Reid About It

The great adventure known as "House Quest '08" continues, as I search on and on for the next big House O' Reid. Prospects are getting better, if for no other reason than I'm running out of comically bad houses.

For those of you keeping score at home, I had to pull my offer on the house with the leak. I was willing to overlook a lot, but I just wasn't ready to live somewhere where the rain came right up inside the house to say hello.

Again, here's some tips.

If you're going to use one of your allotted pictures to show a selling point of your house, you'd better damn sure make sure people can tell what it is.

Would I buy this house? Well, the first thing I'd find out is if the rug goes with the house, or is it's just for display purposes. Otherwise, I don't have any idea why I'm seeing a picture of it.

It sure does spruce up that random corner of the house, doesn't it?

If it's not something that people would want in their house, don't promote it.

When I'm looking for a house, I want to see pictures of living spaces, floors, and kitchens. I'm not hoping to find a picture like this, which just screams out "NOW AVAILABLE! THE WORLD'S BIGGEST GNARLED BRUSH PILE! Tangled foliage will convey with a full price offer."

And finally, bear in mind that small decor changes can make a big difference. For example, in the above picture, perhaps a darker curtain on the door by the toilet would give a better first impression of the bathroom.

Not only would it set the room off, but it would also keep the light from shining through the windows on that French door, and also keep me from realizing that toilet sits right next to an exterior door.

That's really not a selling point for me. If I'm looking specifically for a house with a toilet as the very first thing I encounter when I enter, perhaps I should just reduce the amount of bran in my diet. Maybe eating a wicker basket for breakfast isn't getting my day started in the right way.