Good Enough Homes & Destinations: What You Get For $199,000

I’m learning fascinating things from the Gray Lady’s Great Homes & Destinations: What You Get For $1,100,000. Like, first of all, you can pickle wood. Pickled wood is apparently a thing. Second, the taxes on an (admittedly palatial) one-bedroom penthouse in Chicago are greater than the taxes on a what looks like an actual palace in upstate New York. $3,000 a year greater, in fact. Kind of startling, no? The upstate house looks like the kind of place that should be rented out for weddings: it’s sprawling and immaculate, with a pool, a a koi pond, and a gazebo. Oh, and “a meditation garden”? idk

The taxes in Colorado on a four-bedroom house, meanwhile, barely register. They’re like what you might spend on dry cleaning in any major city.

What can you get for the more realistic price of $199,000? Let’s fire up the Good Enough Homes generator and find out!

Two bedroom, two bath, 1100 square foot condo for $196,000 in Litchfield Park, AZ, via Movoto. Basically, a retirement community for all ages, the complex that this condo is in has a pool, a gym, a business center, and a barbeque area, because everyone comes to Arizona for the BBQ. The condo itself has a breakfast bar, lots of closet space, and a one-car garage. It comes furnished, too, if you like using other people’s stuff from Ikea. At least it’s already been assembled.

A one-bedroom, two-bath, 760-square-foot condo in a historic townhouse in Portland, ME, for $199,900, via Movoto. The building dates back to the 1880s but the interior has been renovated and features exposed brick, hard wood floors, bay windows, an ornamental fireplace, and some arched doorways. Conveniently located in center city. The Other Portland: It’s Nice Here Too (TM)!

Three/four bedroom, two-and-a-half bath, 1880 square foot house in Wickliffe, OH, for $159,000, via Movoto. Gas fireplace, ceiling fans, almost too much room throughout, and lovely landscaping, including a “trex deck” and a “pergola.” I don’t know what they are, but according to the pictures, they look nice. If you’re looking for low cost Midwestern suburban bliss, this oughta do ya.

PS: Have a good story about how you bought property? Pitch me! ester AT the billfold DOT com

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