Searching for house ft worth area

[Perro Del Diablo]

I just got into house search. I'm looking in area outside ft worth to the northwest.  Hopefully I can find couple acres with small house with minimum need of repairs. Looks as though be me and probably a dog. Seen a couple on realtor.com, zillow website hard to use. There are few listed looks like could work,but found fewer pics worse shape.

[Okie Sawbones, SASS #77381]

https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-search/Decatur_TX/type-single-family-home

[JD Lud]

I much prefer the Redfin search engine and app.  I find it to be top notch on updating and current, accurate information.  
 

anyone that hadn’t used it I have told about it never fails to bring up how good it works the next time I see them.  

[Sedalia Dave]

Unless you have your heart set on the Ft Worth area, I would look SE of the Dallas area around Terrel. Lots of SASS clubs within a reasonable drive. 

[Pat Riot]

Realtors seem to have special software for making a dive look like a nice home. Be careful. 

[Sedalia Dave]

1 hour ago, Pat Riot said:

Realtors seem to have special software for making a dive look like a nice home. Be careful. 

 

Yep

 

Google Street view is a valuable tool.

[watab kid]

good luck , its the one thing about moving i dont relish - that search for the destination , 

[Perro Del Diablo]

20 hours ago, Pat Riot said:

Realtors seem to have special software for making a dive look like a nice home. Be careful. 

I've noticed fewer pictures worse condition 

[Perro Del Diablo]

On 6/4/2024 at 7:40 AM, Sedalia Dave said:

Unless you have your heart set on the Ft Worth area, I would look SE of the Dallas area around Terrel. Lots of SASS clubs within a reasonable drive. 

Kaufman county would be high on my list if I didn't work in Hurst and still few years ti retirement 

9 hours ago, watab kid said:

good luck , its the one thing about moving i dont relish - that search for the destination , 

Yeah but found myself in a need to situation 

[Pat Riot]

59 minutes ago, Perro Del Diablo said:

I've noticed fewer pictures worse condition 

Yep, that is true. Forgot about that. 
 

I got fooled by a crafty realtor on what they called a “35 acre farm with a main house, 4 car garage with an apartment over it and two out buildings.” for $200k

The pictures made it look wonderful. 
My wife and I drove 50 miles to see it. 
I am glad the realtor couldn’t make time to meet with us. I would have probably punched her in the face. I was pretty ticked off. 
The house & buildings were decaying from years of abandonment. The driveway looked like an off-road trail. The acreage had 2 county roads running through it and a big driveway that went to an apartment building used to house wayward meth heads and filthy lower lifeforms. 
 

I wish I had the pictures to post here but I deleted them all, including the ones from Zillow. What a dilapidated mess. 
It might have been funny had I not driven 50 miles in crappy weather to see this hovel. 
 

I did contact Zillow and I reported this listing as totally inaccurate. The listing was gone a couple days later. 
 

[Perro Del Diablo]

2 hours ago, Pat Riot said:

Yep, that is true. Forgot about that. 
 

I got fooled by a crafty realtor on what they called a “35 acre farm with a main house, 4 car garage with an apartment over it and two out buildings.” for $200k

The pictures made it look wonderful. 
My wife and I drove 50 miles to see it. 
I am glad the realtor couldn’t make time to meet with us. I would have probably punched her in the face. I was pretty ticked off. 
The house & buildings were decaying from years of abandonment. The driveway looked like an off-road trail. The acreage had 2 county roads running through it and a big driveway that went to an apartment building used to house wayward meth heads and filthy lower lifeforms. 
 

I wish I had the pictures to post here but I deleted them all, including the ones from Zillow. What a dilapidated mess. 
It might have been funny had I not driven 50 miles in crappy weather to see this hovel. 
 

I did contact Zillow and I reported this listing as totally inaccurate. The listing was gone a couple days later. 
 

I plan to use VA benefit so so.e conditions are mandatory before loan can be secured. The agent I have currently been talking with is familiar with that. 

[Pat Riot]

1 hour ago, Perro Del Diablo said:

I plan to use VA benefit so so.e conditions are mandatory before loan can be secured. The agent I have currently been talking with is familiar with that. 

That’s true.

I have had realtors lie to my realtor saying a house could fall under VA loan requirements. Then again after dealing with this realtor of mine for a while I found out he was a lying SOB and a thief. On top of that he was a SASS member. Not kidding. 

[Pat Riot]

In my view Realtors are about 2 rungs down from used car dealers and shady lawyers. They’re probably a few rungs down. Actually I would gladly deal with used car dealers and shady lawyers than deal with any realtor. At least you know where they’re coming from. Realtor’s actions or deceipt could come back to bite you years later. 
 

Sorry. On a bit of a rant. I don’t like realtors. 
 

Anyone reading this that wants to tell me about a good honest realtor can just save it, but thank you for the concern. 

[watab kid]

11 hours ago, Perro Del Diablo said:

Kaufman county would be high on my list if I didn't work in Hurst and still few years ti retirement 

Yeah but found myself in a need to situation 

sorry to hear that - or maybe a promotion ? either way good luck in that search , let us know how it turns out , 

[Buckshot Bear]

On 6/1/2024 at 1:10 AM, Okie Sawbones, SASS #77381 said:

https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-search/Decatur_TX/type-single-family-home

 

 

Wow....there's some beautiful homes listed! You wouldn't be able to buy a shed for those prices in Oz.

 

Is the best way for me to enter still through Mexico?

 

 

[Texas Maverick]

10 hours ago, Buckshot Bear said:

 

 

Wow....there's some beautiful homes listed! You wouldn't be able to buy a shed for those prices in Oz.

 

Is the best way for me to enter still through Mexico?

 

 

Yep, they give you free housing, debit cards, education, food and you don't even have to pay taxes on any of it. I even thought about giving up my citizenship and leaving and coming back that way just to get some of the freebies.

 

TM

[Dilli GaHoot Galoot]

On 6/4/2024 at 12:22 PM, Pat Riot said:

Realtors seem to have special software for making a dive look like a nice home. Be careful. 

 

A good photographer should try to show the home in it's best light but never lie, distort or manipulate the photos in a dishonest way.  Not only is it unethical, it may also violate local RMLS rules which can result in trouble for the realtor and get the photographer blacklisted.  Additionally it's a huge waste of everyone's time if the photos are so unrealistic that the potential buyer walks in and sees a totally different home than they expected and turns right around and walks out the door.

Source: I've been a real estate photographer for the last 35 years  

 

What I do feel guilty about is the homes were I can't photograph the smell and have no way to prepare the poor house hunters for the olfactory hell they are about to encounter.   

 

The one today reminded me of this thread, most of the house was bad but this one bedroom . . . . try to imagine a car with no AC, belonging to a high school wrestling team that doesn't believe in deodorant sitting in the blazing summer sun with a open bag of dog food, a quart of milk spilled 6 months ago on the rear floor and a dead goat in the trunk

 

 

 

[Eyesa Horg]

I've worked in homes like that!! Have to keep going to the truck for anything just for some air! Really enjoyed working in the ghetto! You could see the smell. 

[Perro Del Diablo]

13 hours ago, Dilli GaHoot Galoot said:

 

A good photographer should try to show the home in it's best light but never lie, distort or manipulate the photos in a dishonest way.  Not only is it unethical, it may also violate local RMLS rules which can result in trouble for the realtor and get the photographer blacklisted.  Additionally it's a huge waste of everyone's time if the photos are so unrealistic that the potential buyer walks in and sees a totally different home than they expected and turns right around and walks out the door.

Source: I've been a real estate photographer for the last 35 years  

 

What I do feel guilty about is the homes were I can't photograph the smell and have no way to prepare the poor house hunters for the olfactory hell they are about to encounter.   

 

The one today reminded me of this thread, most of the house was bad but this one bedroom . . . . try to imagine a car with no AC, belonging to a high school wrestling team that doesn't believe in deodorant sitting in the blazing summer sun with a open bag of dog food, a quart of milk spilled 6 months ago on the rear floor and a dead goat in the trunk

 

 

 

It may not be photo shop but just leaving out the picture with the worse condition. Even though not better it does the same result 

[Dilli GaHoot Galoot]

53 minutes ago, Perro Del Diablo said:

It may not be photo shop but just leaving out the picture with the worse condition. Even though not better it does the same result 

Agreed, I don't go around focusing (pun not intended) on everything that could be problematic, but I don't go out of my way to hide issues either.  Sometimes that means making sure that a cat climber or two shows to give a heads up that the house does have cats.  Maybe not Smell-O-Vision, but you do what you can