How to make a house disappear?
October 11, 2018 10:09 AM   Subscribe

I have a very old home that probably needs to be torn down. How do I get rid of it?

I bought my parents house because they needed money, couldn't afford to do repairs and updates, and wanted to move to a trailer in Florida. They did move and I lived there but needed to come home because my dad got Alzheimer's. They spent all money [including money from house] and lost the trailer in Florida to medical bills. Moved back into house and I moved out but continued to pay mortgage. I now own outright. My dad and mom died last year and now the house is sitting there.

Insurance on it just ran out --cancelled due to me not repairing chimney, repainting, and replacing garage door. I bought it and then did lots of work and now I don't want to put more into it. I got the insurance extended once but they won't do it again.

it's over 200 years old and the floors are now greatly sloping. I think their may be termites. I think it is a tear down. It is a small home on a small lot in a medium city in Central Mass. I had a couple contractors look at it but they want a house to flip, not something like this.

This is all emotional and terrible and stressful for me. I've been avoiding it way more than I should have but my mom moved in with me and her last year of dealing with hospitals and insurance was pretty devastating and draining.

How can I get rid of this house? I am super stressed about the insurance thing and well, everything. I could really use some solid advice.
posted by beccaj to Home & Garden (13 answers total) 2 users marked this as a favorite
 
If it's not close to your neighbours' houses, maybe the local fire department would like to burn it as part of a training exercise?
posted by kate4914 at 10:15 AM on October 11, 2018 [9 favorites]


Response by poster: [too close kate4914. Good idea though]
posted by beccaj at 10:17 AM on October 11, 2018


You may not be in a great emotional place to make judgments about how to proceed. Therefore, seek friends' and acquaintances' recommendations for a good Realtor. Take said Realtor's advice.
posted by jon1270 at 10:18 AM on October 11, 2018 [8 favorites]


You can definitely find a realtor that will market the property as just the lot, even if it has a teardown on it. That's how we bought our land in Concord, MA.
posted by lydhre at 10:22 AM on October 11, 2018 [26 favorites]


Yes, you sell it and let the buyer worry about the house. Lots of people looking for build-able lots. You may not get a lot of money for it, but if you just want to be rid of it that's the way to go.

You'll need some sort of insurance on it in the mean time though because right now it's what I believe is called an "attractive nuisance" and you could be responsible if, say, a kid wanders in to explore and gets hurt. (I am not a lawyer and therefore could be completely wrong about this but that's what they told me I needed in the time between when I moved out of a house and when it was demolished.)

In order to knock a house down you'll probably need a demolition permit. Again, just sell the place and let someone else deal with that.
posted by bondcliff at 10:29 AM on October 11, 2018 [1 favorite]


Agreeing with the above, I would find a realtor that will advertise it as either a lot with a teardown or, depending on a buyer's preference for fixer-uppers with "good bones", a refurbish/renovation. Then it's their problem and not yours.
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 10:30 AM on October 11, 2018 [1 favorite]


You could look into gifting it to a foundation or non profit in your folks names, perhaps.
posted by vrakatar at 11:06 AM on October 11, 2018 [1 favorite]


Agree with the advice just to put it on the market as is, and let the buyer worry about what comes next.

For a 200 year old home, you'd be surprised how many people will want to buy it and rehab it, even if there are sloping floors and termites and chimney issues.

You will, of course, sell it for a fraction of what you've put into it, but on the other hand you won't have to put anything else into it, and will get back at least some of what you've invested.

Seriously - call a realtor, explain that you need to sell this house in as is condition, and let them do their thing. This is extremely common, and I think you'll be surprised at what houses can be saved.
posted by anastasiav at 11:23 AM on October 11, 2018 [13 favorites]


If you want to keep the lot, you could contact an architectural salvage company or historical society. After an evaluation, an interested salvage company would remove the re-usable bits (hardware, fixtures, wood flooring, etc.) and, depending on services offered, perform the final demo.
posted by Iris Gambol at 11:24 AM on October 11, 2018 [8 favorites]


Easiest route is to sell it as a tear-down. Find a realtor you trust - ask friends for recommendations - and just do what the realtor says is the fastest route to it not being yours anymore. Let a buyer decide what to do with the house and the land.

I see listings for tear-downs all the time. It's super common. It's okay to let this go. You deserve some rest.
posted by juniperesque at 1:02 PM on October 11, 2018 [3 favorites]


Yes, I live in WMA, if you just want to get rid of it I would bet you can sell it as either a teardown or a gut rehab. Especially a 200 year old house! Ask around for a realtor, meet 2-3 and see who you like, and just sell it. They may be able to give you advice on insurance, as well.
posted by john_snow at 1:27 PM on October 11, 2018 [2 favorites]


From what I understand, scraping a house can cost $10,000-$20,000. You might be able to get some of that back if you salvage architectural elements.

In some places (you'll need to check with people knowledgeable about your area), a house can be "renovated" even when very little of the original house is retained. The benefit to doing this is that a renovation permit is much easier to get than a permit for new construction, so the old house, even in terrible condition, may be valuable for providing a sort of legal scaffolding for faster and cheaper construction.
posted by adamrice at 4:34 PM on October 11, 2018 [1 favorite]


Seconding everything anastasiav said. Please just put it up for sale as is. No need to market it as a teardown or gut rehab or whatever. Just "as is" and let the buyers decide what they want it for and you won't have to deal with making a decision while your head is in this place. I know this is the east coast where 200 year old houses are more common, but at least give the poor house a chance. You'd be surprised at how rehab-able a house that old can be. Sloping floors are part of the charm.

Also, it is possible that the house is in a local historic district, in which case tearing it down is not an easy proposition. A good Realtor should know if it is. Let them handle it.
posted by Preserver at 5:13 PM on October 11, 2018 [3 favorites]


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