Large Historic Mansions Can Be A Bargain In Some Older Industrial Cities
Blog
October 10, 2014 |
Some home buyers, especially those with an eye toward large, historical homes, are finding bargain prices in Midwestern cities like Toledo, Detroit and Minneapolis. One example is a home in Toledo, OH, with 10 bedrooms, 8 bathrooms, almost 19,000 square feet, built in 1887, and listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
This article from Realtor Magazine points out several issues buyers should be aware of when considering buying an older mansion. First and foremost is to be careful not to renovate the home out of the market, i.e. investing so much in the renovation so as to price the home out of the market it is in. Also, be wary of how much updating/renovating is necessary–the purchase price may be attractive but necessary renovations could be so costly as to make buying the house a bad decision.
One question I would ask a potential buyer is what are you going to do with a home this large? Most of the homes mentioned in the article are more than 10,000 square feet. That is a lot of house, even at reduced prices. And, of course, location may or may not be an issue. Some buyers may love the location of these older, very large homes and others not so much. And, some buyers may want to make one of these homes a multi-family or multi-use residence, and of course there are always zoning and other issues to deal with.
There are some beautiful, older large homes/mansions in many older cities. Some buyers may want to explore the opportunities they offer.
