Holy Flip, Here She Goes Again

Well, today my flip house is officially mine.  Keys are in hand and I have been physically in the dwelling twice today wandering through scheming up various plans.  I can't remember the last time I had to fight so hard for something.  I'm not sure what that means but I am optimistic that this whole process, at the very least, will be one hell of a good time.  I will admit that I had a moment of fear, which is very rare for me, when I entered for the second time today.  This time was different because I was alone and not trying to convince someone how great it was going to be.  Instead, this time, I visually scanned every baseboard, flicked on every light switch, looked in every closet, ran my hands along every wall and up and down every railing, opened the cabinets (only to be ripped out tomorrow), breathed in the scent of the old beauty, and sat staring into the space for at least 30 minutes.  I think to really know what a house needs you need to "live" in it for a bit.  And by that I don't mean you actually have to move your stuff in and live there but you have to feel it, walk in it's shoes for a bit.  So I stood there just soaking the place in.  It's got soul.  I'll give it that much.  But I knew that the minute I walked in. That's what sold me on it - soul.  I love old homes.  There is a certain feel to them that you don't find in new homes.  I hope to preserve some of that even after it's renovated. 

The whole thing leading up to closing was a complete shit show.  I was assigned the worst underwriter ever at MCAP who made me jump through hoops to get my financing which resulted in a legal mess.  My mortgage broker sent me a text the day before closing that said "I think I am more excited than you to close this deal and have it finally over with."  First, the owner of the house died two days after I bought it.  We were notified that there may be a delay in closing due to the reading of the will, etc.  Ultimately, there ended up being no delay on their end.  But then MCAP requested so many documents from me that they didn't have financing in place for me on the day of closing so we then had to request a delay in closing by 4 business days.  On the fourth business day financing was still not in place and the vendor was threating to sue me for breach of contract.  That particular day was a tad stressful but I was laughing again by the following day so not a big deal in the grand scheme of things.  With the help of many people pulling off last minute stunts we pulled it together and I got the keys Friday June 6th.  Exactly one week later than the planned closing date.

Lesson number one:  when you request additional financing on your new mortgage for renovations the maximum that they will give you is the lesser of 20% of the purchase price of the home or $40,000.

Lesson number two: the money is held in trust with your lawyer until the renovations are completed and someone has come to assess that you actually did the work you said you were going to do.

Lesson number three:  if you work with me in any way be prepared for things not to be normal.

Lesson number two - Are you for real!?!?!?!?  I asked for the money because I don't have the money.  So today I spent most of the day searching high and low for $40,000 to pay for the necessary renovations, which, by the way, is a very tight budget for the amount of work that needs to be done to this house.  However, miracles tend to happen daily in my life so I am not too worried about it......yet.

So what's the plan, then?

• Gut the kitchen and install all new cabinets, countertops and appliances.  Rip out the random shower that's in the kitchen and possibly create a main floor laundry room.  Add an island in the kitchen
• Refinish all hardwood floors and rip up tiles and linoleum that covers some of that hardwood
• Replace fuse panel with 100 amp breaker panel and re-wire entire house
• Construct main floor powder room where a random toilet sits in the middle of the hallway
• Replace all windows
• Knock down wall that encloses the staircase and main entrance wall to create a more open concept
• Rip the second floor sunroom right off the house
• Gut main bathroom upstairs and tear out linen closet to create a larger bathroom
• Return master bedroom to a bedroom.  It's currently a half-assed kitchenette
• Replace all wood trim/moldings/baseboards/window casings
• Clean up the basement and outdoor shed
• All new light fixtures
• All new door hardware and some new doors]
• New plumbing throughout
• Rip up back yard fence and garden and create interlock patio (optional....only if money available)

 

My lovely kitchen.  But it's a good size.  I have lots to work with.                

 

The upstairs main bathroom.  It's missing a toilet.  That is randomly placed in a room of it's own in the hallway.  But I will rip out this bathroom and re-create it entirely so the toilet fits in the bathroom

The third bedroom.  Jackpot.  I found hardwood underneath!

Upstairs hallway. I LOVE the banister.

The second floor sunroom was a good idea but it resembles the Crazy Crooked Kitchen at the Museum of Science & Technology at the moment.  Not worth salvaging.  Just going to rip it off and drop it directly in the dumpster that will be below.

 This is a random shower in the kitchen.  This section may end up as main floor laundry. Rotary phone still works though ;)

Here's the powder room.  Just a toilet - no walls, no door.  Just a toilet.  BYOTP by the looks of it too.

Here is the dining room which I will make living space because the kitchen is an eat in kitchen.  No need for a formal dining room.

Living room.  I <3 this room.

 

Main bathroom part II - a toilet.  Again, all by it's lonesome.

 

 

                                                     Bedroom. Almost perfect just as is.



I will renovate this house as quickly as possible and then list it.  I suspect this will be sometime in August 2014.  Not an ideal time to sell.  Therefore, I plan to list it for just 2 weeks.  If it does not sell for the price I want I will move into it for the fall/winter and list it May 1, 2015.  Let's pray for a quick sale in August because moving is just another additional expense!

Game on!