Real Cost of an Old Home

My economics instructor in high school taught us, “there is no such thing as a free lunch”. She was trying to get our young minds to wrap around the concept of the “real” cost of things. I remember her talking about how there are other things to consider as “costs” besides the dollar price of the actual lunch. If getting the “free” lunch came at the expense of not hanging out with your friends and instead being stuck listening to your whining old aunt, then that lunch could be pretty dang costly. If the food you consumed ultimately made you sick and you had to spend money on a plumber to unstop the “results” of the free lunch, then that free lunch just got very expensive.

Fast forward to today. I am considering the purchase of a “cheaper” older home as compared to the purchase of a brand new, modular built ASH home. So, how much does that older home REALLY cost you to live in?

My friend lives in an older home and I have noticed that he spends a lot a month on “repairs”. Something always seems to be busted, stuck, malfunctioning or needs to be updated to work. He spends his weekends caulking, patching, painting and doing a lot of small, time consuming repairs. He says he does it because he can’t afford to hire it done.

He had his father-in-law come in and install a new thermostat and rewire the living room and kitchen because he was told that the guy knew electricity. That ended up a costly mistake that resulted in no Thanksgiving dinner and an emergency visit from the certified electrician from the City. Beyond the obvious dollar amount of the electrician’s bill, what is the cost of a VERY angry wife and a father-in-law with hurt feelings?

Last week he couldn’t go out with the guys because he had a high utility bill he had to cover. It seems his old furnace couldn’t keep up with the breeze the thin insulation in the house allowed in.

The Advanced Systems Homes modular construction is warrantied for one year. The appliances are all efficient and the HVAC systems are all new and in excellent condition. If I buy new, I will most likely be able to spend my free time doing things I like to do rather than patching up an old house. That’s pretty dang valuable.

I think I will contact a designer at ASH and get my new home built, I hear it can take less than 90 days from start to finish! Your dream, our passion.