Desperate Times Call for Desperate Measures

Well the clock is ticking so I've had to execute my child labour plan.  My kids call this house "the rip house" because everyday when they ask me what I did I usually tell them a tale of ripping something down like a wall or a closet or a deck.  So they have aptly named the house "the rip house".  They so badly want to contribute.  They have asked to help several times but there just isn't much they can do.....except load trash!  So load trash is what they did.  They loved it!

    

 

Mondays are always the busiest day for me at the house.  I have to touch base with my contractors, make plans for the week, solve problems, make decisions and line things up so the works keeps progressing without any lags.  I don't always do things in the right order but I actually like it that way.  It keeps life interesting.  For example, I called to have my garbage dumpster removed this morning and a new one brought in.  This time, however, I needed the new one parked on the street so that my Jamaican foundation guy can access all edges of the foundation.  Of course, when the bin delivery came the driver was trippin' out about leaving the bin on the road, not to mention the wrong side of the road, without a permit.  I talked him down, signed a waiver that I would be responsible for any tickets and I got my bin....right where I wanted it.  Then I decided I probably should call the City to get a permit.  What's the saying?  It's easier to ask for forgiveness then to ask for permission....I called the City, which much to surprise connected me to the right guy on the first try.  The permit guy in charge of my zone was so awesome.  I told him I already had the bin but that it was not blocking Emergency vehicles or anything like that and he said no problem.  Permit was in an e-mail within an hour.  Sweet!

 

Work is moving quickly now.  Rest of the floors are scheduled to be sanded and re-finished on Friday.  Baseboards and painting moving along this week. I will pick up my cabinets early next week and the kitchen will be underway.  Bathroom will be finished up this Wednesday.  I'm heading there shortly to rip out the rest of my deck, a small patch of floor I gave up on a while back - time to revisit it I suppose - and rip out a few silly pieces of random wood in the shed.  This morning I had the furnace guy come in.  I was actually afraid.  The house is heated by water radiators and oil.  I have never turned it on yet.  Turns out my boiler is not that old.  It just needs a good cleaning and a few valves and things changed.  Nothing major.  I'm just happy it works.  That's very good news! 

 

My Jamaican foundation guy told me to call him when I had the deck ripped out.  I told him I'd have it done by the end of day Monday so first thing this morning I called him and told him it was done (I actually did it on Saturday) and he laughed at me.  He knows me.  He did the foundation and the driveway for the house I currently live in.  Perhaps he was using reverse psychology on me on Friday by laughing at me when I said I'd have it done by Monday.  You see, I am the kind of person that if you tell me I can't do something, I will do it if it kills me just to prove you were wrong and I could so do it!  Well, it worked if that was his plan because that deck is ready ahead of schedule.  So I tell him on the phone I'm ready for him and he says "ok".  What does that mean?  You'll come tomorrow?  The next day?  Next week?  Next month? God only knows.  I know better than to mess with the man's schedule.  He will come when he is good and ready and for his price you don't argue.

 

There is a tiny bit of tension between my team these days.  Everyone works on their own schedule.  I am not a micro manager at all.  As long as the work gets done I'm happy.  For example, it's not unusual to find my electrician working there at midnight and my contractor at 6:00 a.m.  Unfortunately, that doesn't allow for the best communication. For example,  the electrician will do something at night that the contractors weren't ready for and then it's actually causing more work...and me more money, of course.  I spoke with all of them today so hopefully things will go smoothly from here on in.  It really just makes me laugh, like most things.  Because, really, in the scope of life, a light switch in the wrong place is really not worth stressing about if you think about it.

 

Some Shit You Just Can't Ignore

So much has been done since my last post.  The whole house, save the kitchen and trim, has been painted, the upstairs hardwood floors have been sanded and re-finished, the kitchen is ready for new cabinet installation, the sunroom has been ripped off the side of the house, the backyard jungle has been torn out, and the bathroom is tiled and almost ready.

This is just the beginning....the bathroom is going to be high class.  Grey/black/white is the colour scheme and I spared no expense on the tub and shower.

This is all that's left of the second floor sunroom.  Turns out the beams are still good so I will build my second story balcony from this.

 



Neutral colours throughout.  Salvaged the old door and window casings. 

 

Love my new baseboards from Classic Hardwood Mouldings on Collonade Rd.

 

 

 

Currently meditating on how to landscape the backyard....

 

 

The ripping down of the sunroom yielded a ton of trash but good old Dieter (my German neighbor) just can't throw anything away.  He is a pack rat!  He can't bare to throw something out that might be of good use in the future.  I, on the other hand, am the complete opposite.  I throw everything out.  My philosophy is if you haven't used it in the past 6 weeks, you're never going to use it!  So I'm outside pitching things into the dumpster and he's pulling them out faster than I can get them in.  Finally I yell "Dieiter!  You're never going to use this stuff.  When the hell are you going to build whatever the hell you told me you're going to build out of this old wood?  You're busy 24/7!!".  He ponders my fit of rage for a moment and says "You know what?  You're right.".  I almost fainted.  I don't think Dieter has ever said to anyone, living or dead, the words "you're right".  This man is a know-it-all.  It drives me crazy but I listen because I know he's only trying to help.  However, every once in a while I'm forced to lose it on him because I just can't take it anymore.  So I won that round.  The garbage is in the garbage!

 

 

Dieter in the trash bin pulling things out faster than I can put them in!

 

 

Today I added a new person to my dream team.  When I bought the house it was clear the basement leaked but frankly, what do you expect?  The house is over 100 years old.  My intention was just to clean it up and leave it but when it's been coined "the murder basement" by everyone who's been in it, I suppose something must be done about it.  It does leak, there is likely mold, it's kind of creepy, and it's not even fit for storage at this point so I finally broke down and called my cement guy.  Now let me paint you a picture of my cement guy....because, surely you didn't expect me to have a normal foundation company do the work now did you?!?!?  My foundation guy is Jamaican.  Full on Jamaican.  Dreadlocks and a tuque on his head 24/7 to keep the hair all tied up in.  He speaks straight up Jamaican Patois expecting you'll understand him (I actually do because I spent quite a lot of time working on a resort in Jamaica a few years ago but I am a little rusty).  He drives a Toyota Corolla and owns very few tools but a scraper, a pick, a shovel and a broom.  This is all the man needs to get the job done.  He's 61 years old and has been doing this since he was 14.  He works 7 days a week.  Today he was supposed to meet me between 3:00-4:00 p.m. but he showed up at 5:15, of course.  Let's face it, stereotypes exist for a reason.  Anyway, he scoured my foundation with his little scraper and as he inspected every square inch he kept saying "oh no....oh no....oh no".  He finally looked at me and said in his thickest accent "I know you lady.  You're not afraid".  He's right.  I'm not.  You can only ignore shit for so long and then you have to face the music.  Deep down I didn't think for a minute I could sell that house with the foundation in it's current condition so I was prepared.  When we went outside again he scoured the layers and layers of parging that have been put on as a Band-Aid solution over the years all the while mumbling "oh no, oh no".  I don't dare interrupt his thought process I just wait patiently until we have to talk numbers.  He stands in silence staring at the wall (that means he's calculating) and then he says "5, 3".  In plain English that means $5300.  I agree on one condition.  He has to re-do my front steps too.  Deal.  He agrees to do it because he says if he doesn't it will make the rest of his work look bad. 

 

See my beautiful foundation crumbing apart....

 

I will no longer be moving into this house.  I can't find anyone to rent my current house with such an uncertain lease.  I really really didn't want to move.  It's a huge pain to move all my stuff over there only to move it back potentially 30 days later.  So I guess, as usual, all my dreams come true.  I didn't want to move so that is just what the Universe gave me.  No tenant = I'm not moving.  I will float both homes and hope that the flip house sells quickly.  As for staging it, I will simply rent furniture from Smart Choice like I did last time!  Everyone needs to pray that the housing market picks up in the fall when I am ready to list because I can't float two homes forever. 

 

Today I received a call from the appraiser who needs to come and look at the house before September 6th to see if I've completed the renovations I said I would in order for the bank to release the mortgage funds I requested for improvements.  Um ya, that should be fun.  There is no way in hell the work will be done by September 6th but it is very clear that a shit ton of money has been spent and a shit ton of renovations are underway.  I really hope I don't have to fight with them.  This is not an argument that someone wants to have with me, trust me.  Anyway, I will avoid the call until the last possible day and hope that I am close to finished.  Sept 6th marks 90 days of renovations! 

 

Those 90 days were most certainly filled with a lot of laughs, a lot of learning, new friendships, and a lot of cursing.  I know I am flat out crazy but I have loved every minute of this.  Even the guy at Home Depot said to me the other day "you scare me".  I laughed and said "I know, I scare a lot of people."

 







All Coming Together

I just walked in my sock feet on the newly varnished hardwood floor.  It felt like home.  I love that house.  I knew I loved it the minute I walked in the door for the very first time.  It has it's imperfections but that's what makes it charming.  It's old.  What do you expect?

The upstairs is fully painted, floors are finished, light fixtures installed.  Now that the floors are done the baseboards can go on next week and the bathroom fixtures installed then the upstairs will be complete.  The downstairs....well, that's another story.  Actually, it's getting there.  The kitchen has been planned but I have changed my mind 20 times in the past week.  I think I have it finalized now so I need to get the cabinets this week and book the install asap.  Here is the proposed plan:

Tons of cupboard space and a built in island for everyday eating.  There is a formal dining room but if I lived there I would use it for more living space.  That's just me.  I'm not much for formal dining.  Besides, once the second floor balcony is ready that's where I'd be eating every night!

I'm still on budget but that second floor balcony that I speak of may put me over.  The materials won't be too much but the labour will be.  But damn do I love porches and balconies.  Unfortunately, we can't use them for very many months in Canada but that's what makes them so wonderful I guess.  I never take my current front porch for granted.  It triples as my dining table, my office and my hang out spot....

Dining Table....

Office.....

Hang out spot......

 

So the porch and second story balcony are a must...even if it puts me over budget by a bit. 

 

 

I have decided I will move into the house on September 1st.  With all of my furniture and home decor in there it should show really well.  I will list it in September but only for a month.  If it does not sell I will take it off the market and list it April 1st, 2015 at the first sign of spring.  At this time, nothing is moving on the market.  There have been several price reductions in the past month and I would rather live there for the winter than reduce my price by $10,000-$30,000.  It's a big pain in the butt to move only to move back a few months later and I am having a little trouble finding someone to rent my current house due to the indeterminate length of the lease.  If I sell the flip house I need to move back home again so I have a clause that states I can give 30 days notice at anytime and my tenant will have to vacate the premise.  Not ideal for most people but I'm hoping for a young professional here short term on business perhaps. 

 

Moving is not stressful for me though.  I actually like it.  Most people loathe it.  But I thrive on change.  Also something most people loathe.  In fact, I move so often that just today I was walking down Richmond Rd and one of the guys who moved me last time passed me on the road, recognized me and stopped to chat.  I always request the same moving guys from Adam's Moving - JD, Mitch, Leo and/or Leo's son.  These guys crack me up.  Actually, I think I crack them up.  I am unforgettable because I have a pole in my house.  When you move a woman with a pole you don't forget!