Finding a Space for Cars and Their People

"Aremmes" (aremmes) 02/11/2020 at 11:00 • Filed to: garage goals, House shopping

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For the past few months House Aremmes has been working to get our house ready to put it up for sale and look for another, larger home to move in to. We currently live in a three-bed-one-point-five-bath 1,281 ft² townhouse with almost no patio, no garage, or even a driveway that, while it has served us well for thirteen years with little upkeep, has begun to feel cramped specially now with my son soon turning into a teenager and wanting space of his own. My wife wanted a single-family detached house with a lot large enough to, in her words, “not have to smell the neighbors,”, a master bedroom with a walk-in closet and private bathroom, and a kitchen that passes the “I like it” test. My own requirements were to have at least four beedrooms or an in-law suite, planning ahead for the possible eventuality when I may have to house my mother. Oh, and have a garage or a driveway. Distance from work for either of us isn’t much of a concern: she drives around a lot when visiting clients anyway, and I can trade my 20-minute commute for working from home some days of the week. And my son, well, he wasn’t particularly clear on what he wanted, other than making it worth leaving the school district, and something about having plenty of roof space for solar panels wired to an electric vehicle charger.

I think we have found something that with everything for everyone.

Simply put, it’s a four-bed, four-bath house with over 4,000 ft² of floor space and over half an acre of land in a decent school district, close to a national recreation area and various state parks. There’s at least 40 ft of separation between it and the closest house. The master bedroom has a private bathroom with a shower and a hot tub. The living room has a wet bar. She liked the kitchen well enough, even though the cooktop sits on the island and doesn't have a range hood, but I can fix that easily. There’s an office next to the entrance. My son was truly hyped up when we toured it, so I assume he likes it — actually he and my wife have taken to calling it “our house” seemingly ignorant of the old adage about counting chickens prematurely.

And, particularly relevant to the principal subject matter of this forum and the title of this post, it’s got this:

That’s right, a three-car garage with extra parking space for three or more cars. It’s not just big, it’s likely larger than the two bays my local mechanic has in his shop and with plenty of space to install a lift, though certainly with a lower ceiling. The property doesn’t have a shed for yard tools — yet.

Seeing that the house has been sitting for about six months I started an offer last week for $10,000 under asking to see what their counter offer would be. My agent spent a good part of the week tracking the seller’s agent down and finally got ahold of her while she was out on vacation. Finally the counter offer came back today at $5,000 under asking, which I’m cool with. And so all I have to do is sell my current house. Well, it seems I won’t have a problem with that. The house went on the market on Thursday and we got an offer yesterday for $5,000 under asking — i.e., exactly according to plan. To make things more interesting, the house I’ve been trying to sell in Puerto Rico since last summer also got an offer at asking price on Friday. We expect to have our sales agreements signed some time this week.

Things have lined up so perfectly I’m about to shit my pants waiting for the eventual downturn. Fingers crossed, we’ll have ourselves a new house in April. And then the car projects will begin in earnest.

Chuckles > Aremmes 02/11/2020 at 11:09

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That’s a nice house. I hope everything works out.

I know you lived somewhere in between me (in Allentown) and Philly. Would this move change which exit you'd take off the Northeast Extension?

Chariotoflove > Aremmes 02/11/2020 at 11:09

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House Aremmes sounds like something in a Frank Herbert novel. Very aristocratic.

Looks your long patience is about to be rewarded. That garage is the stuff of wet dreams. 

MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s > Aremmes 02/11/2020 at 11:27

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1300 sqft to 4000 sqft is a huge jump, holy crap! You’re not going to know what to do with all the space you have now lol.

Congrats, looks like things have aligned nicely for you.

Aremmes > Chuckles 02/11/2020 at 11:33

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Thanks!

Yes, this will change the exit from 31 to... uhh... *looks at map* either the Morgantown exit on the main line or the Cabela's exit on I-78, depending on which way I need to go.

Aremmes > MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s 02/11/2020 at 11:42

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Hah, yeah, it's a pretty big jump. We have some ideas of what we'll do with all of that, though, specially given that we make full use of our current house including the basement. It'll be a nice stretch for sure.

Aremmes > Chariotoflove 02/11/2020 at 11:43

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That was not intentional, but I like it. Although my son would most likely compare me to Baron Harkonnen.

Chuckles > Aremmes 02/11/2020 at 11:45

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Nice. So somewhere on 61. Don't be surprised if you see the guys from RCR driving around out there.

Aremmes > Chuckles 02/11/2020 at 11:56

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Imma be photobombing them at every opportunity.

Ash78, voting early and often > Aremmes 02/11/2020 at 12:08

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even though the cooktop sits on the island and doesn’t have a range hood

You sure it’s not a downdraft? Most houses with cooktops on islands — especially in this range of quality — will have that, but they’re easy to overlook.

This is Peak Mid Atlantic House Design :)

It looks like a combination of the house I lived in PA, plus the 2-3 my parents had in MD. Always at least one side vinyl, blacktopped driveway, and the 2-story bay window turret.

Nicely done, looks like a great piece of land!

i86hotdogs > Aremmes 02/11/2020 at 12:16

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I am just scratching the surface on my house hunting journey. We’re renting an 1,250 sq ft 2 bed 2 bath house that had plenty of space for the two of us and a dog, but the garage is small. I have been dying for some work space for over a year now, and have made due on what we have. I came across this perfect home that just is not in our budget. And it seems like anything with an extended garage is out of our price range, or anything with a separate workshop has a house that is way below standards.

i86hotdogs > i86hotdogs 02/11/2020 at 12:19

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Reference to what I was talking about https://www.redfin.com/OH/Columbia-Station/33543-Sprague-Rd-44028/home/63714658?utm_medium=share&utm_source=web_share&utm_campaign=copy

Aremmes > Ash78, voting early and often 02/11/2020 at 12:24

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It definitely doesn’t have a downdraft, we checked. It’s a glass cooktop, no vents and no popup. Definitely an oversight by whoever set it up, but one I can fix. Besides, I’d want a proper hood anyway for whenever we’re preparing fried food and don’t want to cook outside.

Chariotoflove > Aremmes 02/11/2020 at 12:28

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Geez, I hope you don’t have acne that bad. 

Aremmes > i86hotdogs 02/11/2020 at 13:09

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That looks very nice. And it's even got a dad joke right up front. I like it.

Around here that would easily go for $600k and up. The market around Philly is currently inflated due to a shortage of inventory, so we had to look farther out to find something more affordable.

Aremmes > Chariotoflove 02/11/2020 at 13:10

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Not now, but in my youth? Maaaaayyyybe...