The hard sell…
It’s late and I’m exhausted. I worked all day at my soon-to-be former editing job, picked up my kids, made dinner, visited several houses with my California client’s mom and then searched the multiple listing service for homes in the Camelback area for another potential client. It was a fun and interesting, but draining day.
The mom of my client and I visited two very different houses that both met the requirements of her son and his wife. One is a large, but older waterfront home in the Dobson Ranch subdivision and the other is a newer, snazzy house in The Springs. Both are at least 2,000 square feet and have lovely pools and waterfront views. Each has plenty of bedrooms with nice sized closets. But that is where they diverge.
The home in Dobson Ranch (in Mesa) is a single level that was originally a three bedroom house, but had an addition built in 1997, so it is currently a 6 bedroom. It is large and lovely, with an amazingly open and yet private backyard. If it was my decision, I would consider the drawback to the house: the kitchen, which is tiny and would be difficult, though not impossible, to expand, and the older half of the house, which has popcorn ceilings (I have them and I hate them!) and little closets and bathrooms. However, I adore the backyard and the copious space enough to make up for things like ceilings that shed.
The home in The Springs (a newer subdivision in Chandler) is a two-story with an enormous driveway, which impressed us right off the bat. It sits on the edge of the water and has wrought iron fences all around that provide lovely views, but also permit the neighbors the same of your backyard. It’s not as large as the Dobson Ranch house (though I’m not sure what I would do with six bedrooms), and it’s almost a little small. The master is decent sized, but the two other bedrooms are miniature and the fourth isn’t even a bedroom, but a loft that can be used as an office. The pros: an amazing saltwater pool and fabulous driveway. The cons: that general shiny newness that comes with having exactly the same thing as your next door neighbor.
I think, for me, the choice would be the older house… but I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I’m a sucker for that lived-in feel… and I’m definitely not immune to the draw of a brand new awesome house. It’s a tough call…