House #9: The Hat Trick House

We just got what-might-be House #9 under contract. It’s the third house in a row (hence the name) that we’ve bought in the same small neighborhood, along with The Red Garage House and The 16-Bid House.

The layout is almost identical to the other two houses, with just some minor differences. For example, The Red Garage House has all hardwoods on the first floor, The 16-Bid House has all tile, and The Hat Trick House has carpet and vinyl. One is on a main street, one is on a side street, and one is in a cul-de-sac. One has an open floor plan between the kitchen/dining room/living room, one has a couple walls, and one is compartmentalized. It would actually be fun to have these three on the market at the same time, and be able to allow buyers to pick among them (this may actually happen).

The one major issue standing between the contract and the closing is the fact that one of the foundation walls is on a small hill and appears to be sloping outwards just a bit. I’m not sure if this is how the foundation was poured, or if it has recently shifted (the house is only 13 years old). If the wall has shifted, I’ll need to get a structural engineer to give me an idea of what the fix would be and how much it would cost.

We have a week to complete due diligence, and this will be the only issue we examine more closely — I’m pretty comfortable with the rest of the inspection areas. I’m hoping this ends up being a non-issue, but until we’re certain, I’ll hold off on officially considering this to be House #9…

Note: My apologies to Tom Tarrant for stealing his house name (he is also working on a house he calls The Hat Trick House)…I especially apologize since his is a much cooler rehab than this one will be…