I recognized the schoolhouse immediately because my husband and I rented it for a weeks vacation in the mid 90s. The owners worked in the same office building that I did, they put up a flyer (cause that's how you had to do it back then), and we liked it so much we rented it again a year or so later. It was a cozy charming little place on a dirt road with dairy cattle up the road and a plaque on a rock on a nearby trail marking the site of one of the 1830s "Anti-Rent War" battles. Definitely a vacation place, not a place to raise your family, but I guess the appeal is for someone who wants a weekend retreat.
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I love these cozy and homey houses. I have lived in huge houses and small, and I much prefer small. I hope NYT does more articles like these.
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Love the word "pondlet." I thought we had a drainage problem, but it turns out, we have pondlets!
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I loved seeing homes I could afford - more, please!!
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The Catskills house reminds me of the little houses HGTV is so crazy about. Perhaps for a weekend getaway, but hardly long term. And sorry, the "pond" looks like a mosquito haven. Not a place you'd be able to enjoy.
I do appreciate the other two houses shown. I live in a low housing cost area in Upstate NY (and I mean the real Upstate, ha ha), and it's nice change to see similar houses here. I enjoy looking at the high priced homes shown most weeks, but for once I can relate to this.
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I am not sure I could live in South Bend, but the house is a bargain assuming there’s an easy way to de-stucco the place. The N.Y. property is obviously not a four season property. The point about freezing pipes is a good one. Let’s have more of these cheap houses!
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Wow. you can live in Mayor Pete's town in a 2000+ sf brick (!) house for $89 sf.
There was an article here about a couple living in a NYC studio of 650 sf with rent in the "low $3,000s."
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I just moved to the area from Chicago, and the historic bungalows are to die for! They are just the cutest homes ever, and it is unbelievable how much farther your dollar can stretch when you set foot outside the bigger metropolitan areas. I may have to make an appointment with the realtor to check that one out!!
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and then there is the home built in the third quarter of the 19th c that we bought in binghamton ny for $16,004...a gut rehab - but beautiful when finished. since i teach at the local university - i have both work and access to a very cheap housing market. how ironic looking at nyc the place of my birth from this vantage point!
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The school house is a push. $180 K? Good heavens! Frankly, I prefer to see homes a bit more upscale. These selections show how far the housing market has deteriorated.
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I loved seeing this article! As a realtor in the Finger Lakes, there is an interesting phenomenon that happens in upstate NY. Pricing for desirable locations (in our case, on the lake) is driven by second home buyers, whereas pricing for "in-town" properties is driven by the local market of full-time housing. Hence, price variability (and taxes) can be quite high. It looks like the IN and WI houses reflect the full-time housing market. Regardless, all real estate is local and it is impossible to directly compare and contrast across markets, especially when there are "sub-markets" - which is why this column is always so interesting - it is fascinating to see price points in different local markets! I wonder if there will be a Mayor Pete effect on pricing.... we definitely saw an uptick after the Clinton visit to our Lake back in the 90s!
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Whoever put that prettified shack near Andes on the market for $179K was smoking something. Andres is in the middle of nowhere three hours from NYC. The house is one room with an open loft. The deck and pond, or “pondlet” are a joke. Probably a small lot as well if it was a schoolhouse, which, btw are not particularly historical up there. It’s worth about $74K max. given the location. But don’t take my word for it. Check Zillow. A very nice three bedroom in that area can be gotten for $129K.
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We recently sold a high end finished 3 bedroom on 20 acres for 245k (in the general area) and took a sizable haircut
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@Patrick - the Zillow for this house is $163K and it sold for $155K 2 years ago. I am an upstate NY native and there are few converted schoolhouses that remain. Land is plentiful so acreage does not meaningfully drive prices - each incremental acre is nominal in adding to the purchase price. Readers are missing the point that "as is" this is a weekend retreat! The other houses in other markets profiled here are clearly for full-time residence. To make the school-house into a full-time home would require some further investment. I'll take a sub $200K retreat from the metro NYC area over the the $2MM+ madness of the Hamptons and the $1M+ madness of the Jersey shore any day.....
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@Patrick
The article also doesn’t mention that Andes is in the NYC Watershed. So with a half acre lot, there is no room to put in/upgrade a septic system, if someone wanted to rebuild or expand, even add a bedroom. Lots of issues.
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One of these days I would enjoy seeing the NYTimes do a satirical piece on tar paper shacks.
Having said that, I could be happy in the former school house. Makes me want to get another dog when I retire....
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Super and all but what are you going to do for work in any of these places? There's zero shortage of cheap housing anywhere. But that's because there's never any work to be had in those places and they're too far to commute to any place that has work. So what good are they except for retiring? And you may as well retire to another country where you can live well for really cheap.
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@Sparky
Milwaukee is a metro of over one million people and you're telling us that nobody there has a job? You really need to get out more dude. Seriously.
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@h king
I do get out, in actual real cities. Half a million people is not a million and the quality of the work available there is terrible. I guess if you think dead end, slave wage jobs without benefits is the best there is. You're the one who needs to get out and do some actual travelling.
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@Sparky. Many people can find jobs in Milwaukee, at least. Maybe not in every field, but it's a decent-sized city - there is going to be plenty of need for doctors, lawyers, professors (there are multiple universities there, including University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee and Marquette), university staff, teachers, and it is also the headquarters of a number of major companies that are located either in the city or right outside. The city itself may be only half a million, but it's metro area is well over a million, and commuting is easy in that area. It's also only an hour and a half from Chicago by train.
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You can find so many great houses under $200K in WI and afford a life!
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@H Hoffma hi fellow Janesvillian! So nice to see a sweet Wisconsin home shown here.
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Ahhhh. pricing for real human beings.
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There are many houses available in the City of Milwaukee that are under $200K. Nice houses in good neighborhoods, close to plenty of amenities. Traffic is tolerable but the winters are long and sans sun.
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The house in South Bend would cost over $1 million in Wellesley or Newton, Massachusetts, just for the privilege of living among a bunch of snobs.
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Its great to see what you can still get for less than 200k. Nice homes! I spent more time reading and looking than those million dollar hamburger houses.
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I simply love that little red brick home in South Bend. I only wish there were more photos of the inside. Such a steal of a price for a completely bricked house.
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@Marge Keller
Apologies for being a dope. A link was provided which illustrated numerous candid and delightful photos of the interior and exterior of this adorable house.
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The house in Andes - a tiny house for a lot of money! Photo #7 in the slide display shows "storage" in that house that, from what I can see, would be VERY dangerous to access. How, exactly, is anyone getting to the white bookshelves shown in that photo, given that it appears there's a sheer drop just a couple of inches in front of the shelves?
So much money was spent to upgrade this space, yet the space is just too small. Look at the photo of the bathroom, where the sink is super-minuscule. I've seen sinks of that size, and you can just about wash your hands in them. This house is the equivalent of an NYC studio apartment set in the woods - just add in the commute to get there, and exposure to Lyme disease (that's a given up there).
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@L I noticed the sheer-drop book shelves and lack of closet/storage space as well. Not well thought out......
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I agree. I don’t even bother looking at the $1 million plus articles.
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Love seeing real estate I can actually afford! Either this is new or I've completely missed it. Please do more like this!
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Thank you! It is wonderful to see these imaginative, simple and beautiful properties for $180k. One in Mayor Pete's neck of the woods, no less! Please continue to do more similar articles at this end of the market.
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@Julian Agreed!
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