Small, Northern Home - Maintenance?

[SunnyOne]

I've been looking around for a small, low cost home located near my family members in upstate NY. I plan to snowbird in the winter months.
I am from upstate NY, so cracks about snow are unnecessary, I know what to expect - besides, that climate keeps the riff raff out

I know Syracuse is known for affordability, but I can't believe the price of this home:

https://www.trulia.com/p/ny/mattyda...ydale-ny-13211--2012193441?mid=0#lil-mediaTab

One concern for me would be the maintenance. I spent my career in urban areas, so I am used to paying others for maintenance - I would need learn to use a lawnmower. Also have to contract out some snow removal.

What other maintenance issues am I not seeing on a small property such as this?

Thanks

 

[COcheesehead]

That house has two major flaws in my opinion: no garage and no basement.

 

[street]

I've been looking around for a small, low cost home located near my family members in upstate NY. I plan to snowbird in the winter months.
I am from upstate NY, so cracks about snow are unnecessary, I know what to expect - besides, that climate keeps the riff raff out

I know Syracuse is known for affordability, but I can't believe the price of this home:

https://www.trulia.com/p/ny/mattyda...ydale-ny-13211--2012193441?mid=0#lil-mediaTab

One concern for me would be the maintenance. I spent my career in urban areas, so I am used to paying others for maintenance - I would need learn to use a lawnmower. Also have to contract out some snow removal.

What other maintenance issues am I not seeing on a small property such as this?

Thanks

Just to clarify. Is the price higher than you thought?

It looks like a well-kept home and looks like updated as well. Maintenance of water heater, furnace, roof and painting etc.... I would ask them about the appliances, furnace, water heater and roof maintenance replacement of those items.

As far as a basement they are just another trap to gather stuff. I'm not a fan of basements so there are the people that don't want basements. I like everything on one floor and sunny atmosphere.

As for a garage it would be nice but not a must have. Some extra storage for maintenance items like mower, shovel and tools etc. could be done with a storage shed.

Good luck, keep us posted on your progress.

 

[COcheesehead]

Basements in colder climates act as a cold barrier and keep the house warmer and avoid frozen pipes under the floor.
Storing a car outdoors invites theft and can be detrimental to the car - hail mostly.

 

[COcheesehead]

I wonder where that Bilco door in the backyard goes to.

Access to a crawl space. It states that in the listing. I would personally make it a wine cellar.

 

[braumeister]

Good memory. I was stationed at the military installation almost next door to that place (long closed now). It's clearly a cookie cutter starter home, so I would question whether it really has enough insulation.

Yes, winters can be brutal there, but people deal with it just fine.

 

[razztazz]

Good memory. I was stationed at the military installation almost next door to that place (long closed now). It's clearly a cookie cutter starter home, so I would question whether it really has enough insulation.

Yes, winters can be brutal there, but people deal with it just fine.

Two of the happiest years of my life were spent there. I was there when they closed the Base.

 

[COcheesehead]

We had an older home in a cold climate early on in our marriage when money was tight so no major renovations were possible, but we added the clear plastic around the windows to seal the leaks, added a water heater blanket, learned how to tuck point to fix the brick, got a programmable thermostat.
If I had the money I would have added more insulation in the attic and changed the windows. They were a major loss of energy.

In a house without a basement, you may want to consider a stand alone heat source in the crawl space for really cold nights. Open cabinet doors to let warm air circulate around the pipes.

To winterize it, shut off the water, drain the pipes and get some RV antifreeze to pour in the drains to stop sewer gas from coming in. A internet enabled thermostat would also help control the heat when you snowbird.

 

[braumeister]

Two of the happiest years of my life were spent there. I was there when they closed the Base.

That was long after my time there, but I agree it was a good assignment.

 

[ivinsfan]

Is this a modular home..layout and size indicates that to me

 

[pacergal]

Lovely, cozy home. Looks nicely updated.
As street mentioned, checking on appliance updates and maintenance would be important, I would also consider having the wood stove and pipe cleaned and checked to be on my list.
Also, keeping an eye out for the tree and limbs in the back yard. Repairing fences or roofs after snow or ice storms are not that fun, been there, done that.

 

[OldShooter]

... What other maintenance issues am I not seeing on a small property such as this? ...

Well, "small" is really not much of a factor. The house has a kitchen with appliances, it has a bathroom, it has a plumbing system, it has an electrical system (breakers or fuses?), it has a furnace, washer & dryer, and (probably) a septic system and a well. Pretty much all the same as any size house and all that stuff will require maintenance from time to time.

We recently sold a lake home where I had arranged the plumbing to drain easily to allow the house to freeze, eliminating heating costs when were not there. But with no basement this is not feasible for this house. Also, how are the pipes kept from freezing? Electric heater tape? Potential co$t$ there.

In our state non-compliant septic systems are grandfathered for the current owner but when the property changes hands the septic system must be brought to current standards. More $$ potentially there. Well test must be done with the potential that uglies like arsenic might have to be dealt with.

Buying any house is like buying something that eats. I suggest that you bring a lot of skepticism to the due diligence phase and absolutely never, never fall in love with any deal. Good luck!

 

[COcheesehead]

First thing I would do is get rid of the bookshelf and lower the TV in the living room. My neck hurts just looking at it.

 

[COcheesehead]

Well, "small" is really not much of a factor. The house has a kitchen with appliances, it has a bathroom, it has a plumbing system, it has an electrical system (breakers or fuses?), it has a furnace, washer & dryer, and (probably) a septic system and a well. Pretty much all the same as any size house and all that stuff will require maintenance from time to time.

We recently sold a lake home where I had arranged the plumbing to drain easily to allow the house to freeze, eliminating heating costs when were not there. But with no basement this is not feasible for this house. Also, how are the pipes kept from freezing? Electric heater tape? Potential co$t$ there.

In our state non-compliant septic systems are grandfathered for the current owner but when the property changes hands the septic system must be brought to current standards. More $$ potentially there. Well test must be done with the potential that uglies like arsenic might have to be dealt with.

Buying any house is like buying something that eats. I suggest that you bring a lot of skepticism to the due diligence phase and absolutely never, never fall in love with any deal. Good luck!

Heat tape will kill your utility bills.

 

[OldShooter]

Heat tape will kill your utility bills.

Exactly my point.

 

[razztazz]

Heat tape will kill your utility bills.

I have heat tape in the Omaha Nebraska area. Similar wx to Upstate NY but less snow. Not a problem. I don't find the expense particularly noticeable. The new kind comes with a thermostat and goes on and off with the temps.

This might have something to do with electric rates in the area. Cheap is cheap and pricey is pricey with or without heat tape.

 

[COcheesehead]

I have heat tape in the Omaha Nebraska area. Similar wx to Upstate NY but less snow. Not a problem. I don't find the expense particularly noticeable. The new kind comes with a thermostat and goes on and off with the temps.

This might have something to do with electric rates in the area. Cheap is cheap and pricey is pricey with or without heat tape.

We have a flat roof over part of our house and that part faces north. Our builder suggested heat tape on that part of the roof to stop any ice dams from building up. So we run it Dec- Feb. It adds about $125 a month on top of the already most expensive months of the year here in Colorado.

 

[Out of Steam]

In a house without a basement, you may want to consider a stand alone heat source in the crawl space for really cold nights. Open cabinet doors to let warm air circulate around the pipes.

I'm learning the downsides of a crawl space firsthand right now, and our climate isn't particularly cold. We were unable to control the humidity in the house (and, needless to say, the crawl space) until I covered the floor with plastic.

It's a job that has pushed up against my physical limits quite hard, including removing about 30 buckets of dirt and at least 6 cubic feet of broken brick and cement blocks, and I still have some finishing up to do.

 

[COcheesehead]

I'm learning the downsides of a crawl space firsthand right now, and our climate isn't particularly cold. We were unable to control the humidity in the house (and, needless to say, the crawl space) until I covered the floor with plastic.

It's a job that has pushed up against my physical limits quite hard, including removing about 30 buckets of dirt and at least 6 cubic feet of broken brick and cement blocks, and I still have some finishing up to do.

We have a small humidity activated fan in our crawl space. The entire space is also conditioned to a degree. Water, cold air and in some places radon are the challenges of crawl spaces.

 

[Stormy Kromer]

I had a seasonal home for 5 years before we retired and moved there full time.

We were 18 miles south of the Canada border in NE Minnesota. We visited about once a month all year so we did a lot of the maintenance and yard stuff ourselves.

We shut the water off and drained the pipes every visit. Threw the breaker on the water heater and made sure nothing was in the fridge that could spoil. We had a crawl space that I kept heated at 60 degrees all winter. I kept a remove thermometer down there. We kept the heat at 50 in the house when we weren't there. Electric off peak system with a wood stove for backup. Enjoyed it much. Be careful if burning wood. Lots to learn if you haven't before.

Snow removal was a big concern. We hired a local who was in the business and paid him well ($40 a job, and we tipped him well above that).

As for the rest, I mowed the lawn when I was there each month. I had a chain saw for the fallen trees and limbs.

A big concern for us was the fact we were on a private road. A 2 mile dead end road with trees so close you would scrape your mirrors on both sides driving in. I worked on it a lot when I moved there full time. Brush cutting for days. But, we lived there and took pride in the condition of the road.

Road Associations are NOT for everybody.

Utilities such as rural electricity, internet, phone reception, well water and septic, garbage & recycling aren't for everybody either.

Another thing to consider is critters. We had animals on the property all the time, the biggest nuisance was bears. Keep the place clean and really watch anything outside that smells like food. Yogi & Booboo showed up often. No harm, but a constant nuisance.

Neighbors. You wouldn't think that neighbors could be a bigger problem in rural areas than urban, but they can. We had a crazy man at the end of the road and he made things miserable for many. If we were in town we could call the police and put and end to it. In a rural area it is much harder.

We were fortunate, in 11 years in the bush we never had a problem with theft or trespassers.

Country living is fun. I live on a farm now and enjoy everything it has to offer.

 

[Mr._Graybeard]

I agree that if you're going to summer there and go away for the winter, draining the plumbing is a must if you don't want to maintain the building's temperature through the winter. Even then, the crawl space would make frozen pipes a hazard.
Zillow says the average home price in Syracuse is about $155k. Considering this home is 2BR/1BA with no garage or basement, the price arguably could be a little high for the market.

 

[Ronstar]

Yep, while snowbirding - shut off water and drain the plumbing. And snow removal service. Other than that, wifi indoor temp monitor, maybe a few wyze cameras, lights on timers, some means for long term mail forwarding. Maybe find someone to check on the place occasionally and/or have a neighbor leave tracks in the driveway and sidewalks to make the place look lived in while you are gone in the winter.

ETA - And while you are in that northern home - you'll need a lawn mower, string trimmer, and yard tools to maintain the yard. Stain, etc to maintain the back yard deck, fence and shed. And that tree in the backyard looks like it will be a lot of work. Big lower branch looks like it is splitting from the trunk

 

[GravitySucks]

I live in the area if you care to DM.

It’s a decent area of the county. Not the best but far from the worst. It’s stick built, not a prefab as someone commented. Probably post WWII build for when the factories were booming.
You can find similar with a basement for the same money. Taxes look like they’re not counting something. I’d expect taxes to be about a thousand a year more than listed.
One maintenance item not listed was sealing the driveway every couple of years. Lawn mowing services are going to run $35 a week. Flat lawn would probably take you 45 minutes with a power mower. Plowing is about the same every visit without a contract.

 

[Sunset]

Seems like it used to have a garage and that was closed off to add room to the house. I see "garage like" lights on each side of the window in front of the driveway.

I think some folks snowbird and don't get the driveway plowed, saving hundreds of dollars per Winter. Once the driveway is full of snow, thieves will leave lots of footprints and have a lot of carrying to do if they want to steal stuff. Neighbors will notice.

Of course camera's (wyze , eufy) are great for remote viewing. A simply safe alarm system, and drain the water when away, open cub-boards , and turn down thermostat to 55 F. (internet one would be good).

 

[Out of Steam]

We have a small humidity activated fan in our crawl space. The entire space is also conditioned to a degree. Water, cold air and in some places radon are the challenges of crawl spaces.

At a minimum, I will put a humidity sensor there that will be readable from inside the house. There is some controversy about whether venting a crawl space in the Southeastern US isn't simply drawing in humidity.

I'm also going to direct at least one of the front downspouts in a pipe to the street, though that may be a fall project.