The Upstater: New Old Houses

Every Friday at 11:00, the Upstater website brings you a selection of houses for rent and sale within three hours north (and a little bit east and/or west) of New York City. This week: the 21st century farmhouse.

Perhaps you love the look of old houses, but don’t want to renovate or spend your upstate time tending to the old bones of a place. In that case, you might want a “new old house,” one that borrows from the architecture of older houses — folk Victorians, Greek revivals and such — but is new and modern.

The upstate leader in this kind of house is Catskill Farms (you can read an interview with the owner/designer here). Their homes tend to be in the 1,300-square-foot/$335,000 range, with porches and open floor plans. They’re built in Sullivan and Ulster Counties, and the process seems pretty appealing: pick out a design and a piece of land. Catskill Farms builds the place on your choice of plot, but pays for everything until the home is done; you buy the finished project. Or you can pick up one in progress, like this two-bed, 1.5-bath, 1,300-square-foot Cottage 39.

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16 Mohonk View Lane in Accord, NY is a relatively luxurious example of such houses. Three beds, 3.1 baths, 3,776 square feet and 1.3 acres.

It evokes a farmhouse, except is has things like walk-in closets, a laundry room, den and 25-foot ceilings.

Taxes are estimated at around $12,000, which is pretty standard for this area of Ulster County.
16 Mohonk View Lane, Accord. $689,500. MAP.

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One of the attributes of 14 Hutton Street in Rhinecliff, NY is its proximity to the train station, should you desire a car-free or commutable country pad. Of course, that means you’ll have the sound of the train rumbling by, as well, but at least it’s not directly outside your window.

The house, built in 2008, sits on only a third of an acre — it’s a village home, after all — but has three beds, three baths and 2,700 square feet. From the front, it fits in nicely with the folk Victorians around it.

From the back, and inside, it’s a bit spicier, with beautiful banks of windows and river views, even if they’re over the tops of neighboring homes. You’ll be paying for that spice, however: $749,900, which we think is a lot for a place without land.
14 Hutton Street, Rhinecliff. $749,900. GMAP.