Do you Own a Money Pit?

Remember Tom Hanks in the "Money Pit"? It was funny, right? Well, it is, until it happens to you. Here's some advice on what to look for should you be thinking of buying an older home. Oh, and this advice comes from first hand knowledge of my own money pit historic home from a couple years back.

I am using this Saint Paul Historic Home as an example, so if you own this home, please forgive me. It is easy to see from the photo that the home needs work, but not every home upon first appearance will tell you as much.

I have a photo of this home also at the end of summer. As you can also see, it is usually covered in vegetation and doesn't appear to be kept up very well. If it were for sale and I was a potential buyer, red flags would immediately go up. The perception being, if the yard is a mess, than the inside can't be much better.So a couple things to look for on the Exterior should be:

• Age of the Roof - if the shingles are peeling, then plan on spending upwards of $10,000+ for a new roof. Victorians are notorious for steep pitches and multi-gables, which bring the price up on roof repair. Not to mention they are quite dangerous for a roofer not use to the height.
• Wood Rot - some may not notice this as a problem in Minnesota, but if bare wood exposed to water is allowed to continue, your little problem could spread and before you know it you are not only replacing a window sill, but the entire widow casing and support beams.
• Overgrowth & Drainage - trees that rub against the home can cause extensive damage to the roof and siding, and also cause runoff into the home itself. Check to make sure there isn't any water pooling in the yard from faulty gutters as it could end up in your basement during a downpour.
• Weather Stripping - are the windows original to the home? If so, make sure they are properly sealed, and by sealed I mean "neatly" sealed, not just some caulk slapped up for good measure. Old homes can be drafty and cost you a bundle in heating and cooling if windows and doors are not sealed against the elements.
• Foundation or Porch Sag - if the porch is warped and sagging, not only will you have to replace the porch foundation, but most likely the porch roof as well. The strain put on the roof supports could cause too much stress and make the porch not very safe, and also cause drainage problems. Remember #2, wood rot? Also, look at cracks in the exterior brick or stucco. This could be telling you the home has foundation problems which will require extensive retrofitting and sometimes go as far as jacking the home up for repairs.
• Chimneys - one hundred year old chimneys are usually the last item on any repair list, but if not looked after, they could come crashing down into your home during high winds. Have a professional chimney repair company check the mortar around the bricks. If he can lift a brick off the top or stick an knife in the mortar like butter, than the chimneys will have to be retucked. You might even want to seal them from the elements using a 10 year product that keeps moisture out of the mortar.
• Exterior Brick - too many times I see exterior brick homes that need to be completely retucked with new mortar. This can be an expensive repair depending on the size of the home, but it has to be done to keep the structure around for another hundred years. And no, painting the brick is not a good solution. It will cause more problems than it will solve.
• Exterior Paint - check and make sure the paint is not peeling around trim. Some times home owners take the easy way out and keep painting over 50 years worth of paint. Instead, all old paint should be stripped off, then the trim should be treated, repaired, and painted with new exterior paint. Remember lead based oil paint was used prior to 1978 and will not take water based paint very well over it. It always bubbles up or peels within a couple of years.

This post just covers the exterior parts of a historic home that you should pay attention to if planning on purchasing in the future. It is also a good basis for home owners who currently live in an older home. Use it as a check list for repairs that you might not previously have thought about completing.

Lowry Hill Historic Home in Minneapolis

The first featured Historic Home in the Lowry Hill district of Minneapolis is 905 Douglas Avenue.
Built in 1900, the home is most likely similar to when it was first built, though the area surrounding it has changed greatly. Designed as a Colonial Revival mansion, the home has distinguishing characteristics of the style including full height column Corinthian capitals, dentils at the cornice with decorative molding, and a broken pediment above the door. The front door is also typical with its fanlight above the door and side lights.

The main home was recently restored to its former beauty and is currently listed for sale by Remax Results for $1,995,000. It boasts about 6500 square feet with 7 bedrooms and 7 bathrooms. The carriage house has also been restored and is currently zoned as a condo. Built in 1900 as well, it now has 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and is approximately 1800 square feet. It is listed separate from the house for sale for $649,900.

The Church of St Peter - the Oldest Parish in Minnesota

The Church of St Peter was founded in 1840 by Father Lucien Galtier, a priest who was sent by the local Catholic Bishop to care for the settlers and Indian population. He was only 29 at the time, a newly ordained priest, and his territory extended all over Dakota County.

Located on the banks of the Minnesota River, the area was originally inhabited by the Dakota (Sioux) Indians. When settlers arrived in the early 1800's, they called the place St Peter. It wasn't until 1852 that the name was changed to Mendota, meaning "meeting of the waters". If you look on a map, Mendota is located where the Minnesota River and Mississippi River merge together.

The church shown in the photo was constructed in 1853, to replace the log cabin that had been used for the previous ten years. It was constructed with local limestone and hand-cut split shingles, and cost $4,500 to build.

The steeple has had its own share of excitement over the years. The original was very short and had no bell, being blown down in the 1880's. The next replacement was taller and had a bell this time, but it only lasted 65 years when a tornado came through and destroyed it. In 1953, the current tower was constructed to celebrate its 100 year anniversary.

You can imagine that a building this old would one day need to be restored. In the late 1970's a major restoration operation was begun at a cost of over $200,000. The limestone was cleaned, the steeple repaired, trusses and framework replace, etc. Today the "Historic Church" is only used for special events and weekday masses.

The Church of St Peter is a great architectural example of early church construction. It should be as it is the oldest Catholic parish in the entire state of Minnesota!

Ramsey Hill Walking Tour

The Ramsey Hill Association will be hosting the 2007 tour of Historic Homes in St Paul on Sunday, September 16th. Tour hours are for one day only, from 11 am to 5 pm and will include homes located on and around the Famous Summit Avenue.

This year the Tour will be taking on a special theme:

"Decades of Design: 150 Years of Ramsey Hill Architecture" and will offer a decade by decade walking tour of homes in this historic neighborhood. Not just a historic tour of the oldest homes, this tour will give an excellent example of how architecture has changed during our lifetime.

Ticket prices are $20 per person and can be bought online at the Association's website. Proceeds go to the restoration of Lookout Park, crime prevention, park beautification and neighborhood grants to community organizations including the Walker West Music Academy, Saint Paul Urban Tennis League and the YWCA's We Care for Kids program.

Historic Home Market Update - Minneapolis

This month I thought I would do a breakdown of Historic Home activity for the Minneapolis area. There are so many beautiful properties that have aged gracefully over the years, how can you not love them! All statistics are for homes built prior to 1920 and located only in Minneapolis.

$400,000-600,000 : The most active price bracket I researched, with 35 active listings and 8 pending homes. The most homes have also sold in 2007 in this bracket, currently at 62.

$600,000-800,000 : Currently there are almost the same amount of active and pendings (17), as there are solds for 2007 (19).

$800,000- $1 Million : So far this year, not too many homes have been listed in this price range, compared to others. Currently there are 8 active homes for sale, 4 pending, and 8 solds.

$1 Million - 3 Million : Surprisingly, those homes priced above $1 Million are selling very well in 2007. With 21 homes selling and 20 active, it appears to be a good price range to sell.

$3 Million + : Ok, so not too many historic homes sell for above $3 Million, but there are currently four homes for sale in this price range. The most expensive is priced at $5,750,000! No homes above three Million have sold so far in 2007.