Sunday, March 28, 2010

Firehouse in the Heights

The Central Avenue firehouse that goes up for auction on Tuesday morning is too much for me. I can't handle it, can't even consider bidding on it. What if I got it? I'd run out of money in a week of trying to renovate the thing.

Such a crumbling beauty. I love the outside, the facade, and the location. But inside?

Take a look.

The tragedy is the water damage. The extension in the back is water-logged. Soaked. The main roof leaks like a swamp. Pull off the roof and you'd find rotting beams and damp wood.

I'm no builder, but I'm betting that the dead squirrels are the least of the problems up on Central Avenue.

Such a shame. I'd love to have this firehouse as my primary residence.





1 comment:

Frank said...

Just a thought on Hook and Ladder #3...There is an federal FHA 203K loan program out there for an owner occupant. Some lenders are familiar with it, but many are not. It funds the purchase price + estimated refurb costs combined, less a very reasonable down payment, and there is still that first time homebuyer bonus ( you should qualify for it), featuring several months without a mort pmt while you refurb. Any historic preservation bucks available?

There is also a conventional loan program offered along the same lines as the FHA one with provision for some home and business combination purchases. Gov is very helpful with mortages at the moment. Might be worth checking before postphoning dream.


Frank