House giveaway requires heavy-duty move

? Mike Bassett wants to give away a house – a big house – with a fireplace, built-in cabinets, a bay window, two full bathrooms and walk-in closets.

There’s just one catch: The lucky recipient has to move it.

Bassett says if he doesn’t have a taker by July 1, he will raze the structure to make way for more parking for his supermarket and gas station next door in Bellevue, 45 miles southeast of Toledo.

“I hate to tear it down,” Bassett, 54, of Port Clinton, said Friday. “It’s a beautiful house.”

He said in the past week he’s received about 20 inquiries about the house, which was used for offices until last June.

Connie Roberts, marketing director for Bassett’s Market, estimated that moving the house will cost $50,000 to $80,000, depending on where it’s going and other factors.

Bassett, whose family has been in the grocery business since 1898, said he’d like to donate the house to charity and would like to see donors provide a lot and pay for the move.