The Homestead, postscript

Thanks for the comments, encouragements (and warnings). We definitely appreciate all the different perspectives. But just to clarify a few things, my mother originally told me the property sold for $12,500, but later she learned it actually sold for around $17,000. So it's still a Hyundai, just one with heated seats and an integrated-GPS system, rather than hand-cranked windows and an AM radio. Also, the new owner has apparently done some work on the roof and will likely demand more than what he paid. The quickness with which the property returned to the market is probably a sign he's eager to get rid of it, which could mean a reasonable price but probably also means the project was more trouble than he expected. Nothing auspicious about that.

We're not going to rush into any decision. I'm going back in a few weeks to investigate the area a little better. In my flight of whimsy I also failed to mention that an acre over from the house sits one of those newfangled IKEA mansions, you know: the fiberboard ones that come flatpacked and get assembled with Allen wrenches and only last a few years before falling apart? Its residents were blasting Bollywood techno and then Mariachi techno from their Great Room, so I can only assume they are world music techno aficionados. With two Escalades.

If we were to take on this project, our goal would not be a complete gut or rehab, but a minimal effort to make the place sound and habitable as an occasional weekend getaway. Nothing like leaving the peace and quiet of Detroit for techno-filled nights in the sticks. But if anything comes of this opportunity, I will certainly post about it.

Meanwhile, back to the babies.