The Super Official Homeowners Thread

[ScottyB]

you aren't kidding around. those are some big healthy rats.

trap all you want, i'd be getting a little pellet pistol. if the neighbors get weird about it tell them you're doing them a favor.

[Apoc]

I bought a red rider bb gun just for this purpose. The problem I'm having is we have no windows that open to the backyard (I know, it sucks) so I'm trying to creep out the basement door or sneak up to the fence. I've taken a few practice shots, but something tells me it's both too inaccurate and too weak to kill these big fuckers. I think I need like a proper Crosman Pumpmaster to have a chance. Are they any good? They were the shit when I was a kid, but, I was a kid.

Oh man, 1300 fps. This is a rabbit hole I do NOT want to fall down...

https://www.airgundepot.com/gamo-whisper...rifle.html

[Apoc]

Well, I got one of the juveniles. I shot my flashlight out into the bushes and noticed the trap was about three feet from where I placed it and up against a thick ground covering. I guessed I caught a leg and it dragged the trap, so I had to go out and investigate before bed. Sure enough, a rat was trapped by its hind leg and still very much alive. Three shots to the skull from the red rider and it was over. The first shot might have done it, but I figured two more bb was a small price to pay for ending the suffering. May God have mercy on all our souls.

[JustinG]

Always double tap

[Sully]

Yes a break barrel style air rifle with a hunting style pellet will probably work. My dad uses one for the squirrels that steal his tomatoes. But you still have to get them in the head usually. My dad is a horrible shot so most get away. Ours had dual barrels and we switched up to the larger size pellet. Maybe even .22? Sounds large but I think that was it. Not sure which would be better. Larger slower traveling things would cause more damage but smaller faster would have more penetrating power from further away so not sure it matters.

Break barrel for the win though. Pump once and done. No pumping 100 times and break barrel stronger anyways

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

[davej]

BB gun??

Step up your stealth game. 
https://www.dickssportinggoods.com/p/bar...rcrvxxxabw

[Apoc]

It rains more in DC than Seattle, but we get far more wet/cloudy days. As a result, moss grows pretty much everywhere the sun doesn't blast down - that includes parts of our backyard (due to tree cover). If you've been following this thread, you also know I'm also against using chemicals in my yard due to possible health issues. So what does one do when your yard is being taken over by moss? Iron sulphate to the rescue, apparently. All the moss dies and turns black within 24 hours; leaving the grass unharmed. It has to be raked up and overseeded, but supposedly the lawn recovers pretty quickly.

I knew we had moss, but it was green and soft so I counted it as a healthy lawn. I'm surprised to see just how much there is.  

[Apoc]

I got married so I don't have to prune my Japanese maples. 

More yard work - nearly two days of it with semi-professional help from the octogenarian that did our tall front bushes. We had a bit of a miscommunication (he barely speaks English) on the tall butterfly bush, as the wife wanted to keep that for shade. Well, it's been hacked to about three feet tall. I went out to talk to him part of the way through and he said to trust him; it would grow tall very quickly and not take up so much of the yard. He also cleared out a bunch of dense overgrowth that was starting to clog our back fence and trees. He was pretty aggressive, but I have to admit the yard looks more open now. Of course I just brought a patio umbrella to give the wife the shade she requires, so it ended up costing me more than planned. It's worth it for no other reason than having to bag/bundle all that yard waste. 

[JPolen01]

Looks really good. I'm sure the rats will appreciate the sprucing up you did for them.

[Apoc]

We haven't seen any since a few days after I killed the juvenile... maybe they got the message?

The upside to this cleanup is there's actually less undergrowth for them to traverse the yard in.

[Goodspeed]

DC area folk: what say you about the murmurs of Amazon, and now Apple, possibly moving to the region? This has been an increasingly-large topic of discussion at work - it's gotten to the point where others who rent that I've been talking with are starting to scramble in search of a property to buy, and those who are able are considering adding a speculative 2nd property to their portfolio to cash-in with (basically risk free if nothing happens anyways). How are you reacting to the news?

I can't foresee anything other than a total meltdown of any semblance of affordability that this area still had left, and a furtherance of my inability to buy a house around here as a single guy...if I ever wanted to. What say you?

[.RJ]

I dont expect much will change. This place is already saturated with high salaries, solid job market and expensive real estate.

The metro coming out to Reston didnt lead to a big change in home prices out here.

[Sijray21]

I dont expect much will change. This place is already saturated with high salaries, solid job market and expensive real estate.

The metro coming out to Reston didnt lead to a big change in home prices out here.

This. I think a lot is speculation and fear so people who can't really afford to buy will take out a/nother mortgage.

[Apoc]

This place is already saturated with high salaries, solid job market and expensive real estate.

Does the area have the high salary, low age that these companies would bring? I agree there's a ton of money in the area, but it was money that came from decades in defense/govt when I lived there. Before it was a family of four with school age children that would buying expensive houses. Now, you're going to have twenty-somethings (read: housing competitors) who have a household income of $300k+. The top of the market may not change much, but I gotta think "starter homes" would go up. 

Source: Our half million dollar 2 BR/1.5 bath place is now worth nearly 900k.

That said, prospecting without any official announcement seems like a bad idea.

[.RJ]

That said, prospecting without any official announcement seems like a bad idea.

this.  at best it will take 3-4 years of renting to recover closing/re-listing costs.  low risk, but its a long wait to get out without losing your shorts if it doesnt pan out the way that you want.

buying rental propery != speculating on rising values

chris, you also live in a place that's heavily constrained by the geography of the city.  if amazon moves in out by the airport.... there is a TON of land waiting to be built up out there, hardly any cap on the supply long term.

[Apoc]

chris, you also live in a place that's heavily constrained by the geography of the city.  if amazon moves in out by the airport.... there is a TON of land waiting to be built up out there, hardly any cap on the supply long term.

This is true, but it takes years for supply to catch up to demand. Seattle has been adding a ton of multi-tenant housing to overcome the geographical limitations, however studios are still renting for $1800/month. The other thing you might see is out of state/country investors buying up housing stock as investment. 

https://globalnews.ca/news/3925822/forei...-statscan/

Speculating with real estate is still a bad idea... to this relatively risk averse person. The high cost for entry alone would scare me off.

[HAULN-SS]

I don't think there is any need to jump in now for only a rumour of them moving here. If they do decide to break ground, you could still get in early enough to make cash. I work on the 28 corridor and have seen in blow up over the last decade+. Even after the building started there were deals to be had.

[Goodspeed]

I should clarify, I've spoken to some who are currently renting, but were on the fence or planning to buy a home soon and the news/speculation either got them off the fence or sped up their plans to buy.

RJ - re: land out by Dulles, that area is blowing the hell up, and FAST. I was shocked at how much has been built around the Loudoun Co. parkway, old Aldie is now brand new developments Aldie, and there's also the block that Middleburg has in place to stop development from reaching too far west.

[.RJ]

The metro coming to Reston got me off my ass to buy because I was worried i'd get priced out. It didnt happen, but I'm glad I bought when I did.

[D_Eclipse9916]

The metro coming to Reston got me off my ass to buy because I was worried i'd get priced out. It didnt happen, but I'm glad I bought when I did.

If you watch home values, the surge came before the Metro was built because.... speculation. When the metro actually got there prices didn’t rise at all (in fact I saw a slight drop).

I expect we have seen a small surge now and prices built in already on speculation. If you are just looking now; it’s too late.

Just like anything, if you are hearing it from friends/coworkers; it’s already been priced in/becoming a bubble.