We Bought Our $23,000 'Dream House' For $50!

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"You bought a house for $50!"

That's right. In the spring of 1976 my husband and I purchased the three-bedroom, 1,200-square-foot older home you see here (with the kind of fine hardwood floors and mellow oak woodwork you just can't find anymore) for the grand price of $50. And that house has since been appraised at $23,000!

Of course, there was a catch to the deal: Before we could move into the residence . . . we had to agree to move it away from the spot where we'd bought it.

Still, that wasn't such a bad bargain. Our total moving costs came to $2,800 . . . and we spent an additional $3,000 on remodeling the home and adding a two-car garage in the basement. In other words, for about the same amount of money we'd have had to come up with for a down payment on an equivalent modern house . . . we've been able to buy our present home—the one you see here—outright!

And we don't—by any means—consider ours to be a one-of-a-kind, it'll-never-happen-again situation. In fact, we feel confident—given a little time, patience, and operating capital—that you, too, can find a move-it-yourself dwelling to fit your needs. You may even be able to locate, buy, relocate, and move into such a structure for less than we did, if you can find a place that doesn't require much remodeling.

HOW TO FIND A MOVABLE HOUSE

Finding an inexpensive house to move was the easiest part of the whole job for us . . . and it should be for you, too. Newspapers often carry stories about businesses or institutions that are planning expansions or new construction. Once you learn about such a project, drive by the proposed building site and note whether any homes are standing there . . . or call the contractors and ask if any dwellings near (or on) the site have been condemned. In almost all cases, it's cheaper for the folks who're planning the construction to let you haul away a condemned building than it is for them to have the structure torn down.

Our house is a good example. When we first came across it, the dwelling was slated to be razed to make room for an addition to a hospital. We were able to buy the structure for next to nothing ($50) because we saved the hospital administrators the expense of tearing the residence down.

Another good way to find one of these potential "mobile homes" is by scanning the classified section of your local paper. Occasionally, private owners will advertise a home that must be moved. Also, houses that are bought by the state to make way for future highway expansion (or other projects) are sometimes advertised in the paper and sold to individuals by sealed bid.

Then too, firms that specialize in house moving often list dwellings that they've moved (or will move soon). We don't recommend that you buy a home from such an outfit, however, since the moving company stands to make a hefty profit not only on the house itself but on its moving expenses too.

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