Day 1 & 2 of Demo/Framing/Build

On to FRAMING!

Six framing guys came at 6:00 am on Monday morning (first days of working on the house NOT on a weekend!)  We had to scramble to get a few things set up for them as it worked out that they were going to come sooner than we thought they could.  The dumpster, for one, needed to be replaced, since A LOT of demo was about to happen.  Four exterior walls, to be exact, were to come down!  Pretty much the whole back half of the house.  We needed to install a Don's John, since up until now, we had brought Mom & Dad's RV for the occasion.  We needed beaucoup lumber, which ended up getting delivered on Saturday, thank goodness.  Dad was the only one that could be on site during the day this week.  Alas alack, Gabe must work far far away, and I must stay by his side....especially since today is our two year anniversary!!!  :D  We might be able to make a mid-week curiosity run tomorrow, but for now, we must stay put....I must say, this is very hard for me!!  It's a long drive and we have to be wise.  But enough chitter chatter and on with the pictures!!!

Remember this (from Day 30)??

Now this:

Remember this (from before we bought the house, in December 2011)?:

Now this:

Notice the I-beam has already been hung!

Remember this (also from before we officially bought the house)?:

Now this:

Remember this?

Now this:

We are basically removing the whole back half of the house and keeping the main (1890's built) part of the home.  The subsequent additions to the home (off the back of the house) are the ones that are going.

So that was Day 1.

Here is what we have of Day 2 as of noon today:

That in front is my window over the kitchen sink!

Master bedroom floor joists are going in

And here's what is happening around 3:00...

Master bedroom & bath are getting framed in

Metal roofing is getting removed here

East wall

New dining room/kitchen space in the background!

Utility closet along the back left corner

Things surely are moving fast!!!

More pics to come.....

Before Pictures

Common Room facing DR doorway

Once upon a time picture wall

Downstairs Bathroom

Kitchen sink

Stove facing DR area

Kitchen--note the snakeskin on the right!

Two small Bedrooms upstairs

The Stairwell

Looking Northeast

Facing Northwest

Back of the house 

 Auxiliary Springhouse!!!

First property to flip!

Our first reno adventure began when my husband and I visited my mom & dad over Thanksgiving 2011.  Dad had seen a couple cute properties in a nearby historical town for a super low price.  The next day we went out with his realtor to take a look at them.  With excitement and anticipation rising, we made our way out to mom & dad's, which is about 45 minutes away.  We were met with disappointing news: the sites we looked at were already contracted to be sold.  The realtor had one other place to show us, and I half-heartedly said, "ok, but is it even worth it?"  With one look at the new MLS listing, I was not impressed at all, to say the least.  It is in a historical town close by, near the base of a major mountain range, and very decrepit, featuring spongy floors in the high traffic areas, holes in the bathroom walls, a scary stairway, peeling paint, and snake skins draping down from out of the dark kitchen abyss.  Gross!!!  BUT, the more we carefully considered it, at it's $90,000 price tag, potential to split the lot, and good structural integrity, the more hopeful we got.

It took the back burner for the next few weeks as Dad gathered the financing paperwork to offer cash to get a lower price.  Exciting news came from my dad in mid-December when he called to announce an agreement had been reached with the seller at $55K!!  We were thrilled.  The property has been assessed at the end of 2011 at $130K, so when we are done with renovations, we hope to pocket a pretty penny.  My parents have agreed to finance the deal including renovations and my husband and I have agreed to put time in with reconstruction and interior design to rent or sell in a year or so.  My dad is an architect by trade, so the plans have come easily and quickly.  We have put our heads together so far on what additions should be made as well as discussing timeline.  Mom & Dad go to settlement on Wednesday.

We visited the property with my whole family on Christmas Eve together and took a bunch of pictures ("before" pics!!!) for all of you who would like a good idea of what we are dealing with. Feel free to add any encouragement and/or advice!!!