View Full Version : Cheap Old Houses: House in IL's neighborhood maybe?
catherine
10-25-22, 4:38pm
I follow Cheap Old Houses on Instagram, just because I hold out hope that some people still like old stuff.
So this one popped up on their instagram:
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/4554-Holly-Ave-Saint-Louis-MO-63115/2960427_zpid/
It looks like it could be from your neighborhood, IL? But the inside is gorgeous. Nobody messed with the Craftsman interior. And only $55k????? Wow.
iris lilies
10-25-22, 4:48pm
I follow Cheap Old Houses on Instagram, just because I hold out hope that some people still like old stuff.
So this one popped up on their instagram:
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/4554-Holly-Ave-Saint-Louis-MO-63115/2960427_zpid/
It looks like it could be from your neighborhood, IL? But the inside is gorgeous. Nobody messed with the Craftsman interior. And only $55k????? Wow.
Holly Hills is a nice neighborhood. That house is a steal even by St. louis standards.
someone cleaned it up and polished the bits to make it look its best. Anyone could move into it and slowly add/ replace baths and kitchen, if they needed to. Even adding new HVAC and sewer if needed would still make it $100,000, a good price.
Most of the important things are original, such as fireplaces and doors and woodwork. The only hideous thing is that one room with paneling, and that is no big deal to remove.
It’s pretty far from my old neighborhood and is a generation newer than mine.
Those prices knock me out. someone could buy twenty of those for what (inferior) houses go for around here.
iris lilies
10-25-22, 9:46pm
Oh wait!
never mind, this is a shitty neighborhood. When I saw the park, I thought it was Holly Hills near Carondelet Park. But it is an”up North” park.
This explains the seemingly great price.
If most of you wouldn’t live in my old neighborhood I guarantee you wouldn’t live in the neighborhood where this house sits.
The Low price of this house was bugging me So that’s why I came back to double check it. it just didn’t seem right. In Holly Hills it would go for a couple hundred thousand dollars.
Teacher Terry
10-25-22, 10:19pm
5 years ago when my son lived in Wichita Kansas you could buy a old house that needed work for 40k and the neighborhood was okay.
littlebittybobby
10-25-22, 10:20pm
Are there old, junk cars sitting around, that keep property values down? Just curious.
ToomuchStuff
10-26-22, 1:24am
Kind of makes me think of programs that were started here, trying to get local LEO's to move into downtown neighborhoods, with the thought it would clean them up.
Also makes me think of my old neighborhood. The house Frank James died in recently sold for $130K, because it needs plumbing and I believe foundation issues (1800's rock foundation). Where a house down the street from the early 20's, was a $40K house a few years ago, just sold for $183K.
catherine
10-26-22, 7:38am
IL, haha, thank God I didn't call up the realtor and buy that house as an investment property! But, gee, it sure looks nice! That's why I don't like to go by the pictures on real estate sites. Too many times I've been drawn in by the pictures, only to find the real thing looked a lot different in the context of its surroundings.
iris lilies
10-26-22, 8:48am
IL, haha, thank God I didn't call up the realtor and buy that house as an investment property! But, gee, it sure looks nice! That's why I don't like to go by the pictures on real estate sites. Too many times I've been drawn in by the pictures, only to find the real thing looked a lot different in the context of its surroundings.
It’s tragic though isn’t it? Someone has lived in this house for a long time, taking care of it, not removing any of the original features.
catherine
10-26-22, 8:52am
It’s tragic though isn’t it? Someone has lived in this house for a long time, taking care of it, not removing any of the original features.
Absolutely.
sweetana3
10-26-22, 10:58am
toomuchstuff: We had a program to renovate a neighborhood and resell to teachers and similar at good prices. Problem: Crime. Bad crime. Very bad crime. The area was known for it and these few houses were surrounded by bad properties. We have other neighborhoods that are being renovated organically moving out from the center city and are much more successful. These still have crime coming from outside but more like petty theft and property damage than shootings and such.
Neighborhood is so important. Habitat has pulled out of some due to gang threats.
JaneV2.0
10-26-22, 11:07am
It’s tragic though isn’t it? Someone has lived in this house for a long time, taking care of it, not removing any of the original features.
In a perfect world, it could be moved without too much fuss.
iris lilies
10-26-22, 11:22am
In a perfect world, it could be moved without too much fuss.
Old, structurally sound houses are like healthy pit bulls in my city: way too many of them for the population that wants them.
And it’s interesting that it’s one demographic producing all of them. Hmmm
Too bad! That fireplace--OMG!
Dang. This house is a serious time capsule that appears to be fairly well cared for. And the houses on either side of it look decent as well. If there are other blocks in the neighborhood that are also as good as this the gay men will be moving in soon enough to take over. Maybe they'll call it Castro 2.0, the St. Louis edition.
iris lilies
10-26-22, 11:11pm
Dang. This house is a serious time capsule that appears to be fairly well cared for. And the houses on either side of it look decent as well. If there are other blocks in the neighborhood that are also as good as this the gay men will be moving in soon enough to take over. Maybe they'll call it Castro 2.0, the St. Louis edition.
A bunch of gay men moving to that neighborhood would be the best thing that’s ever happened to it. I agree that the houses on either side look substantial and occupied.
Since SO is from St Louis we have friends there. The guys our age wouldn't be interested. They've all bought in Soulard and the central west end (I think that's what it's called?) and have done the renovate the house thing. The younger kids though will grab up houses like this in a heartbeat. They can't afford the done neighborhoods but are more than willing to move to the "up and coming" neighborhoods, especially if those neighborhoods include awesome places like this that they can live in for now and improve over time.
iris lilies
10-27-22, 9:02am
Since SO is from St Louis we have friends there. The guys our age wouldn't be interested. They've all bought in Soulard and the central west end (I think that's what it's called?) and have done the renovate the house thing. The younger kids though will grab up houses like this in a heartbeat. They can't afford the done neighborhoods but are more than willing to move to the "up and coming" neighborhoods, especially if those neighborhoods include awesome places like this that they can live in for now and improve over time.
But the tragedy of this neighborhood is that it’s not up-and-coming, it is down and plunging. If you look at Realtor.com in the ZIP Code For this house,it’s all very sad.
littlebittybobby
10-28-22, 8:48am
Okay---I'll tell you what----I still think there's money---good money---to be made, buying and flipping old, abandoned Pizza Huts! Here's a photo of one, See?. Not sure where it is. But yeah--- if you could get it for the right price, and do all the work yourself, you might be starting your own empire. Yup.4897
iris lilies
10-28-22, 3:06pm
Neighborhood is so important. Habitat has pulled out of some due to gang threats.
habitat for Humanity is building in a near Northside neighborhood that is a lot like Soulard and my neighborhood that JP referenced.
By “a lot like “I mean like our neighborhoods were not nice in the mid 1970s. I’ve watched this neighborhood struggle and struggle with young people who have enthusiasm going up there to rehab houses. It just is not making it.
City of St. Louis is losing population at too fast a clip to support another Victorian neighborhood being brought up from decay. Renovating in this area is super expensive and for every dollar you put it and you can only get $.50 back, if that. Most people don’t have that kind of money for that kind of foolishness. This neighborhood had millions of federal dollars from taxpayers poured into it to develop a commercial strip. The strip is now 3/4 empty and has only fringe businesses and social services in the buildings.
Our friends who have crap tons of money were renovating up there for a while, but they gave up and left. Every night someone would break into the house and steal all the equipment or copper pipes or etc.
catherine
10-28-22, 3:12pm
Have you guys seen Rehab Addict on HGTV? It's two guys--one is the builder/contractor, the other is the one with the creative vision and chops. They flip one house after another in Detroit. I don't mind flippers if they are sincerely trying to upgrade a neighborhood. It's an interesting premise. The houses are typically ridiculously cheap and they live in them while the flip is going on to save money.
However, if they got their hands on that Craftsman house in St. Louis, I'd be very afraid. I'm sure the HGTV producers would talk them into whitewashing the woodwork and tearing out the fireplace.
ToomuchStuff
10-28-22, 10:10pm
I though Rehab Addict was the one with the short cute blond gal?
catherine
10-28-22, 10:14pm
I though Rehab Addict was the one with the short cute blond gal?
Oh, yeah, you're right. The show I'm thinking of is Bargain Block
littlebittybobby
10-29-22, 3:43pm
Okay----I plugged in a low bid for some authentic lirrrarrarry light fixtures that are prolly close to 20 years old. So guess what? Turns out I was high bid. Just hope they've already removed them. Ha. But yeah---I've got two dozen of these to use for lighting. Maybe when I start rehabbing old abandoned Pizza huts, they will come in hhandy by adding elegance and class. Unless you kids wanna buy 'em. They won't be cheap, tho. I will issue a certificate of authenticity that they are indeed lirrrarrry lights. Yup.4898
SO loves to watch Bargain Block. I’m not really a fan of their design choices and I worry that some of their fixes for structural damage seem too quick and cheap. But I do love that they seem to be taking dirt cheap disasters and turning them into slightly less cheap habitable homes for people.
An aside, they eventually bought, fixed, and stayed living in one of the houses. Apparently the whole ‘use a shopping cart to move to the next project’ shtick had worn itself out.
iris lilies
12-2-22, 10:55am
Here’s a not-so-cheap house in IL’s old neighborhood. I link to it because I think the coloration in certain areas is spectacular.
The owners, Chris and Lydia, are friends of mine who I look upon sorta like our kids’ generation (if we had kids.) They are about 15 years younger than us. They originally bought a small house a block away from us, worked on it for a few years, then bought this old house in the link. They worked on it for a dozen years. Chris does a fair amount of the work himself. Back in the days when we were attending a lot of parties, they held parties at their house and we were there often.
Now they are selling it, retiring early, moving to Spain. Very cool, I am excited for them.
as for the colors of this house: the exterior is fabulous. It’s a light gray with trim in dark gray and red.
The front hall is spectacular with its navy blue walls and crisp white trim.
A fun thing is the kitchen with its black ceiling medallions and black chandeliers. Very dramatic, and I love dramatic decor!
https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/22-Benton-Pl_Saint-Louis_MO_63104_M85076-85574
catherine
12-2-22, 11:05am
OMG. That is a stunner. What a great job they did! Dramatic indeed, even though most of the colors are neutral/black/white/grey. While I sometimes think neutral schemes are boring, this is far from boring. And what about that library and wine cellar!!
That house is a steal in East Coast prices. If that were in the upper West Side in NYC or in Chelsea or the Village or even in the up-and-coming lower East Side, that thing would be a few million.
iris lilies
12-2-22, 12:09pm
OMG. That is a stunner. What a great job they did! Dramatic indeed, even though most of the colors are neutral/black/white/grey. While I sometimes think neutral schemes are boring, this is far from boring. And what about that library and wine cellar!!
That house is a steal in East Coast prices. If that were in the upper West Side in NYC or in Chelsea or the Village or even in the up-and-coming lower East Side, that thing would be a few million.
I know, it would easily be a few million on either coast. What is extra nice about this house is that it’s on a “private street “just off of our public park but is secluded. It was the first private street in St. Louis. Private Street means that the residents have an HOA type agreement to keep up the historic lighting on the street, the plantings in the cul-de-sac, etc. . I think that the city does keep it paved however. I’m not sure about sidewalks, who pays for that.
A tour de force, that one! I can't imagine the work that went into it. (And I love black as a unifying color.)
Relatives of a friend of mine--70-80ish--are moving to Scotland. I understand the impulse.
I couldn't imagine living in such a large place, but it's nice eye candy that sure harkens back to the days of large families and cold rooms. Curious that a person would put what looks like a labor of love into it's restoration only to up and leave when it's finished. Maybe to get back to less home maintenance.
Seems like it would cost half again the price to furnish properly, though it's hard to picture?
iris lilies
12-2-22, 9:21pm
I couldn't imagine living in such a large place, but it's nice eye candy that sure harkens back to the days of large families and cold rooms. Curious that a person would put what looks like a labor of love into it's restoration only to up and leave when it's finished. Maybe to get back to less home maintenance.
Seems like it would cost half again the price to furnish properly, though it's hard to picture?
By “cost half again as much to furnish properly” do you mean they sink $450,000 into furnishings? No I don’t think so. I like their art, though, a lot. I will have to stay away from their sale. Probably they’ll give it to an auction house anyway.
I think it’s great that they’re getting away from their big money suck of a house to have an adventure at their young age. They don’t have children. Of course thry will miss that house as well as the neighborhood, we all miss it when we leave.
By “cost half again as much to furnish properly” do you mean they sink $450,000 into furnishings? No I don’t think so.
What I was thinking, but I have little concept of such. Other than the Keno Brothers on Roadshow say brown furniture is out and going for cheap.
iris lilies
12-2-22, 10:17pm
What I was thinking, but I have little concept of such. Other than the Keno Brothers on Roadshow say brown furniture is out and going for cheap.
It is! Old brown furniture is extremely unpopular so that means people like me can buy by 18th century furniture where 20 years ago I could only afford 19th century furniture.
rosarugosa
12-3-22, 6:58am
It is a magnificent house, but it has quite a formal feel about it. If I lived there, I would feel like the house was disappointed by me in my Vista Camp pants and my hoodies, lol. I'm sorry there were no pictures of the garden.
Everyone might already know this, but I'll share, since I recently discovered it by accident. On Realtor.com, if you click on the map view, it takes you to a page with the headings "Photos, Street View, Map." If you click on "Photos," you can scroll down through the photos instead of tediously clicking through the slide-show format. I hate slide shows.
The parrot painting in the dining room and the dogs painting over the white dresser in the secondary bedroom look very much like Charlie Houska paintings. He’s a St Louis artist who is good friends with a longtime friend of SO’s. We have a painting of our former kitties done by him that I commissioned as a Christmas gift for SO many years ago.
https://www.houska.com/home-1
iris lilies
12-5-22, 10:11am
The parrot painting in the dining room and the dogs painting over the white dresser in the secondary bedroom look very much like Charlie Houska paintings. He’s a St Louis artist who is good friends with a longtime friend of SO’s. We have a painting of our former kitties done by him that I commissioned as a Christmas gift for SO many years ago.
https://www.houska.com/home-1
yes I think those are Houska items.
I like the Green Eggs and Ham print in the dining room.
This is the Houska painting I commissioned of our former kitties.
4993
catherine
12-9-22, 10:09pm
This is the Houska painting I commissioned of our former kitties.
4993
Love it!
Love it!
Thank you. I do too! And I love Charlie Houska. We met him when he came with SO's mutual friend and a whole crowd of other family/friends from St Louis for a long weekend in Napa 8 or 9 years ago and we joined them. Such a sweet sweet human being. I was happy to be able to hire him to memorialize our cats this way. This year we're in the midst of a bathroom renovation so i've convinced SO that we don't need to spend any more money on each other for christmas but next year I may reach out to Charlie and commission him to do a painting of our current lady kitties.
iris lilies
12-9-22, 11:52pm
This is the Houska painting I commissioned of our former kitties.
4993
Very nice kitties, really cute.
rosarugosa
12-10-22, 6:48am
Great picture, JP.
JP, that picture is lovely.
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