“Well,” said Pooh, “what I like best,” and then he had to stop and think. Because although Eating Honey was a very good thing to do, there was a moment just before you began to eat it which was better than when you were, but he didn’t know what it was called.”
― A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh

Winne-the-Pooh

I awoke this morning and went to yoga.  It can be so hard to be in the moment, to breath, to soak in the experience, to resist the urge to have the something next in our lives arrive.  I practice it but mainly it remains elusive.  One thing I really like about flipping is that I know each place, each experience has the potential to be a singular one, which makes me appreciate it a little more.  One holiday, the last dinner with friends in the space, a sole Summer, Fall, or Winter.  To experience things as firsts and lasts, brings them into focus.

I was intent on making an offer on one of the three properties I visited this weekend, anxious to get number 3 under agreement.  I loved the Pembroke Street property for all its beautiful original detail, grand crown moldings, prominent baseboards, french doors to a small outdoor deck.  It needed a little TLC, it definitely had a water infiltration issue, and the price did not reflect either.  6 units in the building and only one other Owner Occupied made this property a NO.  Mortgage Lenders have become much more stringent in their requirements post short fall, and this is something at which they take a close look.  Concern for how invested non-owner occupied parties are in the care and maintenance of the building is real.  While Pembroke is an excellent street – the number of days on the market in this climate tells most of the story about its issues.

Pembroke Street

Union Park, one of the most sought after streets in the South End sounded promising with its two bedrooms, but an in person visit revealed its deficiencies.  The exterior of the building looked to be in good shape, the interior – tired, and the unit, make no mistake, needed to be gutted.  At over a $1,000. a foot, and the roughly quarter of a million you’d need to put in, you wouldn’t be going anywhere fast with this property.  That’s another NO for me.

Union Park

Worcester Street which sits on the edge of the South End, and lacks the convenience and proximity to Copley Place and many of the popular restaurants, is still considered a fairly good location.  This floor through, parlor level, one bed with all its original detail was very attractive.  Some questionable design decisions were made in the bath and kitchen but nothing that couldn’t be fixed with a relatively minor face lift.  I suspect its relatively inexpensive price tag will mean that it will go under agreement this weekend.  If the kitchen and/or the bath needed to be gutted and the asking price reflected that, I would have made an offer, but it would be difficult to make much of a return here so I close this weekend without the possibility of a new home.

Worcester Street

I will have to live in the moment of this week, waiting with baited breath for the release of the next wave of open houses.  Fingers crossed.