Fixer uppers....who's done it?

Ok, who's ever bought a fixer upper?


I'm looking at one this week to buy. I'm a bit nervous - I'm by myself up here, and the job I'm in right now only lasts for another 2 years. But.... this is a great place to get my business open, and I'd like to grow some semi-permanent roots and do something for ME, instead of ex-husband, or something of the like.


Here's my pros:


- I've got a really well paying job right now. Not terribly concerned about extra $ spent on repairs. Cash flow will be good for the next couple of years.


- I've done quite a bit of home repairs already. Tiling, drywall, hardwood laying and refinishing, extensive electrical, overall carpentry work, and so on. I seriously have more tools than my ex, who's a carpenter. I'm pretty savvy around the house, is what I'm saying, I can research and teach myself very well.


- I dig this shit. Nothing makes me more happy than creating something from nothing. And I'm stubborn and persistent.


- The house I will most likely buy has an amazing amount of land and house space. Once it's fixed, look out. It will probably be one of the highest valued houses in the neighborhood. Right now it's about 35-40% less than the avg house.


Now for the cons:


- There's always shit you don't plan for. ALWAYS.


- I know the roof sucks. That's a big one.


- I'm by myself. doing repairs take 80 times as long sometimes when you work by yourself.


- My job won't last forever. Ideally, by the time my job is over in two years, I'll have most, if not all the repairs done, and I can open my biz. But nothing ever goes quite according to plan.


- I'm not superwoman. Though I like to think that way sometimes, get real, GTWT.


- My sweet, great paying job is for the government. Although I am obnoxiously cautious with MJ, there's always that small chance. I don't smoke but maybe once a month, if that, over a long weekend, so that it's out of my system in a few days. But if I slipped up just once, I'd be toast, and I wouldn't be able to work in my field for years, at any facility in the country.


So, tell me your thoughts, guys and gals. I know there's a few repair folks out there, and I'm sure along the way there's been some fixer upper adventures.


GTWT


:XXhippylove:

 

If smoking is going to get you sacked, dont do it. Weed stays in your system for about a month, no matter how little you smoke.


As for the house. Do it. If it looks like you can make some good money on it just go for it.

 

Not looking to make money. I'll probably stay here for at least 5-10 years. In this market, it's not so good to look at a house as an investment. It will be my home.


My thing too, is I'm very particular about my home. No matter the condition, I will change things around to suit me. So it kills two birds with one stone with a fixer upper.


I read on here, I think it was RR that posted, that if you only smoke very infrequently, it doesn't have a chance to build up in your system. I know I've passed a drug test after 2 weeks gone by before.....Has anyone seen less than this?


GTWT


:XXhippylove:

 

The more you smoke the longer it will take to clear. Thing is though is that the time it takes to clear varys a lot.

 

Go for it. You have a lot of the skills already and the ones you dont, you can learn. Natch, make sure the BIG stuff ...no termite damage, no foundation problems and so on are OK.


What a great adventure!


Dix


Dix

 

'One month till clean' is not set in stone.


A few yrs. ago, I was recruited for a mortician position at a major med centre. I was on the fast trac, so I couldn't delay it. I had 2 wks. clean and passed. I'm certainly less than 10% body fat and active, but I was smoking as heavy as ever.


Go for the house. You know how fun it is!


These days, when I meet someone, my bff will say "just don't start remodeling their house right away"!

 

Fix the roof first just pay someone it will be done in a day or 2. that way any improvements you do on the inside won't get screwed up .Just a throught -Bud

 

Tackling a roof is one of the very few things I would not try myself. IDK if I'd even do it if I had a man up here to help. It's a cottage style house, so there's lots of folds and sides to the roof. Fuck that. There's no current problem with the roof, but it's 30 years old. So I'd be gambling by waiting. Good call on starting roof first though...


How much does a roof cost to replace? ten grand? five grand? somewhere in-between? House isn't huge, but it aint small either....


GTWT


:XXhippylove:

 

Yup, I'd get the roof in order first. Last thing you need to find out there's a problem when there is 2 feet of snow on it.


I have a couple I'm friends with that have been "flipping" houses. They just sold one for $30k profit (although they did 80% of the work themselfs on an entire gut and rebuild). That's still a nice chunk with the way the housing market is.

 

THC is stored in body fat, right? I'm pretty thin, so I would take a stab and say since I smoke only very occasionally, and my body fat's not very high, the THC wouldn't stay in my system very long....


RG - that's not too bad. 30k on top of what they spent on materials/labor? around the neighborhood?


GTWT


:XXhippylove:

 

Dont quote me on this, but i think its the body fat thing that doesnt make pissing clean is set at 4 weeks. Sometimes you'll piss clean in a week the next time a month. Saying that though, being skinny should help

 

Yeah, was $30k profit after all costs. But they sunk a TON of time on the house. The husband did probably 6 months of 20 hour days (his normal day job + working on the house) and it just drained him, but that $30k profit sitting in the bank made it nice.

 

I saw your pic. on FB. You do look like Laura Croft (sic.). I'm sure THC isn't hangin' around your body for long. If you're not smoking everyday, I'd almost 1 wk. and you'd be good. To be safe, invest in some Quickfix.


Bud's right re: the roof first. Thirty yrs. is pushing it. Don't skimp on materials (architectuals are best) or contractor. There's some real fucktards out there, passing themselves off as roofers.


Then, what I would do is, rip out the walls from top to bottom. Now it's easier to run new wire (get a 220 panel installed), plumb, insulate, new windows, etc.


If you're doing the bulk of the work, it's still an investment.


If I can ever plant roots, I'm getting my buddy to do a ceiling like he did at his place

 

Thats making me feel dizzy.

 

Yeah, skuzzi. It's all in THC being fat soluable. That and metabolism.


You take someone who's a fat MoFo (sorry ppl), doesn't do shit but sit on their ass and feed their face, and I could see atleast 4 wks.


Ppl like myself, you (from what I've seen, def. GTWT, and anybody else either thin or in decent shape... noway 4 wks. I can't even think of a med condition that would cause a body to retain a fat soluable. That's the whole fucking point. The less fat on your ass, the less fat soluables to be retained.


Simple.

 

Roofs cost around 5000-15000 pending on square footage, type of material used, quality of labor used etc etc. I would 100% tell you not to do your own roof it's hard hard work and in the summer you are considered a "sun devil". Having a dumpster dropped then ripping the shingles off without messing up the "decking" or sheathing wood below. Hoofing bundles of shingles up a ladder, kneeling down for days on end. Then if it leaks it's your problem, but if it's a roofing company they have insurance and your home owner's is more likely to help out with damages if you paid to have it done professionally. I would use a site like angie's list or if you know where a new up scale "living community" is being built drive by on a week day and you'll see a couple work trucks and have an idea who is local doing well funded contractors roofs. Up scale contractors can use anyone they want so who ever they use is tried and true because on multimillion dollar home you never want a call in the middle of the night by a pissed off litigation attorney about his roof and the pending lawsuit. LOL


Doing a whole house is a ton of work it takes professional crews months and sometimes years to finish a full remodel. Do you plan on doing the remodel while you live there or before you move in?


All I'm saying is it's a lot of work. It kills your social life and the bank account. But without a social life who needs money?


Steelcity

 

I'm a Big guy, and even with pretty regular smoking I passed at just shy of 3 weeks. I also drink upwards of 6 liters of water a day most of the time, so I'm not sure If that would have any effect on it.


If my job ever came in and drug tested my location, every single employee would be fired. Our drivers always bring one for the road daily haha

 

Fluids are a factor. The more you piss, the more the body excretes :thumbs-up:

 

I have no social life whatsoever right now. I've only been here a couple of months, and working 50-60 hrs a week kinda cuts into your typical off time. I've made very few friends, and most of them are busy most of the time too. Work will slow down in the fall/winter, and I'll have nothing to do anyway. Skiing sucks here, but I'll get out occasionally.


IDK if it's a full remodel. I haven't looked at it yet. The kitchen needs it, for sure, but it's cosmetic, mostly. Hardwood through the whole house, and I've refinished them before, zip zap. I will find out this week when I look at it. I'm going to get an inspector out there as soon as I'm done, assuming I don't see anything crazy that I wouldn't/couldn't accept or fix.

Thanks! I'm no Lara Croft, but I think I'm hangin' in there for a 32 yr old chick. Makes me want to work out more though, if the whole 'fat' thing is true. Might look up more info on that tonight. I'm a science geek - I'd like to know the 'skinny' on the fat cells. hyuck hyuck.


GTWT


:XXhippylove:

 

Skiing sucks?! Out your damn mind. PLENTY of places within a few hours!