The first thing you notice about this place is the grass. It is thick and bright green, it runs right up to the porch steps, and shade trees break up the lawn just enough to make you want to walk out there barefoot. After that you notice the porches, and there are three of them. The house was built in 1900, sits on 0.92 of an acre in Derby, Vermont, and is listed at $278,800.
We look at a lot of older homes, and plenty of them have charm and very little else. This one is different. The bathrooms have already been updated. The roof is metal. There is a detached garage, a wood stove, hardwood floors and a small library lined with built-in shelves. It is also close enough to town that you can pick up a prescription or a pizza without planning a road trip. That combination is harder to find than it sounds.
The Basics
The house has three bedrooms and two bathrooms across 1,354 square feet. One bathroom is a full bath upstairs, and the other is a three-quarter bath on the main floor. Water comes from a private well and waste goes to a private septic system. The electrical service is 100 amps. Beneath the house is an unfinished basement, and out back there is a one-bay detached garage. The listing also discloses that the agent is related to the seller, which we will come back to later because it matters for buyers.
Walking Through the House
You come in off the covered front porch straight into the dining area. Some people prefer a formal entry, but in a Vermont winter a porch that dumps you right into a warm room has its own appeal. Past the dining room is what the listing calls a library or bonus room. The built-in bookshelves give it away. Rooms like this were common in houses of this era, and they tend to get stripped out during renovations, so it is nice to see one still standing.
How you use that room is up to you. It would make a good home office, which counts for a lot now that so many people work remotely at least part of the week. It could also be a kids’ playroom, a spare room for guests, or simply a place to read with the door open to the living room.
The living room is the largest space in the house. Hardwood floors run through it and a wood stove sits at its center. The windows are the other thing worth mentioning. Northern Vermont gets short, gray days from November into March, and a room that pulls in a lot of daylight makes a real difference to how a house feels in the middle of February. Throughout the main floor you will see wainscoting and traditional baseboards, the kind of trim work that was standard in 1900 and costs a small fortune to replicate today.
The kitchen and the three-quarter bath finish off the first floor. The listing calls the kitchen well equipped, and having a bathroom on the main level is a practical plus for guests and for anyone who would rather not climb stairs every time.
Upstairs you will find the primary bedroom, two more bedrooms and the full bathroom. For a couple, that means a bedroom, a guest room and possibly a second office. For a small family, everyone gets their own space without the house feeling oversized or expensive to heat.
Three Porches, and Why That Matters Here
The front porch is the pretty one. The rear porch is the big one. It is covered, it is described as expansive, and it looks out over a private backyard. This is the spot where you would probably spend most of your summer evenings, and on a rainy October afternoon it is where you would sit and watch the maples turn.
The third porch covers a secondary entrance. In a place that sees real snow, a covered side door is a quiet luxury. It gives you somewhere to knock snow off your boots, stack a week of firewood, or set down groceries while you dig for your keys, all without standing out in the weather.
The Yard, the Garden and the Garage
Just under an acre is a comfortable amount of land for most people. It is enough to give you privacy and room to spread out, but it will not swallow your weekends in mowing. The lot has a shaded lawn and a dedicated garden area already set up. Vermont’s growing season is short, but gardeners here make the most of it with tomatoes, squash, beans, greens and herbs, and a spot that has already been worked is a head start.
The one-bay garage is detached. If you have spent a winter scraping ice off a windshield at six in the morning, you already know how much that is worth. It could also become a workshop or a place to store the mower, the snowblower and the bikes.
What Has Already Been Done
This is the part of the listing that serious buyers should pay the most attention to. Old houses have a way of eating money, and the big-ticket items tend to be the same every time: the roof, the bathrooms, the heating, the wiring and the water. Here is where this house stands on each of them, based on the listing.
The roof is metal. A good metal roof sheds snow, stands up to wind and can last for decades, which takes one of the most expensive home repairs off the table for a long time.
The bathrooms have been updated. Remodeling even a small bathroom can run into five figures, so finding both of them already done in a 125-year-old home is a genuine advantage.
The electrical service is 100 amps. That is workable for a household of this size, but if you plan to add heat pumps, an electric vehicle charger or power tools in the garage, get an electrician’s opinion on whether you will need to move up to 200 amps. It is a common upgrade, and it is far better to know the cost before you buy than after.
Water and septic are private. That means no monthly water and sewer bills, but it also means the maintenance is yours. More on that in the checklist below.
Where Derby Is, and What Is Nearby
Derby sits in Orleans County, in the part of Vermont locals call the Northeast Kingdom. It is up near the Canadian border and borders the small city of Newport. This is lake country. Lake Memphremagog stretches north from Newport into Quebec, and the area is known for fishing, boating, snowmobile trails, cross-country skiing and some of the best fall foliage in New England.
According to the listing, the house is a few minutes from North Country Hospital, local schools, shopping, restaurants and downtown amenities. The Newport Recreation Path, a popular route for walking, running and cycling along the waterfront, is also close by. Interstate 91 is a short drive away, which makes it easy to head south toward St. Johnsbury, White River Junction and the rest of New England, or north across the border.
Being close to a hospital is easy to overlook when you are house hunting, but for retirees, for families with young children and for anyone managing a health condition, it is often one of the deciding factors in rural Vermont, where the distances can be long.
How Buyers Could Finance This Home
At $278,800, this house falls into a price range where several mortgage programs could work. Rates and rules change often, so treat this as a starting point for a conversation with a licensed loan officer rather than a final answer.
Conventional mortgage. Buyers with solid credit can often get a conventional loan with a down payment as low as 3 to 5 percent. Put down 20 percent and you avoid private mortgage insurance entirely. Since this house appears to be in good, livable condition, it looks like a reasonable candidate for conventional financing.
FHA loan. FHA loans allow down payments as low as 3.5 percent and are more forgiving on credit scores. The appraisal comes with minimum property standards, and on a house built in 1900 the appraiser will likely pay close attention to any chipped or peeling paint, because of lead paint rules, as well as the heat source and the well.
USDA loan. Large parts of the Northeast Kingdom may be eligible for USDA Rural Development loans, which can offer zero down payment for buyers who fall within the income limits. Areas close to town centers are sometimes excluded, so check the exact address on the USDA eligibility map before counting on it.
VA loan. Eligible veterans and service members may be able to buy with no down payment and no monthly mortgage insurance. Expect a water test and a basic review of the home’s condition as part of the process.
Renovation loan. If you want to finish the basement, upgrade the electrical service or add a heat pump system, an FHA 203k loan or a conventional renovation loan can roll the improvement costs into your mortgage, so you are not paying for the work out of pocket.
Before you make an offer, it helps to get preapproved, compare quotes from at least three lenders, and ask each one about rate locks, closing costs and whether they have experience with private well and septic properties. Local Vermont banks and credit unions often know these homes better than national online lenders.
Insurance Questions to Ask Before You Commit
Homeowners insurance on an older rural home can vary more than people expect, so get quotes early, ideally before your inspection period ends. A few things are likely to come up.
Insurers almost always ask about wood stoves. They will want to know when it was installed, whether it meets clearance requirements and whether the chimney has been inspected. Some companies ask for a professional inspection report before they will write the policy.
The age of the home, the wiring, the plumbing and the heating system will all factor into the price. On the positive side, a metal roof can sometimes help with premiums compared with an aging shingle roof.
Ask about coverage for the detached garage, and about protection against frozen pipes and ice damage, since those are two of the most common winter claims in New England. If you plan to rent the house out at any point, even occasionally, tell the agent up front, because a standard homeowners policy may not cover it.
Our Due Diligence Checklist for This Property
Nothing in the listing raises a red flag, but every house built in 1900 deserves a careful look. If we were buying this one, this is what we would do.
- Hire an independent home inspector to go through the foundation, framing, roof, electrical, plumbing and heating.
- Find out exactly how the house is heated. The listing mentions the wood stove but does not name a central heating system. Ask for the fuel type, the age of the equipment and the last year of heating bills.
- Have a certified chimney sweep inspect and clean the wood stove and chimney.
- Test the well water. In Vermont that should include bacteria, nitrates, arsenic and uranium, which are found naturally in some areas of the state.
- Test for radon. It is common in Vermont, particularly in homes with basements, and mitigation systems are usually straightforward to install.
- Have the septic system inspected and ask when it was last pumped.
- Talk to an electrician about whether 100 amps is enough for how you plan to live in the house.
- Read the lead paint disclosure carefully, as is required for homes built before 1978.
- Look at the survey, the property lines and any easements.
- Ask the town for the current property tax bill so you can budget properly.
- Because the listing agent is related to the seller, bring in your own buyer’s agent. It costs you little, and you will have someone whose only job is to look out for you.
What It Costs to Live in an Old Vermont House
The purchase price is only part of the picture. In northern Vermont, heating is often the biggest monthly expense from October through April. A wood stove can cut those costs significantly if you are willing to buy, stack and burn firewood, and many locals rely on one as their main heat source. Others pair a wood stove with a cold-climate heat pump, and Efficiency Vermont has offered rebates for heat pumps and weatherization in the past, so it is worth checking what is available when you buy.
Property taxes in Vermont are on the higher side compared with many states, so factor that into your monthly budget along with insurance, septic pumping every few years and routine upkeep on an older home. None of this is unusual, but it is better to know the full cost of ownership before you fall in love with a front porch.
The Local Market
The Northeast Kingdom has long been one of the more affordable parts of Vermont. Interest has picked up in recent years from remote workers, retirees and families looking for space, outdoor recreation and a slower pace. Homes that combine old-house character with the expensive updates already done, plus a garage and easy access to town, tend to draw attention.
If you are serious about this one, ask your agent to pull recent comparable sales in Derby, Newport and the surrounding towns. That will tell you whether $278,800 leaves room to negotiate, and it will help you decide what to offer once you know the results of your inspection.
Who This House Suits
We can picture a few different buyers here. A young family that wants a real yard and a garden. A couple working from home who would turn the library into an office and never look back. Retirees who want to be near the hospital and the recreation path without living in the middle of town. Or anyone who has always wanted an old New England house but does not have the budget or the patience for a gut renovation.
Our Take
This is not a flashy house, and we mean that as a compliment. It is a solid, well-kept Vermont home with a lot of the hard work already done, set on a green, private lot close to everything you need. Three porches, a wood stove, hardwood floors, built-in shelves, updated bathrooms, a metal roof and a garage, all for $278,800. Do your homework, bring your own agent and test the water. If it all checks out, this could be a very good place to spend a lot of Vermont winters.
From the Zillow listing:
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