A new Wandawega lake house foreclosure !

The Wandawega Country Club just notified us that a lake home is in foreclosure and will go into a 'sheriffs foreclosure sale Nov. 7 at 10:00 a.m., and have asked us to tell our friends.

* SITS ON FOUR WOODED LOTS. = big yard.
* 150 FEET FROM THE PRIVATE BEACH AND BOAT LAUNCH.

* SITS ON A HILL, DECK WITH LAKE VIEWS.

* SECLUDED ON 3 SIDES BY A PARK AREA, AND 2 NARROW LAKE LANES. 

* 1930S COTTAGE COMPLETELY UPDATED IN THE LAST 10 YEARS.

* IT WILL BE SOLD ON FORECLOSURE FOR WHATS LEFT ON THE MORTGAGE (read: cheap)

THE CATCH: it is a project house. not for the meek. this is a DIY. It's been abandoned & needs someone with vision. 

Tucked in between 2 tree-lined community lanes.
An upcoming short sale from the bank could be as low as $50k*
My posts on the nearby Hann House (40 feet away) led to so many inquiries, we wanted to let folks know about a new one. But- THIS ONE IS A DIFFERENT STORY. It was built as lake cabin retreat nearly 80 years ago, perched on a hilltop, overlooking the lake. We started to dig and discovered that this little abandoned lake house just down the street from us ... Through tax records, bank calls, questions to neighbors, etc. this is what we were told:

Taxes: $1,820.99

Size: 4 ajoining lots (.23 acres)

Roof: new 

Siding: new

Address: N6971 Oak Lane, Elkhorn, WI 53121

It claims that $80k in improvements where made - the neighbor said that they were made in the last ten years. From what it looks like, it's the new roof, siding, kitchen, drywall inside.

THERE IS A REASON ITS CHEAP: The owners were told to leave by the bank. so they decided not to clean it out.  That said, it also has the parts that you should care about: new pergo floors, drywall, relatively new kitchen, new appliances, etc. It could be neat as a pin in a day, given some serious elbow grease. But remember, it's been abandoned, so have low expectations please.

THE WAY TO BUY THIS HOUSE: 
http://www.co.walworth.wi.us/Sheriffs%20Office/Sheriff/ProcessMap.aspx

go to zillow.com, pull up the address- contact the attorneys handling the foreclosure. they said that 4 days before they sherriff sale, they can tell you what the opening bid will be (which were told is typically what it goes for) the bank that holds the note: HSBC, 866.435.7085, REO DEPT. handles the note. Loan control dept - THH MORTGAGE SERVICES   1-888-788-7432 ext 20229. RESNET.COM  (800 760 7036)  (REO dept)- bankownedproperties.org

Here are some snaps of the exterior from the drive-by we did this afternoon (as well as a couple of old postcards showing what the area looked like back in the '20s)

This is the view from the deck (see the lake in the distance?) It's only about 150 feet.

The deck is bigger than most Chicago condo living rooms, and is on the 2nd level of the house, so that it has nice views of the lake.

The siding is relatively new. The roof is too. It's  tucked into a lush landscape. This is the view of the house on the west side (it sits perched on a hilltop to give good lake views).

The driveway is huge, enough to park at least 4 cars. It winds down to the first level of the home.  The lawn has been neglected, but this is the view of the side yard. This is the view from the east side. 

The house and grounds are shown here (see the house marked '$119k'. (this is not the sale price, its just what zillow says.). Following are a few old surveys.

We hope that somebody out there that appreciates the simple pleasures of lake life buys this place and brings it back to life! It's truly a diamond in the rough. But please do your own homework. We're not real estate agents or lawyers, just neighbors looking for good neighbors to join our community.

And: an apology to friends who would prefer that we didnt share this with our broader friends / lake community. (Unfortunately, we've learned from 3 other home sales near us that we told friends about who said they were interested- then they ended up not buying them, and the homes where sold to folks who turned into rental properties or worse). So- all of this information is already public- and we'd prefer to have good neighbors instead of someone who owns 32 pitbulls or wants to build a boat storage lot.


Thanks for understanding :)