DIYbanter - View Single Post - (Homebuying) How Much Renovations Too Much?

wrote:
I didn't know how to title this thread, because there's really much
more wrong with the 1832 property than you could fit in a thread title.
But we still want the house.

I don't know the exact square footage, but there are ten (small) rooms,
so many different kinds of services (oil tanks, two of them, two water
heaters...on one water bill, various electrical "patchworks"). I want
to use the first floor, which is definitely the nicer one, as a primary
residence and continue to rent out the upper to the decent tenants now
there.

I know this is asking a lot, but could anyone give me even a ballpark
estimate for the following:

1) Cutting through clapboard and ancient planks to install a second,
upper stairway (so that the home may qualify for HUD tenant subsidy)?

2) Totally rewiring the home for two services (so that in mid-January,
tenants don't plug in space heaters, keep overloading the breakers, and
burn the house down)?

3) Tearing down ancient gypsumboard so that the high-ceilinged first
floor could be insulated?

4) Replacing 19th/early 20th century NON-WEIGHTED double hung sashes
with the cheapest alternative (about fifteen standard-size, @ 3' x 4'
(?) windows)?

5) Replacing the @ 3' chimney.

A real estate/home inspector knowledgeable of the home said he did an
"APOD" on the home, a former bed-and-breakfast, and that the cash flow
was so negative it almost went into the imaginary number system. But I
don't want to use the place as a bed-and-breakfast, and if I have a
positive cash flow of even $1 a year, that's fine, because I plan to
use the place as a primary residence.

Oh well, I suppose you'll make fun. I just need some non-mockery.

As others have said, there are way too many unknowns for anyone on
usenet to give you a ballpark estimate. For the work that you have
mentioned so far, be prepared for costs that have at least 4 zeros.
And knowing that the house was built in 1832, if you *really* want to
fix it up right, get yourself comfortable with numbers that have 5
zeros. Once you get into a renovation/restoration project, there will
be a zillion things you find along the way that will need to be
remediated that you didn't originally plan for. Once you open the
walls and/or ceiling, you'll find framing that is bad, joists that have
been sawn/drilled completely through by plumbers and electricians that
need to be replaced, new plumbing will need to be done, etc. Then you
will start noticing that floors are not level, you'll investigate
further and find the foundation has settled and will need to be jacked
up, etc, etc. You mentioned the tenants plugging in space heaters,
which probably means the heating system is inadequate and/or the there
are too many cracks where cold air blows in from outside, so all those
issues will need to be taken care of (probably a lot more than just
getting new windows installed). I'm not trying to scare you, just
prepare you for the realities of owning a house that old.

If you are looking for a HUD subsidy, then unless you are in Boston or
some area with high real estate values, these costs and amount of
effort are probably way beyond what you want to put into the house to
really make it right.

Ken