Place with room to grow

Teacher Michael Vorick, who moved from Indiana to Georgia 2 1/2 years ago, was thinking about more than himself during his 2009 home search. Shortly after buying his first place, he proposed to his girlfriend, Tiffany McBain.

Vorick was looking for a home close to his job at Creek View Elementary School in Alpharetta but focused on Forsyth County because of the lower home prices and taxes, he said. Although he didn’t originally plan to buy a foreclosure, most of the homes in his price range were in that state or heading toward foreclosure. During the six-month search, Vorick, 25, was assisted by Eve Jones with Harry Norman Realtors.

“We went through our fair share of ones that were terrible and had holes everywhere,” he said. “The one we ended up buying wasn’t too bad. It had been abandoned for a while.”

Choice No. 1: Outstanding yard, interior concerns

The outdoor space was perfect for Vorick and his dog, Stanley, at this home on Woodland Hills Drive in Cumming’s Hunters Chase neighborhood. “It had a really nice open yard where the deck goes straight out to the yard. We would have been able to fence it in,” he said. Inside, he was concerned he wouldn’t be able to salvage the hardwood floors, and several other repairs were needed. The four-bedroom, two-bath home had a trey ceiling in the master bedroom and a separate garden tub and shower in the master bath.

Choice No. 2: Big bonus, smelly carpet

This three-bedroom, two-bath home in Cumming’s Pilgrim Landing neighborhood had a bonus room, and Vorick wanted a home with a bonus room or a basement. The home was on a half acre of land with a wooded back yard that needed to be cleared to make room for his dog. It had the extra benefit of being within walking distance of Lake Lanier, but a downside was the poor state of the home. “They had cats upstairs. It was kind of destroyed upstairs,” he said.

Choice No. 3: Curb appeal, needs repairs

The exterior of this three-story home, also in Cumming’s Hunters Ridge neighborhood, appealed to Vorick, with a red door and a front porch. “It was real Southern,” he said. The three-bedroom, 21/2-bath home, also on Woodland Hills Drive, boasted views of Sawnee Mountain, and it had a back deck. There was a partial basement, too. But its repairs would have included replacing the polybutylene, which would cost about $3,500, according to the estimates Vorick received.

The choice

No. 2. He previously put a bid in on No. 3, which was in the short sale process, but he was beaten by higher offers. For the home he bought, the seller repaired a leak in the kitchen ceiling, bought a new hot water heater and paid $5,000 in closing costs, said his agent, Eve Jones. Michael Vorick paid exactly what he set out to spend and also was able to fund cosmetic changes such as refinishing the hardwood floors, replacing the carpet, and updating the kitchen cabinets, countertops and hardware.

Vorick said it’s been nice to have time to fix up the house before his girlfriend, Tiffany McBain, moves in after their summer wedding. Last Thanksgiving, he hosted seven family members —- and three dogs —- which he didn’t have space to do living in an apartment. “It’s wonderful,” he said. “It’s nice having your own space and being able to let the dog out in the back yard.”

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