Car-Free Country House: Rhinecliff farmhouse, $284,000

  |  March 7, 2012

For this week’s Car-Free property, we wanted to show that you could live somewhere like Rhinecliff, which we consider Mecca for carless commuters, in a nice house, with a yard, without causing irreparable damage to your bottom line. We think this updated 1887 farmhouse fits the bill just about right.

Rhinecliff is known for its quaint chi-chi-ness, and the general feeling is that it’s not easy, maybe even impossible, to find something this nice for less than $300,00. But it’s not true, and this is a great example of what you can find if you look. The house has a good yard, nice back deck, gorgeous sun room, roomy kitchen and big enough overall at nearly 2,000 square feet.

Jones Street lies a mere a block from the water front, and it’s just a half-mile from the Rhinecliff Amtrak station. It’s also close walking distance to a couple of must-see spots in Rhinecliff, like the Morton Public Library just up the hill. Not only is it a great library, it’s also the home of a small theater that hosts plays and even yoga (check out the events calendar).

Then there’s the Rhinecliff Hotel, which has an amazing restaurant and bar with patio seating so you can watch the boats go by on the Hudson.

And finally, it’s near one of our favorite restaurants in all of the Upstater area, China Rose. This is not your typical Chinese restaurant. While you can order takeout, it’s worth it to take the time to sit in their amazing dining room or cozy bar. And their food is amazing.

The house sits on a corner lot on a nice residential street. There’s a hitch (isn’t there always?): There’s no bus service from Rhinecliff to Rhinebeck, which is the nearest town with a grocery store. Short Line bus services runs some routes around the Rhinebeck/Poughkeepsie/Hyde Park area, so if you can get to Rhinebeck, you can get to other places. So although you might not be able to be completely car-free, you can certainly use it less than you might in other areas.

5 Jones Street, Rhinecliff (Better Homes and Gardens/Gail Saucier) GMAP
Asking Price: $284,000
Beds: 4
Baths: 1
Square Feet: 1837
Year Built: 1887
Land: .44 acres
Taxes: $5,659
Features: Sun room

About Kandy Harris

Kandy is a writer and musician/music teacher living in Saugerties, NY.

Read more from Kandy Harris

Read On, Reader...