Rehabilitating an old house

[BigBrother]

Yes I know costs are all over the place but still...

I found a 2000 sq' house on a good piece of property. Home is 200 years old. It's been scabbed on both sides with additions. Entire house is unlevel. Piers are bowing up from the floor. A full 6" drop from one side of the room to the other. Trying to gauge costs to put in a viable and realistic offer or if I just need to scrap the idea.

Will need new siding, roof, floors, kitchen and the breaker panel is outside. Will also be tearing out walls and adding one or two. Siding and roof work is easy to calculate.

A positive: one side of the scabbed on additions looks solid underneath. The original foundations are legit rocks and mortar.

I am counting on 100k-115k in renovations on a very uneducated guess.

[Saltydog235]

If you’re counting on $100-$115, add at least 50-75%. Not being a smart ass about it but it’s expensive as hell right now and older homes like this you never know what you’ll find. I’m working on one built in 1853 and added onto many times. The amount of hokey wiring and plumbing makes you scratch your head and I do it for a living.

[willk]

Yes I know costs are all over the place but still...

I found a house on a good piece of property. Home is 200 years old. It's been scabbed on both sides with additions. Entire house is unlevel. Piers are bowing up from the floor. A full 6" drop from one side of the room to the other. Trying to gauge costs to put in a viable and realistic offer or if I just need to scrap the idea.

Will need new siding, roof, floors, kitchen and the breaker panel is outside. Will also be tearing out walls and adding one or two. Siding and roof work is easy to calculate.

A positive: one side of the scabbed on additions looks solid underneath. The original foundations are legit rocks and mortar.

I am counting on 100k-115k in renovations on a very uneducated guess.

How big of a house? I don't know shit about the costs involved in a home rehabilitation but my guess is that your estimate is way low. I grew up in a house built in 1880. Old homes are expensive.

[FEETDOWN]

How big of a house? I don't know shit about the costs involved in a home rehabilitation but my guess is that your estimate is way low. I grew up in a house built in 1880. Old homes are expensive.

Yep. Oh, and we had to tear off 4 old chimneys that were pulling away from the house and rebuild those walls also. Forget what I said about 30-40%, it's probably closer to 60-70.

[FEETDOWN]

We live in my grandparents home that they built 100 years ago and have been working on it since we moved in 15 years ago. New roof, siding, HVAC, rewire, replacing old plaster walls with sheetrock, added an open fireplace. Almost finished with turning a bedroom into a master bath with walk in closets now. The next major thing, and hopefully last major thing, will be redoing the kitchen/dining area. I'd say your guess on cost is a little light unless you're gonna do a lot of it yourself or you get real lucky with a contractor. For everything you calculate with an old home you need to add 30-40% in my experience. You just never know what you're gonna run into when you start ripping stuff out......

Also, I was fortunate enough to find a small guy that has 3 employees that has done a lot of the work for us. He's great, and can do damn near anything. Don't waste your time calling any bigger GC's. They wont touch a house over 30 or 40 years old with a 10 foot pole, in my experience......

[Carolina Counsel]

Also, I was fortunate enough to find a small guy that has 3 employees that has done a lot of the work for us. He's great, and can do damn near anything. Don't waste your time calling any bigger GC's. They wont touch a house over 30 or 40 years old with a 10 foot pole, in my experience......

Midgets are the bomb.

[FEETDOWN]

Midgets are the bomb.

Dammit that was funny, and there was several times they needed one to get under the house

[BigBrother]

:eyetwitch:

[BigBrother]

This came up on the radar because with the recent passing of my FIL, my MIL is moving closer.

As we are looking at houses for her, and I am getting the: "How much of this work to get it livable can you do yourself" and "that sure is a lot of yard to mow"...I am quickly realizing that I will very soon have three houses to take care of and closing on a new one will be around Turkey season.

So...

I broached the idea of selling our house too, and getting a house that we could all live in and have adequate space. Because honestly she doesn't have much longer that she can be "on her own" and moving her in will be the only option since she doesn't have long term care insurance, or the resources to fund it herself.

[Remy]

Unless you got deep pockets with a lot of idle cash laying around, run!!!!!!! Old houses are amazing when restored, but can cost a fortune to rehab. My buddy just finished up a rehab on a 100 year old house. He did most of the work himself and still spent a ton of money. Like other said, you rip the floor or wall out and find 2 problems, fix those, find 1 more, and that continues on.

If you want to do it, I wouldn't pay much more than what the land is worth

ETA: Just do the math. A 2,000 sq ft house would cost around $250k to build (125/ft rough estimate, depends on where you live, etc). If it's going to cost you $150-225k to rehab, is that savings worth it, remembering the house is still 200 years old and will always have issues?

[PalmettoTrooper]

Bearhunter restored the one he lives in and it looks like something out of a magazine. He can give you some insight

[ColumbiaCornbread]

You could also figure out the price to have the house bull dozed and cleaned up and subtract that amount from your offer... Sometimes this is the reality.

[Highstrung]

I grew up in and have bought and remodeled old houses. The thought of doing another makes me want to throw up. You're really not saving anything in the house if you want it half efficient and right.. the only reason would be for sentimental or historical reasons.

[FEETDOWN]

I grew up in and have bought and remodeled old houses. The thought of doing another makes me want to throw up. You're really not saving anything in the house if you want it half efficient and right.. the only reason would be for sentimental or historical reasons.

Absolutely. I love our home, but if not for the sentimental reasons, there's no way in hell I'd have done it.....

[Biggie1976]

send a message to Todd (Rodandgun83). He just finished a year long project with his wife and contractor doing the same to a 150 year old house.

[huntinghagen#12]

Put me in the opposite camp.

We renovated a 134 year old house, we’ve had some minor issues but nothing crazy. It was a full renovation, everything was renovated or replaced. It was more than we anticipated, but it’s nice having a house with some character and not cookie cutter.


From Christmas:

A70DDEA4-CDCB-4706-9F82-2A6C3F13F2D2.jpg

[JOHNSON]

Put me in the opposite camp.

We renovated a 134 year old house, we’ve had some minor issues but nothing crazy. It was a full renovation, everything was renovated or replaced. It was more than we anticipated, but it’s nice having a house with some character and not cookie cutter.


From Christmas:

A70DDEA4-CDCB-4706-9F82-2A6C3F13F2D2.jpg

I was hoping you were going to weigh in.

[huntinghagen#12]

I was hoping you were going to weigh in.

I personally think it comes down to doing your due diligence. Before we bought, I brought in multiple contractors, electrician, plumber, engineer to inspect foundation, and pest guys on top of a traditional inspection. I probably spent a couple grand just to make sure the basics were covered.

Main work I did was demo, I can do some reno work, but I’m not very handy. 90% of the renovation came through a one man operation that hired out a day labor when he needed help, and a painter. Could have been done quicker with a full crew, but we had time on our side (didn’t sell our previous primary right away). I put in a good bit of cash into my property. I also got a ton of equity, I could sell it for 2x+ what I have in it within a month if I listed. I wouldn’t be able to do that with a new build in most situations.

My house is kind of an anomaly (old hand drawn paintings on the ceiling from 1890’s), but if someone thinks they can get the same character from a new build, for anywhere close to the same price point, you’re crazy. I’ve been in a good bit of very nice new and older homes, with the exception of a couple character doesn’t even compare in a newer build.

[LCO]

Honestly old homes are full of ghosts and stuff, renovating will just piss them off then next thing you know your possessed and doing the backwards crab walk up your ladder stand next year.

[Tater]

Honestly old homes are full of ghosts and stuff, renovating will just piss them off then next thing you know your possessed and doing the backwards crab walk up your ladder stand next year.

This guy knows what’s up.