So we might be buying a place...

Yes. It was a huge mess. So much wet. I would never do it again.

 

Get a good tool kit. Get this book ... https://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Guide-Repair-Improvement-Updated. Be prepared to watch YouTube videos on repair jobs.

When we bought our house 20 years ago, I was pretty damn incompetent when it came to home repairs. In the time since I've built a deck, built a treehouse, did a down-to-the-studs kitchen renovation, installed hardwood flooring, installed two garbage disposals, two dishwashers and two washer-dryer sets, redid the flashing around the chimney, rewired multiple outlets and light fixtures, installed gas logs in the fireplace, removed and installed two toilets and a few thousand other things. My tool kit used to fit in a small cardboard box - now it takes up half the 10x20 backyard shed.

 

• Perforate wall coverings speed removal
• 96 Stainless steel teeth cut wall covering to allow loosening material
• Use on all types of wall covering
• Simple circular scrubbing motion perforates surface
• Ergo-engineered soft grip fits fist for comfort

 

The home warranty is a good tip - I also had the seller provide me a year for free. It paid off. Because I was buying when it was cold out, the inspector tested the AC by running it - however, that just brought in cold air. When I went to turn it on for the first time in the summer, it didn't work. I had to pay $100 fee for the warranty, but that ended up saving me about $500 off of that repair.

 

Link fail?

 

Previous house had cheesy wood paneling in several rooms.

In one bedroom (which was to be an office), I decided to pull it off to take a look. There were only a couple of nails in it. It was effing glued to the wall. And underneath was 3/4" exterior-grade plywood. Sweet. But it took me forever to remove the glue. I tried steam and a scraper, didn't work too well. Eventually a power sander got it. Before the crappy paneling was put up, in one area, it looked like somebody sat there and threw a knife at the wall. Hundreds if nicks and gouges. So I sanded and filled them. The whole room required painting and it came out fine.

This house also had a screen room, kind of like a patio that the previous owners converted into a real room, very illegally. Same crappy paneling on the walls. We decided to have the room redone professionally and legally. When the crew started, they discovered that the crappy paneling was nailed to the studs. One exterior wall had a window that was covered up and stuccoed over on the outside. We covered it with drywall. 0

We really liked that house and only moved because of a layoff and a new job 42 miles away.

 

re: The HOA, realize it cuts both ways. If you don't have a dumpster, you might want to visit on Trash Day for the neighborhood. My wife and I, we rent in an area with an HOA, but I have no clue what our landlord is getting for his money. Half of our neighbors just leave trash bags on the sidewalk, and this will shock you, but a good portion of the neighborhood now has an issue with rats, or with vultures / hawks that rip open the bags. Having your bags on the sidewalk, not in a can, is a violation of the HOA, but we have an absentee one that does zero enforcement.

 

Ours are sticklers for lawn maintenance. That's fine, it's a labor of love.

But I just had a new roof put in last month and I was worried the guys would not get every old nail - and I know they didn't because I checked.

Stuff like that drives neighbors bananas.

 

Get a copy of the HOA rules and read them immediately. Find out what they control and what they don’t. House color, fencing, plants, pets, vehicles in driveways. What are your HOA fees and what do they cover and what things will you still have to pay yourself. Are there any restrictions that will be a problem for you now. How about five or ten years from now.

HOAs have been the reason I’ve walked away from some houses I loved.

 

This one has me nervous ... a little bit.

There are medallions imbedded in the curb that, supposedly, indicate the property line. When we moved in, the neighbor told me that we have a zero property line on that side. The wall of his house is the boundary. There is about a 6-foot wide area between his house and mine and that belongs to me. From the sidewalk to a small fence is a strip of dirt between our driveways. We planted it with bushes. He offered to split the cost, but I insisted on paying. He did buy a soaker hose and attached it to his water bib. It was more convenient than mine, so I was OK with it. Bushes don't need water, they grow like crazy. On the backside of the small fence is just a utility area. I have a couple storage units for some yard chemicals and patio cushions. The trash cans live in this area. Behind another small fence is our backyard that is heavily landscaped, all the way to the back wall.

And here is my worry. Also in the utility area is my AC compressor. If you look at the medallion in the curb, the line runs right through the bushes and the compressor. Not a problem now. But the neighbors are 90 and 88. The husband is not overly healthy and if he goes first, the wife will certainly move. If they sell the house and some agent starts looking around and sees the area between the houses is split, they might start some trouble. I don't know what they might accomplish, if they try to claim a 3-foot strip that they have no access to from their house.

I'm probably worrying for nothing, but anything is possible in a litigious society.

 

Keep all your remotes together.