Original Owners

We moved into our house a year and a half ago and have been renovating and decorating our proverbial butts off. Our actual butts are still present and accounted for. And possibly slightly larger.

I'm curious about real estate. I want to flip houses, I want to gut and rebuild houses and transform them. Esposo is curious about what we can do to our current house in the way of massive renovation and expansion, apparently for the 14 children we're going to have because we're in a FOUR bedroom house with one baby. We haven't finished the basement for extra space yet, but we're thinking about building out over the garage or moving the garage forward.

So a house in our 'hood that was our model but had the garage bumped forward had an open house on Sunday and we trooped ourselves over there posing as Joe and Suzy Homebuyer. It's Buy Owner deal, so John and Mary Homeseller where there to talk up their home (which was slightly awkward).

First they told us that houses in this 'hood don't have basements, which we had heard but not confirmed since we have a basement. Then they told us that they were the original owners - 38 years! And I noticed the paneling the family room - we had the same stuff and painted over it in quick-like fashion. The kitchen had the same basic cabinets as we do.

John and Mary Homeseller were not too keen on the updating of the house.

We live across the street from another set of original owners, Jim and Diane. Jim and Diane have updated EVERYTHING. They added a sun room, professionally landscaped, and just had a lovely brick patio put in. They're the kind of original owners you want to buy from, they improved on everything. John and Mary Homeseller, not so much.