Weighing in at a mere 660 sq. ft., an updated 1920 home in Walton Court, near Airline Dr. and W. Cavalcade St., stacks a full range of roomage into its wee proportions. A $289,500 asking price was attached to the listing that appeared late last week. How’s everything arranged into the homelet? Think of its floor plan as a series of 10-ft. boxes.
***
One side of the home lines up the 12-ft. living room and 10-ft. dining room, which end their run . . .
at the updated 10-ft. by 7-ft. kitchen with windows facing south and east (over the sink):
On the other side of the home, both bedrooms square off at the 10-ft. mark . . .
with the shared bathroom (claw foot tub original) between them:
This front bedroom also opens to the living room:
The home’s floors are also original. HCAD indicates a 1996 remodeling.
A small front porch and smaller one out back add another 100 sq. ft. to the house proper. Because of the home’s small footprint, the 5,000-sq.-ft. lot has a lot of room left for lawn by the garage:
The patio lifestyle apparently moves with the furniture; from the driveway (above) to the grassy area:
- 912 Kern St. [HAR]
I love this house! It’s a reasonable size for 1-2 people on a beautiful lot. If only the price was affordable for a young family..
Not bad.
$438 per sq ft, living the dream.
I adore small homes, but this one… It’s expensive for what you get for where it’s located. But it is very cute. :)
.
At this price, they really should at least put in a ventilation hood in the kitchen.
Hmmm, yes, 300000 for a “cottage” ie, fixed up former shack in a so so area—get real. Houston isn’t SF, this price is absurd. I could see it if it were in the heart of Norhill or on tucked away street in “The Montrose”, but here? As the Tony Saprano would say, “Ged da fuck outa heya”
Cute but still overpriced for that area, even with the continued run-up in prices. The house next-door (a 900 sf “remodel candidate”) sold for only $160k in February.
May be high for a transitional area. But lot values are undeniably going up fast. We’ve been shocked to see developers on the w side of N Main paying in the 400 range for 6k sq ft lots.
Come on guys. This is ridiculous. You want to charge prices like this fine, there are people who will pay 300+ for houses. But it has to actually BE A HOUSE. 700 sq ft is basically unlivable for 2 people.
I have to say you can usually count me in the “Save the Old House” club, but with this one, I have to wonder why bother?
It’s a cute house, but at 100K less it would be overpriced. I would still not walk my dog at night around Airline and wherever. I know the area is “up and coming” but it has not upped and come yet and probably won’t for several years, if ever. Maybe it’s a good deal. What do I know any more lol?
It seems that we are just in crazy developing world where they would not think twice about tearing down a truly worth saving house in Montrose, but they go to great pains to renovate something like this that was modest to put it kindly even when it was built.
Neat. Sweet. Petite.
BTW, Shannon, do you ever have anything pleasant to say?
MrEction,
–
Actually to me this house is perfectly proportioned for two people, maybe even three. When I look at modern houses all I can see is all the wasted space.
–
Northwood: “900 sf needing remodel for 160k”
so that would put this house mid to upper 100s, not taking into account the recent price rises?
I am worried this little house’s lot is a candidate for townhomes?
What do you guys think?
I think 660 sq. ft is plenty space for two, +1 kid. Ever see Tiny Houses? Great documentary about living within 100sq ft. 200 was considered bigger spaces. With smart placement and no clutter 660 is all the room one needs. :)
@Darogrr Pretty sure they’re just selling the land and tacking on some $$$$ for the house as an afterthought. I personally do not like this part of the area; it’s still pretty industrial and the apartment units nearby appear super slummy (especially the ones in Lizzieton Terrace). I think the land value is too high for this property, too; even tear me downs in Brooke Smith aren’t going for this much… yet.
.
I don’t think the owners went to great pains to reno this. The current owners bought this in 1999, 3 years after the reno, and it looks like they maintained it nicely.
.
@awp – Yeah, that’s kind of crazy. 3 people?! I could live with another person in a 600 sq ft apt provided that there was 1 bedroom. And even still, I’d want a place where I could sew and put a dresser and non-twin bed without feeling like a sardine. Surprisingly, I actually think this area would perfect for townhome development or apartments. I like the townhouses near Redwing Place; it seems to have provided some stability for the area years ago.
.
To save this house from a sad fate, I would happily welcome it in my backyard. :) I have too much space there anyway.
The only thing I can say about the price is that old real estate maxim about how “they aren’t making anymore land”.
I think some of these crazytown prices for homes in the western portion of the loop will come back to earth if ever the day comes that the Eastside and 3rd Ward are gentrified and made over by yuppie millennials. Only then is the supply going to line up with the demand.
I live in the neighborhood.. Brooke Smith.. on the south side of Patton. I don’t think the price is all that out of line for the neighborhood. There are a number of remodeled/new craftsman style homes in Brooke Smith that have sold recently for over $500K and those are in the 1600-1700 sq ft range and sit on 5,000 sq ft lots. So while the neighborhood is still transitioning, it’s turning at a very fast pace. You can barely drive a single block in Brooke Smith without seeing some type of remodel or new construction so the pricing is getting more in line with the rest of the Heights. With all of the development happening around N Main, prices are only going to continue to rise. Those old industrial sites with large lots are getting sold and more new development is coming. For those who think this location isn’t worth $289K, if it were a few blocks south in Norhill, the price would be much higher. You can’t even buy a teardown with a 5,000 sq ft lot there for $300K. For folks who think the Heights is a bubble and are expecting prices to fall.. keep waiting.. but don’t hold your breath.. you’ll suffocate.
Overpriced by about $200,000. It must be a sucker’s market over there in the barrio.
Markd it’s just the Tampico Heights markup/hype. A sure sign of a bubble near bursting.
@CFUS I live in Brooke Smith too, but north of Patton, and dumpy bungalows have not been selling for 300K yet. The area, especially where you live, is still more desirable than what you get South of Cavalcade and east of N. Main – in the same vein of living in Eastwood vs. a few blocks away.
.
On Main near Cordell, there is a meat packing plant, and near Lizzieton Terrace, there are many more of these industrial plants. Since July, 1105 Tabor sold for $273K, 606 Tabor for ~$293, 1309 for $210, albeit, literally next door to D&T’s parking lot. Homes with brand new remodels on them have sold in the $300-350 range such as 1506 Northwood, 911 Tabor, and 1501 Walton.
My house in DC was 670 square feet, and that was split into two levels (12 foot wide rowhouse). It was absolutely fine for one person, other than finding furniture that worked in a 12 foot wide living room. (It was even a 2 bedroom!)
Next door on one side a married couple lived in an identically laid out house. On the other side two guys who were roommates lived in the same house. They also managed to have parties with about 100 guests, which was an amazing feat of physics.
I certainly don’t want to live in that small of a house again (I love my palatial 900 square foot bungalow) but people crying “unliveable!” to these sizes makes me laugh. This is a reasonable size for most of the human race. It does mean you can’t accumulate giant piles of crap, but in a lot of ways living in that sort of space is pretty refreshing in that in forces a certain level of organization and thoughtfulness about your stuff on you. Everybody should do it once.