fan-of-fans
Well-known member
I live in the center part of Florida. Not in the Orlando area, or along any of the coasts. I think if I lived in those areas I wouldn't even be considering the thought of being able to buy a house. LOL
Mainly I am looking for a 2 bed 2 bath or 3 bed 2 bath house with a two car garage on a semi private lot. There are houses like that on the market here for around $150k.
Many homes in that price range in this area mean you are looking at homes built in the 1970s/early 80s. Which is fine. But that also means those darn 8 foot ceilings throughout. Really this shouldn't bother me, I've lived in houses with 8 foot ceilings my whole life and it never bothered me.
But I work in the construction/planning business and hardly anyone builds houses with all 8 foot ceilings anymore. I'd be fine with them if they at least had a vault ceiling in the main living area, or tray ceilings, but no house built before 2005 or so here has trays and few homes in the 70s had vaults. Some in the 50s/60s had vaulted beamed ceilings but those aren't common here.
I even looked at some homes here that had 7 foot ceilings! Why they did this is beyond me. It was the early 70s so maybe energy crisis played a role.
Of course houses here built in the 1920s and earlier have 9 foot ceilings and I really like the doors/moldings and large windows of those era homes but they rarely ever come on the market and those that do, often need lots of work, and I don't care for that part of town as much. Taxes are higher and people don't tend to keep up their yards as well in those areas.
So if I want higher ceilings I have to look at newer homes, which I like the style and feature of better anyway than these plain jane 70s/early 80s tract homes, but it also means the price goes up to $165-180k or so which to me is not worth it just to get something with higher ceilings. I could make a 70s tract home look like a newer home but there's nothing I can do about 8 foot ceilings aside from tearing the roof off which would be dumb.
I know, a petty consideration when any ceiling over one's head is better than none.
Mainly I am looking for a 2 bed 2 bath or 3 bed 2 bath house with a two car garage on a semi private lot. There are houses like that on the market here for around $150k.
Many homes in that price range in this area mean you are looking at homes built in the 1970s/early 80s. Which is fine. But that also means those darn 8 foot ceilings throughout. Really this shouldn't bother me, I've lived in houses with 8 foot ceilings my whole life and it never bothered me.
But I work in the construction/planning business and hardly anyone builds houses with all 8 foot ceilings anymore. I'd be fine with them if they at least had a vault ceiling in the main living area, or tray ceilings, but no house built before 2005 or so here has trays and few homes in the 70s had vaults. Some in the 50s/60s had vaulted beamed ceilings but those aren't common here.
I even looked at some homes here that had 7 foot ceilings! Why they did this is beyond me. It was the early 70s so maybe energy crisis played a role.
Of course houses here built in the 1920s and earlier have 9 foot ceilings and I really like the doors/moldings and large windows of those era homes but they rarely ever come on the market and those that do, often need lots of work, and I don't care for that part of town as much. Taxes are higher and people don't tend to keep up their yards as well in those areas.
So if I want higher ceilings I have to look at newer homes, which I like the style and feature of better anyway than these plain jane 70s/early 80s tract homes, but it also means the price goes up to $165-180k or so which to me is not worth it just to get something with higher ceilings. I could make a 70s tract home look like a newer home but there's nothing I can do about 8 foot ceilings aside from tearing the roof off which would be dumb.
I know, a petty consideration when any ceiling over one's head is better than none.
