on finding a new home!
Next house please! 🙂 Good luck!
Well done on visiting during rush hour! I tell people they should visit a minimum of four times before deciding to rent/buy: once during a week day, then week night, weekend day and weekend night. A fifth for traffic and you’ll really know what you’re getting in terms of neighborhood, noise, etc!