House Hunting {Part 2}

I Have Learned. . .
Check the school district FIRST.
We evidently didn't look into that enough. We decided against the house we put on offer on after discussing the area with the local ward. Turns out it's not up to snuff. I had a feeling. That also nixes that beautiful custom kitchen house from the other post.

Photos can be incredibly deceiving.
The other house I posted was JUNK. 4 dogs lived there. I would still swear by cigarette smoke though I was the only one who smelled it. The floors were done badly and on and on.
I have no house-hunting sense AT ALL.
We spent the ENTIRE day looking at houses today with all 5 kids in tow. The kids were marvelous but I'm . . . I need to be sent to bed.
Here are the 4 we chose to see with a realtor.
1. This is Matt's choice. It's a foreclosure with what he feels is great investment opportunity. The realtor is supportive and agrees with him but says there will be investors and our likely hood of actually getting the house is slim. It needs all new flooring(except the kitchen) and a few other minor things and the pool needs to be drained and cleaned. We like it that it's a fenced off pool and there's still a yard. The neighborhood is really uppity so the investment part of it is great. I'll spare you my opinion for the moment. http://search.har.com/engine/dispSearch.cfm?MLNUM=55212624

2. Another good investment has random updates that didn't include the kitchen. Has a whole apt above the garage that's marvelous. If we got this one anyone who visited me would be VERY fortunate. However there are some serious power lines behind it. http://search.har.com/engine/dispSearch.cfm?MLNUM=33565421
3. This is an absolutely beautiful house. Wouldn't need much if anything. Backyard was smallish if I'm remembering properly. I love the game room which has doors. Well, I'd probably paint some but that doesn't even really count. It's in a wonderful neighborhood. I believe it's on a golf course. It's terrific. It's also, apparently suddenly under contract. Not so much in the investment arena either.
http://search.har.com/engine/10427-Cobalt-Falls-Dr-Houston-TX-77095_HAR89613434.htm
4. And the ONLY house that I've really fallen for. I have REALLY unusual taste in houses which is not good for resale. This is old, not a great kitchen(although they did say they'd put in granite for the buyer to replace the hideous green) It's so efficient. Ok, here I go. Nobody get offended I know I'm very unusual. I don't like vaulted ceilings pretty much for the reasons Carissa mentioned before. I really don't. I get so sick of the same old floor plan. I don't get the purpose of a front yard. This house has a stone-walled courtyard in the front. So romantic and friendly. So private and perfect. The house itself is open and odd. Admittedly odd in so many ways. It's small. But the backyard has two wonderful Southern Magnolias to be climbed and it looks out onto the golf course. For a family with little kids the pool is very safe. I can send a child into the backyard and not worry about them getting into the pool. Anyway. I'm almost embarrassed that I wouldn't want these grand cloned houses. I think I belong to another planet:) I threw our realtor for a loop that this was the only house I was interested in. Probably a horrible investment. Nobody but me would buy it:)
http://search.har.com/engine/14503-Muirfield-Ln-Houston-TX-77095_HAR28152824.htm