Tuesday, December 07, 2004
Prelude 2
Part of the cool thing about buying this house is that it was a foreclosure. When I think of a foreclosure, I think of someone else's misfortune, but I really think this worked out for both the previous owner and myself. I found out from the neighbors that the previous tenant owned more than one property, so when the sewer line broke, he just abandoned it.
That's where I come in.
The house has a number of problems, the first being the broken sewer line. I found this problem after I put a bid in on the place, which made me upset at the time, but now that I know it's not a terrible expense, I'm OK with it. During my inspection, I hired Roto Rooter to take their shit camera on a line and record the condition of the sewer line. They located a 4' section of pipe that needed replacement. I got a few bids on the project and decided on one friendly, local company to do the work. I meet them tomorrow to pay half the contract amount and get them started.
From the start of this project, I made sure to hire a really good inspector. He was expensive, but I've used his assessment as a way to prioritize all the projects.
Here's what I did in the first three days of owning the home:
*replace the locks
*cut out the bushed located too close to the house
*replace a broken stone in the front steps (for insurance reasons)
*pull off a third of the front patio paver stones (again, for insurance reasons)
*remove a shrub that blocked my view of the road (to back out of the driveway safely)
*remove tiles from the basement floor
*remove the basement drop ceiling
*remove the paneling in the finished basement
*spray walls with a 10:1 bleach solution to rid of any possible mold
*patch the connection between the water heater exhaust pipe and the chimney
*install new light bulbs
Whew. That took a lot out of me.
Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of the basement before my pry bar got hold of it. I'll post the most recent pictures of the basement and the garage filled with the basement finishings after I'm finished with this post.
Before I left the premises tonight, I made sure to talk with my neighbors to discuss where the property line was. The plumbers/excavaters that come tomorrow will also create a turnaround since my driveway backs out directly on to a major road.
That's where I come in.
The house has a number of problems, the first being the broken sewer line. I found this problem after I put a bid in on the place, which made me upset at the time, but now that I know it's not a terrible expense, I'm OK with it. During my inspection, I hired Roto Rooter to take their shit camera on a line and record the condition of the sewer line. They located a 4' section of pipe that needed replacement. I got a few bids on the project and decided on one friendly, local company to do the work. I meet them tomorrow to pay half the contract amount and get them started.
From the start of this project, I made sure to hire a really good inspector. He was expensive, but I've used his assessment as a way to prioritize all the projects.
Here's what I did in the first three days of owning the home:
*replace the locks
*cut out the bushed located too close to the house
*replace a broken stone in the front steps (for insurance reasons)
*pull off a third of the front patio paver stones (again, for insurance reasons)
*remove a shrub that blocked my view of the road (to back out of the driveway safely)
*remove tiles from the basement floor
*remove the basement drop ceiling
*remove the paneling in the finished basement
*spray walls with a 10:1 bleach solution to rid of any possible mold
*patch the connection between the water heater exhaust pipe and the chimney
*install new light bulbs
Whew. That took a lot out of me.
Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of the basement before my pry bar got hold of it. I'll post the most recent pictures of the basement and the garage filled with the basement finishings after I'm finished with this post.
Before I left the premises tonight, I made sure to talk with my neighbors to discuss where the property line was. The plumbers/excavaters that come tomorrow will also create a turnaround since my driveway backs out directly on to a major road.
