DFW Texas Homes

You Can’t Judge a Mansion By Its Moat

Admin — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 04:19:29 +0000

You Can’t Judge a Mansion By Its Moat

The iconic mansion in town is for sale or lease. It’s the mansion that everyone knows, built on a street without any other mansions in sight. I’m sure as it was being built passersby would have said things like:

“Why are they building here?”

“How big is this thing going to get?”

“Is that a moat?”

“And what’s with the circular parking area?”

The mansion garnered lots of questions and curiosity. Even I was curious about the inside of the mansion in the middle of town on almost five acres of land. So I decided one day to take a peak inside. My intention was to view the home and write a nice little post on how perfect it all is and lure encourage a million dollar buyer to use me as their representative.

However, what I found was quite short of perfection. As I drove the long driveway I noticed that most of the light posts were broken or had even fallen over. “Vandals!” I said to no one in particularly, but quite disgusted at the thought of vandals harming the property.

The property was a mess! Did someone steal a table from Sonic and use it for a picnic table? Not exactly great curb appeal.

The thing that looked like a moat was actually a creek running stagnating next to a bridge that doesn’t really exist anymore.

I believe this would have been the way for people who park in the circle parking that goes around the fountain to have gotten to the main house. But at this point if you were to park there, you would have to go back out onto the road, walk about a half mile to go the entire perimeter of the area to get to the house. At least it’s gated. Trust me, no one is going to walk across that bridge!

Once inside the house, it seemed like a picture straight out of Gone With the Wind, complete with curtains which could always double as a dress in case you ran out of clothes. However, the staircase was gorgeous!

See the outlet up there? Why would you need that at the top of a 40 foot ceiling? How would you plug something into it? I don’t know, just one of the little features that makes this house so quirky.

Here are a few other quirky things:

Water shut off valve in a built in cabinet in a closet (not near any bathrooms in the house)

Duct work in the closet? Hmm?

Need to go to the bathroom, but someone’s in there? Don’t bother going to one of the five other bathrooms, just wait your turn at this handy bench seat. (there was nothing else here – just a bathroom with a bench outside the door)

Then there were the design choices …

There are five different tile colors in this bathroom. I do LOVE the tub though. If I would buy a house for the tubs alone, I would buy this house.

Well, except for the one in the master that is surrounded by columns that are off kilter and the giant two-ton light fixture hanging overhead. Oh yea, and the wasp nest. Well, that part can be fixed.

When deciding if a house is for you, you have to look at the house as a whole. Sometimes there are just too many things that need to be fixed in a house that make it not worth buying. Unfortunately, this house was only built about 8 years ago and has so many things wrong with it. Tile pieces that are cracked, leaks that are visible on the ceiling, appliances that are installed wonky. (you shouldn’t see daylight coming in) Then there are the things that are just quirky that make you think, why did they do that?

Next to the door in the living room is a large glass panel with all the surround sound wiring. Apparently there was a room added on to the back of the house (did they want to be even closer to the fence?) It has a wall of windows that looks right into the back fence which is only about ten feet away.

The master bedroom was quite large and had a beautiful fireplace and balcony. This was really the best part of the house as it looked out over the front yard, creek, washed away bridge, statues, and that circle parking lot. The closets were amazing in this master. Even the closet with the built-ins that were in front of the window, which was broken. You could feel the wind rush through the closet. I guess you could use that one to blow dry your clothes.

The house contained two kitchens. That was kind of cool, but the second kitchen was just in a strange location. I LOVED the gas cooktop though.

The outside was just as quirky as the inside. Along one of the walls there was a pvc pipe. Was it to keep the brambles from growing up onto the house? It wasn’t working. I think maybe they ran some wire through that pvc pipe into the house. But I just don’t know.

There was an outside grill area that was awesome, complete with fake briquets. I loved those. But when I looked up, there were nail marks all over. Someone spackled them all. I guess to make them not so noticable. I suppose if you’re looking up, you might be too curious about the metal piping overhead to even notice the hundred nail marks. Then there was the board that was nailed to the roof near the outdoor grill. Give a kid a hammer, a board and a ladder and see what he’ll do?

Upon leaving the house I felt quite sad. This was perhaps someone’s dream home. I don’t know why they moved, but if felt kind of like an abandoned dream.

Perhaps there is a buyer out there wanting to fix, repair, and redesign a mansion. But at almost a million dollars, he might be better off just going down the street to Southlake to find one that is move in ready and without need of a live-in handy-man.

Dallas TV Show on TNT Error

Admin — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 04:22:38 +0000

Real estate in TX is not done with a handshake

Tonight I watched the new Dallas tv show. I remember watching it when I was in high school and as a young adult. I mostly watched it out of nostalgia and because I now live in “Dallas.” Actually I live in Fort Worth, but when you aren’t from here, it all seems like the same place.

A couple of days after moving here, my kids went to a Christian concert at Southfork Ranch. I thought it was pretty cool at the time. They didn’t have a clue what was exciting about Southfork.

Tonight I’m watching the show and as they are discussing that they are going to sell Southfork. There is an offer on the table. Bobby says to the woman, “Here in Texas we do things a bit differently. In Texas we do deals with a handshake.” I think I literally jumped out of my seat and yelled at the TV, “not real estate deals!” Let me tell you Bobby Ewing, a handshake deal is not worth the paper it’s written on. Yes, that’s right. In order for a real estate deal to be binding in Texas it MUST be in writing and it must be signed by all parties before it’s a binding contract.

Let’s say you’re a homeowner who wants to sell your house. You don’t list it with anyone, but you start telling your friends, put a for sale by owner sign in the yard, and post a few times on craigslist. A man comes to your house, you let him in (not really a good idea – but that’s a subject for another post). He tells you he loves the house, gives you a check for a two hundred dollars and tells you he’s going to buy your house with cash by the end of the month. He comes back and does an inspection. You open an escrow account,research the title policy, hoa resale certification, and all the other things you have to do to get your home sold. Oh yea, and you write a contract to purchase another house.

The buyer has been over numerous times. You talk on the phone. Everything seems to be moving along just fine. The day of closing you have the moving truck packed, you’re getting ready to move into your new home and the buyer doesn’t show up at the title company to sign the documents. Repeated attempts to contact the buyer go unanswered.

When you contact a lawyer he tells you that you have no recourse because you didn’t have anything in writing. You respond, “but in Texas we do things differently. We close deals with a handshake.” And he tells you that Bobby Ewing is in error. In Texas, we do real estate deals IN WRITING!

Rentals in Fort Worth, Keller, Southlake etc. $3000 plus

Admin — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 22:54:52 +0000

We know that sometimes purchasing a house right now is not the best option for everyone.
We also know finding a rental home can be a daunting task. A lot of agents won’t even call you back when you ask about a rental home.

If you are moving to the Tarrant County area, you can search our maps for all the rental properties on the MLS. After you take a look at what is available, give me a call at 817-914-4987 and I’ll see what I can do to help make your move a lot smoother.

Rentals in Fort Worth, Keller, Southlake etc $2000 – $3000

Admin — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 22:54:17 +0000

Rentals in Fort Worth, Keller, Southlake etc $1500 – $2000

Admin — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 22:52:23 +0000

Rentals in Fort Worth, Keller, Southlake etc $1000 – $1500

Admin — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 22:51:37 +0000

Feel free to explore the search box, find the schools, local coffee shops, change the price and location. It’s very easy. You may want to register to save searches. The MLS changes all the time, sometimes hourly. You don’t want to miss an update.

Crawford Farms

Admin — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 20:22:45 +0000

Crawford Farms is located just south of Golden Triangle and East of 35W.
Right now it’s not real pretty driving up to the subdivision because Golden Triangle is in that ugly phase of being reconstructed. When it is finished though, it’s going to be amazing! But for now, we have to deal with construction crews. The traffic isn’t any worse than it was because it’s still two lanes. Can’t wait for the five lanes!

Once you pull in to Crawford Farms, the beauty hits you. It’s a tree lined boulevard with a gorgeous fountain. The houses are set back from the street, which offers great curb appeal to every house in the neighborhood.

The community has a fabulous sport court and swimming pool. There is a bike/walking path that winds through the community as well.

It’s part of the Keller Independent School District. http://kellerisd.com Their motto is Intentionally Exceptional! Be sure to read all about the district.

Crawford Farms is a wonderful community with a lot of family activities. The HOA sponsors activities in the park several times a year.

One thing you’ll notice about Crawford Farms is how clean it is. Maybe that’s because soliciting is forbidden so you won’t see all those door hangers on the houses or in the streets.

Crawford farms is super close to I-35, but not so close that you hear the traffic. It’s an easy commute to downtown Fort Worth, or over to Dallas. You can see the Fort Worth skyline from many spots in Crawford Farms.

Shopping at Alliance Town Center is just a couple of minutes away. You can get your Starbucks drinks, shop at places like Hobby Lobby, Belk, JC Penney, Jos. A Bank, Best Buy, and a host of other great stores. There’s also plenty to eat with Jason’s Deli, Zoes Greek Fast Food, Which Wich, McDonalds, Olive Garden, and many more. Five Guys Burgers and Fries and Mi Cocina are scheduled to open in the next few months too. This is a growing area. If you’re looking for groceries, you’ll find a gigantic Kroger Signature store and gas, Albertson’s, Wal Mart, and Target are all within just a few minutes drive.

Search the map below to find homes for sale in Crawford Farms and other surrounding areas.

Decorating a Contemporary Dining Room

Admin — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 17:17:31 +0000

This is an example of a WordPress post, you could edit this to put information about yourself or your site so readers know where you are coming from. You can create as many posts as you like in order to share with your readers what exactly is on your mind. This is an example of a WordPress post, you could edit this to put information about yourself or your site so readers know where you are coming from. You can create as many posts as you like in order to share with your readers what exactly is on your mind.

Building the Perfect Home Theatre Room

Admin — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 17:16:43 +0000

Adding Granite to Your Luxury Kitchen

Admin — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 17:15:04 +0000