1837 Farmhouse (Eastern PA)

[PA1837]

lisascenic,
I guess that's what you use to support\hold together the foundation?

On my way home from work today there were a bunch of cars at the house, so I pulled over. Some of the cars were hunters in the nearby field. The person walking around the house was the maintenance man for the bank who had an electrician there fixing up the main panel so they could get power to it. They were nice, but didn't see how the house in its current shape was so appealing to us. To each there own I guess.
The bank hasn't responded to our last offer from Wednesday afternoon... These negotiations are gruesome... pushed to your financial limits, stomach in knots, such anxiety... oh the fun right? Why can't it be easy?

[Wackyshack]

PA1837 (late to the party). As reading all the comments the only thing that comes to my mind is that the area is largely farming zoned?? (It look pretty rural out there but one never knows about encroaching evil developers). Your farm could end up being next to a retirement village and resort.
I ask because they did sneaky things in my town with a farm that was sold to the town as open space and the town fathers snuck in a clause of "open space and other uses" which is putting the farm's future as a community garden and open space in peril (they are eyeballing it for soccer fields - but most of it contains hydric soils and is a wet meadow).
Our town has laws such as you can't build anything or alter the land 200 ft from a river, but the local builder put in a house less than 50 ft of the one that runs behind my house 12 years ago...(go figure).
Our town also zoned areas that started out as residential as "business zones" at the top of our street we ended up with mfg businesses that really don't belong there among houses built in 1860-1880.

Eperot - those taxes you talked about are killer.... Out here in 2006 we paid for an acre $3200 a year and now we are up to $4700 with another $600+ when they figure out what to slam us with over 20 years on a new school.

[Don M]

I am surprised that the assessment is so high. We live near Harrisburg on 28 acres, 2700 sq. ft. stone farm house with huge barn & other outbuildings. Our taxes are $3600 with the Clean & Green & homestead reductions. I would also get the tax assessment people out to review the condition of your house & out buildings. I got our assessment reduced initially due to termite damage & relative poor condition of the outbuildings. Good luck, that's a beautiful property.

[PA1837]

Wackyshack,
I hope they aren't planning any zoning... There are farmlands all around this area. I would think development would happen closer to the main road. This house is back off on secondary roads. Where\how could one check if someone was planning to develop nearby lands? As far as I am aware, they are still farming the lands around this house.

Don,
I might give that a try. I'm just a little worried that they would come in, assess and our taxes end up increasing... lol.

We are still going round and round with the realtors\bank. Responses are so slow. I'll give an update if we make any progress. Thank you,

[SouthernLady]

PA1837, check with the planning board to see what is potential projects. Be sure to ask if there have been any rumors of any projects as well, not just what they may have paperwork for. If there is no actual "planning board", talk to the mayor, members of the town council, etc.

During my period of "real estate depression", aka "no 1800s farm houses are on the market in a 20-mile radius", I almost settled for a cute 1930s home with most of the original features. I took a tour and decided to sleep on it that night before making an offer the next morning. I called, only to find someone else had already beat me to the draw. Thankfully, it saved me from two very big regrets: (1) I would not own the c. 1884 farmhouse I am now restoring, and (2) a month or two after the other party closed on the house, a report came out stating a road would be going through that house in the next 10 years.

Best of luck to you!