Would You Tackle a Renovation Again?
I’m contemplating a complete restoration/renovation of a 1900s era townhouse in Bay Ridge. I love the house, but it needs a ton of work. I can afford it (I think) and I can afford to continue to rent while it is done. But is this likely to ruin my life and my peace of mind…
I’m contemplating a complete restoration/renovation of a 1900s era townhouse in Bay Ridge.
I love the house, but it needs a ton of work.
I can afford it (I think) and I can afford to continue to rent while it is done.
But is this likely to ruin my life and my peace of mind completely?
Though quite an old lady, I am a total newbie at homeowning!
TIA!
dancinggirl:
How about —
No one will notice that
It’s an old house, you have to expect that
We’ll take care of that at the end
You can trust my subs, I’ve worked with them before
My guys are putting in the doorknobs/switches/knobs/etc. this afternoon, what kind did you get?
That wasn’t in the plans
The guys worked hard this week, can you advance a little of the next payment?
One plus to doing a gut renovation, EVERYTHING will be as you want it. We also bought a house in Bay Ridge and we did not do a gut reno (couldn’t afford it) and really didn’t need it. However we knew we would need to do the baths and kitchen as they were the original.
Those rooms are to our tastes and esthetically, they our favorite rooms in the house.
Yes, NEW references, not a job they did 5 years ago.
Okay, I was trying to be gentle, but “guywithahouse” TOTALLY speaks the truth.
I kept a journal throughout the renovation, for my sanity. You might want to read it before you decide.
For your amusement, my list of favorite contractor comments:
I do this all the time, trust me….. (with dramatic eye contact for emphasis)
It won’t take long…..
It won’t be messy…..
I forgot to mention….
You’re making a big deal out nothing.
I can fix it.
I don’t know how that happened.
No one else has ever complained before.
I know what I am doing.
I am the best…
The last guy wasn’t any good.
I am going to have to do it over.
This has never ever happened to me before. (my favorite)
And…
I usually get (paid) more than this
I can’t commit until I see it first
Yes, I always protect the area I’m working
Yes, I always clean up afterwards
You don’t appreciate my services?!
This is gonna cost you
This is what you requested
That’s as good as it gets
It’ll look better in the morning after you’ve slept on it
Don’t worry it wipes off..
Lots of good advice above. Here’s mine (semi gut, semi preservation of 4-story oversize 140 year old frame).
1. Don’t work close to the bone — undertake only if you have reserves to cover not hiring the lowest bidder, surprises up to double the estimate, and the cost of living elsewhere for long durations.
2. Hire good people to run the show — strong architect and good GC who has done similar scale work before. Make sure you have good references for both.
3. Make sure you have time or you farm out your own tinme to people you trust — you want to be on site a lot for oversight and secisionmaking. You won’t believe how many decisions there are to make. You also need to shop for and decide on so many finishings. A good designer can tee up tehse fro you so hire one if you don’t have time or confidence in your taste to spend tons of hours in showrooms looking at tiles, fixtures, cabinets, doorknobs, etc.
4. Don’t hire or buy from anyone if you have the slightest inkling they are not being straight with you. You have to live by the rule that wherever there is BS, there will be more, and you have to cut those losses and start over whenever your BS detector starts to ping at the most sensitive setting. I mean this VERY seriously and wish we’d lived by it at the time.
The big stressers are time, money, dislocation and bullshit. If you have comfort room on all of those, you should be ok. If not, don’t say I didn’t warn you. But you have to think in advance that you are inviting your own little tsunami into your life and make sure you are prepared.
I don’t know how many times I’ve written this; not enough, perhaps. It’s the capital “T” truth of renovating an old house.
Whatever you think, plan, project or get quoted:
IT WILL COST TWICE AS MUCH.
IT WILL TAKE TWO AND A HALF TIMES LONGER.
Here’s the beauty of completely accepting the above statements. The greatest likelihood is that the above will hold true. If it doesn’t you will have the rare distinction of coming in under budget or ahead of schedule.
The alternative to accepting the above is life in hell. Sleepless nights. Worry. Stress. Fear. The kind of stuff that literally takes years off your life. The kind of stuff that you would pay anything, ANYTHING, to rid yourself of.
Yes a good architect or project manager can mitigate some of those issues, but nobody knows what’s inside those walls until you start the demo. (The most oft used phrase by a contractor during a reno: “Huh, never saw that before.”)
I’m not trying to talk you out of renovating–the enjoyment you get out of it afterwards will far outweigh the memory of the “labor” pains.
Modify your budget to fit the above formula and save your soul.
Oh and one last thing….don’t sweat the minor flaws and imperfections–nothing ever works out perfectly and nobody ever notices anyway.
Best of luck.
My husband and I renovated a four story brownstone in 2002 and it took us close to a year and a half.
Now that it is over, I can say that I am enjoying the house and I am mostly happy I did it.
But right after it was finished, I remember thinking if someone told me I only had a year or so to live, I would have deeply regretted spending the time renovating. We did three bathrooms, 2 kitchens, and a ton of other stuff. Since we wanted to change the C of O, everything had to pass inspection from the city. The project really took a few years off my life for sure.
Even with an architect and contractor it was very stressful and time consuming, as well as a full time job. I was there every day checking the work. If you aren’t around to answer questions, contractors will make decisions for you that you might not be happy with.
And, things come up that can’t be anticipated and it always does cost more than planned.
If you aren’t too particular and have lots of money, energy, and can afford the GC and architect (and an expeditor perhaps)and you really want to own a home then perhaps it is worth it. But don’t forget that taking care of the property when the renovation is over will be another issue. And that a house is never really done, you need to maintain it.
In short, if you like the idea of spending your time focusing on a house now and in the future, and you aren’t concerned that it will take time away from other things you enjoy, then go for it. But it is an ongoing commitment, not just a project.
I’m a renovation addict. I’ve DIY’ed 4 huge renovations over the past 17 years. Because I do it myself while I live in the homes, each house took many years. I’m done (for now), burnt out. But to hire someone else while not living there? Oh honey, piece o’ cake!
It’s a lot of fun if you have a lot of spare money (more than you think) and spare time (more than you think). My wife confessed she would enjoy doing it again (we already did it once)