When this house sold, I was sure it was destined to be torn down. It had not been kept up and sits on a prime lot across from a park in a highly-desired neighborhood. Instead, the new owners decided to take it down to the studs and start over. I’m thankful the owners decided to preserve this local gem.
Archive for the ‘neighborhood’ Category
Saved From Demolition
Posted in my life, neighborhood on January 22, 2019| 10 Comments »
Building Projects
Posted in my life, neighborhood on January 17, 2019| 6 Comments »
A developer bought a house on my street a few months ago. The house, built in the early 1950’s, will be scrapped to make room for a new six-bedroom house. A meeting will be held for the residents to review and comment on the plan. In preparation for meeting, I surveyed the existing construction projects. Here’s what’s currently underway.
The owners of this house decided to scrape their house as it was less expensive than remodeling their old house.
This is considered a remodel since part of one wall was left in place. The property tax on remodel is less than new construction.
This house was a red-brick colonial. Now it’s clad in white stone. Architectural restrictions prohibit manufactured stone so stone masons have been working on this house for months.
Another new construction project.
This remodel, which includes a small addition, will start any day.
Work on the rich guys’ estate goes on. The main house is finished but landscaping and a new wrought iron fence surrounding the six-acre property are still in progress. Change is constant in my neighborhood.
The Luxury Of A Housekeeper
Posted in friends, my life, neighborhood on December 2, 2018| 13 Comments »
Friday night was cold and misty with low temperatures and a promise of snow. The few gallery opening didn’t seem promising. I stayed home and cleaned my living room and dining room. I was tempted to text the detective but I chose not seek temptation. Another chapter in the life of an urban gay man. Doesn’t that sound like a fun time for a single guy on Friday night?
Saturday was cold again. I managed to clean the kitchen and family room, put up a few holiday decorations, hit the gym and fix a nice dinner. After dinner, I was once again thinking about the detective but managed to avoid texting him. It was best he stay on his side of town. It was to be another Saturday night of Netflix. At least I had a clean house with some holiday cheer even if I was to only one to enjoy it.
This morning, my neighbor, Sheila, dropped off an extra copy of the New York Times that had been delivered to her house. Sheila told me she decided to splurge on a housekeeper in the coming year. She was disappointed to find out the cheapest service was $500 a week, which covered the cost of four maids for two hours. When did housekeepers’ salaried rise to over $60 per hour? Sheila has a three bedroom house with three bathrooms just at 3,000 square feet. It seems to be another case of price gouging. People assume if you live in a neighborhood where all the new homes come with seven figure price tags, you have the same income as those building expensive homes. Granted most of the existing residents are sitting on a pile of equity as a result of a relentless rise in house prices in the central city neighborhoods. I’m guessing few can afford to pay $2,000 a month to have a house cleaned.
Sheila decided not to hire the housekeeper. She will continue to clean her house as I do. Instead, she’ll splurge at Nordstrom.
$185,721
Posted in neighborhood on August 15, 2018| 7 Comments »
VF Corporation, the parent company of The North Face, JanSport and Smartwool, announced this week the company is moving its headquarters to Denver along with 800 jobs. The jobs have an average salary of $185,721. Read that last sentence again. Who knew jobs in the outdoor brand industry paid so well?
Those moving to Denver will need a high salary. A study published by Lending Tree ranked Denver 10th on the list of cities with the highest percentage of homes that exceed a million dollars in the U.S. According to the study, owning a $1million home in most cities gives one bragging rights. This is no longer true for the cities on the list. Most of the $1 million homes in these cities look nothing more than ordinary. This is true for Denver too.
An example is shown below. This charming 1950’s ranch home has two bedrooms and 2.5 baths in its 2,200 sq.ft. The house sold for $1.2m in 2017. After sitting empty for six months it was sold a second time for $1.5m. The house has since been torn down to make way for the new owner’s dream house.
The Next Victim
Posted in neighborhood on July 25, 2018| 2 Comments »
The owners of this house have decided to tear it down and start over. They were contemplating an extensive remodel and addition, but instead, have decided to scrape it off. They’ve lived in the neighborhood for twenty years and plan to finish out their lives in the new house. At least it’s not another spec home.
One Year & $4m Later
Posted in neighborhood, Uncategorized on July 24, 2018| 8 Comments »
This two-bedroom house sold in March of 2017. It was torn down in July of 2017. One year after demolition and $4m later ($989k for the old house and another $3m for demolition and construction of the new house), the new house has been completed.
It’s a four-bedroom, two-story dwelling with a little over 6,000 square feet. The house is a lot bigger than it looks in the picture. The owners moved in a few weeks ago but I have not met them yet. They are both orthopedic surgeons so I’m sure they can afford the house.
There’s A New DILF In Town
Posted in my life, neighborhood on June 28, 2018| 2 Comments »
After torturing the neighborhood with an eighteen-month renovation, the family across the street listed their house for sale. The house was pulled from the market after a month. Six months later the house was relisted at a slightly reduced price. The house sold in two weeks.
On Saturday, the family moved out. There was no going away party. No neighbors wished them well. The general consensus was all were glad to see them go as they were a constant interruption to our quiet neighborhood. There was a revolving door of guests and cars. Even though they built an underground garage, their five cars were almost always parked on the street. I think I heard a chorus of angels singing when the moving vans drove off.
I was mowing the yard yesterday afternoon when the new owners arrived along with the movers. They’re a young couple with two young daughters. I did not introduce myself as there was an army of movers trying to get the family settled. I noticed the woman was stylishly dressed for a moving day. The man looks like he knows the inside of the gym very well along with being very handsome. There’s a new in DILF in town and he lives across the street. I think I heard another chorus of angels singing.
Later that evening, I was talking to the woman who lives next door to the new neighbors. She also a handsome husband. She told me she was waiting for the new neighbor to strip off his shirt and jump into their pool so she could get a better look. Her house sits higher on the hill so she has a prime view of the pool. She agreed to invite me over if she sees him in the pool. Now, that’s a good neighbor.
