Tia - I can tell you things I don't like about my employers' houses!
Employer 1 - Their house had these big cut glass windows down both sides of the front door. People who rang the bell could look straight into the house. If you buy a house with an intrusion alarm make sure you can't see the keypad from outside. The bathtubs all had built-in glass doors on tracks which made it really uncomfortable to lean over to bathe the kids. Also, the doors only opened so far. The tub in the master bath was sunken, but it was DEEP. I would have been nearly standing on my head to bathe the kids in that one! The garage was behind the house, and there was a big fence so if somebody was lurking in the driveway to rob you or car jack you your neighbors wouldn't be able to see it happen. The kitchen floor was this beautiful white tile but it got smudgy VERY easily. It was also slick!
Employer 2 - That house was an older, ranch style. No real complaints.
Employer 3 - The house was gutted because of black mold, but the materials they used inside were EXTREMELY cheap. The sheetrock was very thin and it was next to impossible to hang anything on the walls because the bolts would pull out. Also, apparently there is a special sheetrock that is supposed to be used in bathrooms. (I just found that out because my friend's boss is remodeling.) I suspect the sheetrock in the kids' bathroom was not the right kind because there were HUGE water marks down the walls. ExDadboss said it was from the kids letting the bathroom get all steamy from the shower. The shower connected the kids' rooms. It was definitely the most bizarre set-up I have EVER seen. As the kids get older there is no way that shower will be practical for them. That house did not have a regular bathtub, only the super-deep "garden" tub. It was HORRIBLE to have to bathe the kids in that tub. Even though Terra is getting old enough to bathe herself, if she is sick or something it is good to have a NORMAL bathtub. The master bedroom had no door. That was just weird. The hall bathroom door didn't have a lock. The door into the garage locked automatically, and there was NO KEY!
They had maintenance problems ALL the time. Appliances, plumbing, something was ALWAYS broken. In a house that had been completely redone I don't know why they had so many issues. The switch for the garbage disposal was at hip level so I turned it on accidentally with alarming frequency. The sink was in an island so there wasn't really a wall to put the switch on. There were a lot of steps - one step up to the laundry room, 2 steps down to the living room, 2 steps down to the master bedroom. Like Deb said, if anyone has mobility issues those steps will be problematic.
Employer 4 - Princess's house is also an older, 3 bedroom ranch. I like it, except for the bathrooms. There is one bath between the guest room and Princess's room, but you can not access it from the hallway. The master bath does open to the hallway, but I never use that one because I feel like that is my bosses' "space". I know I would prefer that guests not use my master bath. There is a half bath in the garage but it isn't heated, so if it is really cold outside we don't use that one. Dadboss just replaced the water heater. They had one 40 gallon tank for the entire house - bathrooms, washer, dishwasher, etc. The new heater is 50 gallon because that was the largest that would fit in the closet where the connections are. Dadboss said after 2 showers there was pretty much no hot water left with the old heater. All of my other employers had 2 water heaters, so I had always assumed there were 2 in this house, too.
