It’s been a while since the last update, but we’ve been working on a two-part entry about buying houses at the foreclosure auction.  Those two entries will be coming very soon!  For now, we’ll focus on the two latest pieces of news: 1) we finally closed on the purchase of the rock cottage in Olmos Park Terrace; and 2) we finished remodeling our house in Windcrest and it is now for sale!

Olmos Park Terrace House

When purchasing property through an estate, you have to have a lot of patience.  Often, there are many heirs that have to agree and sign off on the sale – and they don’t always agree.  The rock cottage we just purchased was in an estate.  The heirs couldn’t agree what to do with the house, so a sale had to be ordered by the court.  There were many parties involved including the court, the attorneys, realtors, and the administrator for the estate (the seller).  The court had to review about 10 offers and weigh different factors to decide which offer was the best.  We made our offer in the first few days the house was listed; which was during the last week of May.  It took the court five weeks to make a decision.  Luckily, our offer was the one accepted!  The closing was scheduled two weeks later, but was delayed four additional weeks because another court approval was required to close.  The total time it took from when we made the offer to closing was two and a half months!  Here is a picture of the house:

Windcrest House

Eight weeks ago we bought a 39 year-old house in Windcrest.  The house had great bones, but was in need of some serious updating.  We had people out of town the week we bought the house, so the job started two weeks late.  The kitchen and baths were completely remodeled, the house was painted, and we installed new door hardware, light fixtures, and flooring.  In just under six weeks, the house is now for sale!  Please see the "homes for sale page" for details.  Here are some before and after pictures:

First, we took out the 70’s style archways that separated the entry way, dining room, and family room.

The kitchen was completely gutted and updated with new cabinets, granite counters, and stainless appliances.

The baths were demolished and replaced with new vanities, faucets, poured marble counters, a tub, and tile surrounds.

And the before and after of the master bedroom and living room:

Thanks for reading this entry.  Remember the next two entries will be about buying houses at the foreclosure auction, so stay tuned!

 Sincerely,

 Lazar Hausman