gregc hypotheticalsyou're selling you're house and plan to packup your layout and take it with you. what would you say if the buyer offers to buy your layout? (They have kids or he always wanted a model RR) saves you the trouble of packing it up and moving. gives you a chance to start over. You negotiate on how much rolling stock is included.
hypotheticalsyou're selling you're house and plan to packup your layout and take it with you.
what would you say if the buyer offers to buy your layout? (They have kids or he always wanted a model RR)
saves you the trouble of packing it up and moving. gives you a chance to start over. You negotiate on how much rolling stock is included.
What would I say? Please wake me up cause things like you describe generally only happen dreams.
Back to reality now. Last year I sold my home which had a layout in the basement. I did not want to hinder the selling process so I dismantled the layout.
You want to declutter a home up for sale to allow potential buyers to visualize the home as they would like to live in it. Ask any realtor.
I can tell you when my wife and I were house hunting the more stuff that was in the house, the more we didn't like it and would move on to the next.
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
We listed and sold three years ago. When the eventual buyers saw the layout, which our very high-flying realtor assured us would be okay to leave...for now..., the husband said he'd like to have it left for his grandsons. I agreed, and he asked for a costing, which I provided. About a month later he reneged. Fortunately, I still had several weeks to dismantle it.
If you don't get all the conditions and terms listed in the agreement to purchase, it may come back to jab you where the sun don't shine. Get it in writing!
I am lucky we just finished remodeling what I hope will be my last home so what becomes of layout will be my cousin's problem as it is willed to him. He is a Lionel guy but at least I know it is going to someone who respects the hobby. I expect the layout to hit the trash but not the structures or rolling stock.
Joe Staten Island West
gregc what about turning this around. You're moving, plan on packing up and moving you're layout and find a house already with a layout. would you want it? you could possibly combine both, choose the best structures from both. would it affect which house you buy?
what about turning this around. You're moving, plan on packing up and moving you're layout and find a house already with a layout.
would you want it? you could possibly combine both, choose the best structures from both.
would it affect which house you buy?
When my wife and I were looking for our first house, we toured one. The layout was mostly gone, but there were some pieces of track left, as well as the holes in the walls where the train went between rooms. My eyes opened very wide. My wife gave me the look. While she is okay with the trains, not so okay with running between rooms! We moved on to another house.
In 1993, I was fried and needed a change. I purchased 6 acres of land in the next county and designed the perfect home for a then single model railroader. All I had to do is to sell my present home with the original Piermont Division pike. The thought of taking the layout down was not pleasant so I decided to try to sell the house with the layout. In all fairness, it had already been published several times and Allen Keller just finished his first volume (#12) on it, so a very slim chance existed that a model rail moving to my county could be a prospect. I put the odds at 1:1,000,000,000,000, but still worth a shot. The first real estate lady arrived with her new $500 coiffure, 4" spikes and business suit, and immediatley refused to list the house until all of this "crap" was out of the basement. Congress once delcared me a gentleman.........well, all of that was forgotten when I not so politely showed her the door. Then I placed seveal ads in the model railroad press. Immediatley after the mags hit the stand I fielded a call from a young couple who was just transfered here and would love to see the house and layout. They could not get a mortagage with the price of the layout, and I foolishly declined to hold the note on the layout. A month later an older gent made me an offer meeting my price, but I would have had to greatly modify the layout. I figured this work would take several months and I could not afford the time. About the same time I had an offer for the 6 acres of newly puchased land, so I pulled the plug on the sale and built my first addition.
Point: Yes it is possible to sell a house with a layout, but aggreed, the odds are not in your favor.
HZ
josephbwThey were in the Dayton Ohio area, no where close to NJ.
.
Sorry, I was thinking of the Allegheny Midland that was part of the same "system" as the V&O.
My mistake. (I am beginning to be amazed at how many I am making)
-Kevin
Living the dream.
Well, it's good to read some story's of how it has worked, to go with the doom and gloom about the realtor that doesn't want it there.
There's realtors everywhere, throw a stone in air, and it will land on one. Pick one you can work with.
Mike.
My You Tube
I have also been to Allen's V&O several times. They were in the Dayton Ohio area, no where close to NJ.
My first layout was on a 4'x8' and fully finished - it was sold, minus locos and rolling stock, separately...don't recall the price.My second layout, in a basement room in the first house we'd owned, was a fairly ambitious track plan, fully operational, but with almost no scenery, and no structures at all.We picked the right time to sell, and our renovation projects really payed off, with multiple buyers pretty-much bidding on the house. The layout was intact when shown, but I had assured the realtor that it would be gone and the room re-done so that it could become whatever the new owners wanted.The purchasers, though (well, the husband) asked if I could leave the layout. I had not left any trains on it while the house was listed, and he didn't ask for any, just, if it were possible, the layout.I was actually quite relieved: I hadn't really planned on keeping much of it anyways - the track was all code 100, and I didn't think that much of the benchwork could be saved or re-used, either. Basically, he saved me doing the tear-out. I didn't ask for any extra money...we had already gotten more than twice what we had originally payed, so the new owner was happy and so was I.
Wayne
The people that bought My parents house in 1974, asked if I would leave the two level 6x12 layout that was in the furnace/laundry room in their basement. The rest of the basement was finished with a 11 stool wet bar. The realtor wanted Me to leave it there....to see if anyone wanted it....it was thaat good. With or without, the house was the same price. I left one engine, a few cars with caboose, some buildings. Powerpack was a MRC Golden Tri-pack, I took that with Me. Everything else I took. I even came back a couple of times and helped the people get it working again, when they got a new power supply I recommended for a 2-cab system.
The house was supposed to go to Me......but My life had changed and I knew I was getting a divorce....so I told them to just sell it. They were retiring to Florida. I still have that Golden Tri-pack and a few Mantua loco kits from that layout.
I was tickled, cause I really did not want to tear it down......all hand laid brass track.
Take Care!
Frank
It happened to me. The realtor who worked with us to buy the house knew it was a 2nd choice and had a buyer looking for what we had. She showed the house while we were out of town and I had all track down, running with RailPro, foamcore temporary buildings and some ground cover started. The people made us an offer while we were still out of town. Before we could counter offer I ended up in the hospital and my wife told them, yes you can buy the house but it will be sometime before the layout can come down. They had a 12 year old who liked trains. My son in law went to the house and took all engines but 2 and left 30 pieces of rolling stock. A neighbor showed the kid and his dad how RailPro worked and that was it. My wife keeps track of all expenses and knew how much money I had in building the layout and made a good deal IMO. We got back about 70% of the expense and I considered time I spent building it as a learning experience. About a year later I was asked over to help the kid with some maintenance, let’s just say this kid felt entitled.
A rare deal I agree, but yes, lotteries also can be won.
TomO
gregcYou find a house already with a layout. would you want it?
No.
You have a better chance of winning the lotterty than to think that another person could build a layout I would have fun with for 20 years.
I also doubt anyone would want my layout.
Colorado Ray I qucikly discovered that Realtor's hate anything out of the ordinary. Ray
I qucikly discovered that Realtor's hate anything out of the ordinary.
Ray
And they want you to remodel your kitchen and bathrooms at a retail cost of $25,000 to only get back about $17,000 on the price (don't believe thse home fix up shows where they show people spending $25,000 and that increases the value of the house by $35,000)
But hey, the house shows better and is easier to sell.........
- Douglas
greg - Philadelphia & Reading / Reading
I'd go right out an buy a Lotto ticket too. I'll have some of what you are smoking.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
I wouldn’t want to sell my layout because I would want to keep all of my structures, and the layout wouldn’t be the same without them. I would also want to keep all of my figures (people) and other scenery details, and of course all of my trains. So what someone would be buying would be track, bench work and plaster mountains with empty lots where buildings used to be. I don't really think that is what they would want.
SeeYou190The VIRGINIAN & OHIO is (was) not that far from you. This is probably the most famous model railroad in existance. It actually has a historical society. Amazingly well built for operation and included in hobby publications for three or more decades. . The story is the layout had to be removed to sell the house. . If the V&O cannot survive the real estate market, I doubt any layout can. .
While living in Dayton I had the pleasure of visiting Allen's layout several times. I was general manager of a machine about 1/2 mile from his house. I told my wife, had we not moved to western Colorado in 1998, we might have been buying the V&O with a house on top of it!
Maybe not a pony nor magical but there's a bacteria that "eats" metals and "poops" gold nuggets albeit microscopic ones...
Steve
If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!
While I'm wishing, I want a magical pony that poops gold nuggets.
Disclaimer: This post may contain humor, sarcasm, and/or flatulence.
Michael Mornard
Bringing the North Woods to South Dakota!
SeeYou190If the V&O cannot survive the real estate market, I doubt any layout can.
Read the history page of the Pacific Southern. The house with layout has now had 3 owners. I believe it's existence is very unique.
gregcgives you a chance to start over. You negotiate on how much rolling stock is included.
I see you are from New Jersey.
I don't know how much of this is true, but it is kind of a model railroading legend.
The VIRGINIAN & OHIO is (was) not that far from you. This is probably the most famous model railroad in existance. It actually has a historical society. Amazingly well built for operation and included in hobby publications for three or more decades.
The story is the layout had to be removed to sell the house.
If the V&O cannot survive the real estate market, I doubt any layout can.
You know the record for getting stuck by lighting and surviving is 7 times... just if anyone was wondering...
Your realtor let it stay while showing the house?
And then you found someone to buy the house who wanted the layout?
Did you get hit by lightning twice and live as well?
Ricky W.
HO scale Proto-freelancer.
My Railroad rules:
1: It's my railroad, my rules.
2: It's for having fun and enjoyment.
3: Any objections, consult above rules.
Some people just get lucky though. When we sold our last house, I had no room for a layout, but I did have a large reef aquarium. I was NOT looking forward to moving it. The buyer put an offer in that included the aquarium. He always wanted a saltwater tank. Boy was I relieved! Admittedly rare, but possible!
Mike
That's the impossible dream.
My house just went on the market in anticipation of the upcoming move to NC. The ILS in the upstairs office had to go with major repairs to the wall after shelf bracket removal. Had two old N scale layouts (3 x 5 and 4 x 8) in the basement. Had to chuck the smaller one and crate and ship the larger one that my son had built. Realtor would have died had I had a full basement sized layout.
That would be the equivilent of winning the lottery.
As was noted, most realtors will want the layout removed prior to showing the house. Buyers want to see what they can do with the space.
This will be a problem for my girls. Hopefully I will live to remove the layout myself, but if I get hit by a bus 7 years from now they will have a problem.
This has come up before. R/E basics are anything attached to the structure go with the sale(usually curtains/drapes). Even a China hutch can be fair game as many have the upper part bolted to the wall to prevent tipping. Make sure all exclusions are noted in the sales listing. If that layout is attached, it needs to be listed in the exclusions. That said, most Realtors will want the layout out of there before they will show the house...
Modeling BNSF and Milwaukee Road in SW Wisconsin
I'd be all over that offer! I'm quick to say that as, we figure our next move will to a retirement community, where hopefully I can start all over.
Everything is fine now, but 10 years down the road?
gregcsaves you the trouble of packing it up and moving. gives you a chance to start over. You negotiate on how much rolling stock is included.
Besides that; its a bunch of wood and plaster and stuff,,replaceable.
Not like your first born male child, wouldn't take me long to tell em, sold!