Have You Dreamed of Owning in An Old House?

If you answered ‘yes’ to that question, perhaps this is your golden opportunity.

The City of Rusk is auctioning an old house that must be moved.

I found out about this old house months ago, because we have gotten to know the city officials at the City, when we salvaged an old house in Rusk several months ago.

The City bought this property from the estate of an elderly man who passed away. They wanted the land because it’s adjacent to the City’s sports complex. They’ve known since day one that they didn’t want the house, only the land it sits on.

They needed to make the deal with the heirs and that process is always a lengthy one. As part of the deal with the family, the City agreed that they when they sold the house, they would specify that the old home be moved and not torn down.

I want to make that very clear:  the buyer must move the old house to another location.

Mark and I couldn’t resist going by and taking a look at the old place.

I love old houses, especially old, white farmhouses.

This one sure is an old beauty and could be restored to its former glory. All it will take is time, money, a whole lot of love, and more money.

Don’t you just love the way it looks?

The siding and roof are in really good shape.  In fact, the roof looks relatively new to me.

We made arrangments to go inside and take a look around, so I want to share those photos with you also.

We entered the house from the back door, and this old porch is the first thing we saw.

The door you see to the left leads to the kitchen.  The house has settled quite a bit over the years, and the door wouldn’t open.

The other direction led to this bedroom, apparently an add-on, I would guess in the 40’s or 50’s.

Next, we came to one of my favorite areas in the house: the side porch.   No great shock there.   This room had two of my favorite things: beadboard ceilings and green paint (my favorite color).

I can’t walk through a house without thinking how I’d use the space, and I immediately thought this cheerful and sunny room would make a wonderful craft room or home office.

Next, we saw the one and only (small) bathroom in the house, not uncommon for that day and age.

Next we saw another bedroom with pretty wallpaper.  This bedroom is at the front of the house.

The other room that you would walk into from the front door is this little parlor.

It has a large, double sided, old fireplace right in the middle of room.   I believe the fireplace would have to be demolished before the house could be moved.

The next room was another living area that I think could be made into a spacious dining room. This room shows the old fireplace’s other side.

The kitchen was the last room in the house.  The kitchen was really large, and I thought the vintage cabinets were in really good shape.  In any event, the space is certainly ample enough to have a gourmet kitchen.

You can see the door that leads to the back porch.

The home’s foundation needs work, for sure — there were major dips in the floor — but that will be solved (I think) when the house is moved and set up on new piers at its new location.

Also, like many old houses that age, the floor plan was a little odd, but nothing that couldn’t be fixed with a little imagination and carpentry skills.

There are two outbuildings that convey with the sale. I believe those two buildings do not have to be moved – they could be torn down or dismantled.

One is an old barn with beautiful wide rough sawn pine walls. It’s actually in pretty good shape considering its age. The lumber is certainly reusable. The barn was occupied by two fairy grumpy vultures when we peeked in. Guess they don’t like surprise visitors.

The other outbuilding is a small little shed or guest cottage. It’s pretty darn cute.

The auction will happen in the next few weeks, so I’m told, and will be conducted through AuctioneerExpress.com. If you’re interested in bidding on it, I would highly suggest getting a bidder number as soon as possible.  I’m told you must have one in order to bid, and you don’t want to wait until the midnight hour.

UPDATE as of 10/25/13:  The bidding went “live” this morning and all bids must be received by Wednesday, November 13, 2013 by 11:00 AM CST.

If you have any questions about the house, please contact the Rusk City Manager, Mike Murray, at citymgr@rusktx.org.

Now I have a favor to ask.   If you aren’t interested in bidding on this old lovely, I’d still appreciate it if  you would share this post via Facebook, Twitter, or whatever social media you use.     It’s easy to do — just click on one of social media share buttons below.

Thanks for helping me locate someone who will love this old farmhouse!