Can we all agree that it is never a good idea to put a picture of your makeshift urinal in your real estate listing?

Mattress as exterior window covering, illegal use of US Postal Service mail bin, CFL lightbulb (?) sticking out of a wall, updated mosaic tile shower base and decorative strip around tub that doesn't match the mauve fixtures, and the water all around the makeshift urinal set up is kind disconcerting.

And certainly not two photos!

I'm a retired US Navy Submariner. In the day, on some of the boats there was a urinal out in the open in the machinery spaces like the pictured one.

However, we at least had the class not to put it next to a sink or drinking fountain.

The Navy now has women serving on Submarines - wonder if the urinal is still there? lol

OMG! Just OMG!

Wow. "It's for tall people because it has 8' ceilings."

Here's another one interesting one. How much would you subtract for all the Italian paintings, especially the kitchen and bathroom vanity?
http://www.trulia.com/property/3204394626-11710-Old-Georgetown-Rd-1403-North-Bethesda-MD-20852

Wow that painted interior is really intense! Its not my taste, but i get a really happy vibe from the pics.

It's a particularly nice touch having the cheap ice box painted to match the cabinets - polka dots!

The seller of that first house is probably posting on forums saying "I'm going to sell my own home. Those realtors don't do anything and just collect money. I can do just as good of a job"

"Clean new 1990 house"??? 25 years old is new?

Love the fancy mirror over the urinal, no less, in the first house. Over the sink might have been a better choice :-)

What do you bet it's a 3x magnification mirror???? LOL

Blubird- Maybe it's one of those Funhouse mirrors that distorts things and makes them look larger.

The makeshift bathroom is a bit odd. Otherwise, nothing too weird.

That listing is not far from my house (6/7 miles or so). That may be called a Pittsburgh toilet.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pittsburgh_toilet

We had one in our basement when I was growing up in the city. There used to be lots of steel-worker in Pgh and they used these bathrooms after they were done working (and after a stop at the bar) before they came upstairs to eat dinner. That listing is not in the city but not too far out from the city.

So we are all giving these listings hope! Wow! "My listing has had so many views!! Why isn't my house selling?" Interesting listings, though. Pretty speechless about both.

I am not trying to be rude, I do see the humor, but this is actually someone trying to sell their home and now this thread making a mockery of it may come up in search results. So there is a urinal. Otherwise there's nothing very unusual. So I suggest we let it go. Houzz is a place where we celebrate good design while offering constructive criticism or basic suggestions. I don't think this is an accurate picture of how the Houzz community wants to project themselves. I am rather shocked we are willing to have a laugh at the expense of someone selling their home.

We should also celebrate all the great potential this house has!

You think a would-be buyer needs this thread to realize that there is some funky/unhealthy stuff going on with this place?

Chill.

Chill? I was never angry just saddened that people find trashing someone's house amusing.

People are going to be making a mockery of his listing whether there is a thread here or not. Hopefully, he stumbles across the thread, reads some other threads about staging/photos, and learns something so he can sell his house.

Is that a balding man in a navy blue skirt in the first pic???? With a --mattress-- over the window..... I can't unsee these....especially the ''work of art'' condo.

The owners trashed the houses. We're merely observing the final result.

Should I start a new thread? But seriously how much less would you offer for the artful condo? (Or maybe someone would offer more?). This may be a case where the owner thinks it added value.

I wouldn't buy the artful condo, but if it was in the Little Italy part of town, the art could be a selling feature.

Somebody obviously loved that place and good for them. I feel we do things too much to please others and don't do enough to just please ourselves. That said...

Virtually nobody anywhere wants that artful condo. If they do, then its basically like winning the lottery. Congratulations! You got that one in a million home buyer. You win.

If there were two condos offered of the same floorplan in the same building at the same price, I would want a discount of at least $20K for the artful one. Not only do you need to paint every surface twice but you probably need to replace the woodwork and some hardware and fixtures as well.

I'm familiar with the location of the artful Condo.. it is a very desirable location. Too bad what they're showing to prospective buyers.

I have seen some extremely interesting homes for sale in this part of the country. One was a tweety bird room. Yes for true!!!! Not one but two pictures of a urinal!!

A house I looked at last year had a minature hacienda build into the interior walls of the house. Minature doors were everywhere. All the fire places looks like tiny Mexican houses. Plus tons of Spanish roof tile inside. The whole house. The cabinet tops were tiled with the roof tile. It was the oddest home I had ever seen.

My realtor friend was groaning about the listing she just got, loads of wallpaper. I sent her the artful condo listing and now she's happy that she only has wallpaper.

I once took on a listing that was a 3 bedroom brick ranch on the outside and was a mobile trailer on the inside! Yep. The owners bricked up and around their trailer! Luckily, It came with two acres of subdividable land that had water access. Of course I had to offer it for a cash sale only.

Holy crap!!! That one made me LOL! Thanks for posting nosoccermom :)

He won't sell to anyone who has a large dog that barks. Hmmmm.....wonder how you put that in the contract?

I'm just going to say that compared to the apartments I looked at while in Pittsburgh, and many, many homes I drove around, this house is new. Those buildings were all around 100 years old or over that century mark -- and hile the ceilings in his apartment are fine, my son is going to have to duck when he goes to the parking garage and the laundry, so you can't take even 8 foot ceilings for granted everywhere. And neither the apartment he is moving out of or the one he will be moving into have lights in or in front of the closets so lighted closets might be a big deal to someone. I can understand the seller's enthusiasm for some of these points. I can't share his enthusiasm for the urinal or the photos of it, but someone else might. And the listing does address a touch of the curiosity I had about what the real estate market was like there.

So even though those may be the worst real estate listing photos I'e ever seen, there's something positive to be said. I wish him/them luck.

houzz is becoming a place where ppl just bash everyone. i noticed that with some of my posts. ppl are trying to sell their homes. some do a good job others dont. yeah urinal was pretty funny but everything else seems legit.

@mass IMO I 100% agree! Exactly what I said above. So, there is a urinal? Everything else seems pretty normal for a fixer upper. They weren't marketing this place as a designer home.

House is quickly becoming a place to bash, yes! Shouldn't we be celebrating this places potential? So sad.....

you should some of my latest postings. I ask one question and get other responses. this place is just bash central. Another person posted another "strange listing". Such a cruel place we live in. this is no way a great community of people who are willing to help but rather but be cynical

Mass, you've been offered help quite a bit here... you just refuse to listen. You argue every piece of advice and help that is offered you. Maybe the cruelty you perceive here is imaginary.

ncrealestateguy,

I've noticed the same thing. I mentioned he's got some grammar issues and the wording re his Solar Panels were confusing, at least to those of us potential buyers with no experience in solar, and he launched into a personal attack.

The home shows well in photos and seems priced well based only on a comparison to the asking price of a few nearby homes.

Something seems wrong, and it may have little or nothing to do with the house itself.