Home Remodel: Do, Don'ts, Advice

[dan_pdx]

looking at the interiors & other exterior elevations, i'd find another option

you're probably thinking, "i'm happy to do a project here or there to get in the right neighborhood"

but this thing does not have "good bones" -- the remodel isn't just cosmetic
it's an aggregation of bad DIY decisions that are a ton of work to undo
each room
each exterior elevation
all poor decisions

embrace the depth of the remodel suck or find another option that's less ralph wiggum "I did it myself"

Agree, wrote something similar but didn't want to be the first one to rain on the parade.

Thanks guys! That's not raining on the parade, that's "JFC, let's save this guy from himself". Sometimes the best feedback is negative feedback.

[dunfree]

The kicker in that listing is the pictures they don’t include.


and craftsman

[old goat]

What's going on inside that fake fireplace? Some kind of heater or purely decorative.
Looks like the front entry structure was an add on. I'd rip it off and restore the original entrance or rip off the right side of the entrance structure and make it symmetrical. Assuming there's no reason you can't remove the "fireplace".
But I would live in the house before I touched it. Always. It may be easier to do renovations before you move in but you might well make changes you will regret.

[dan_pdx]

Old photo of the house from Bellingham's permitting / assessor department. Wish this was from the front, but yeah, that funky entrance is original.

[dunfree]

It’s not an uncommon form; I’ve never seen anything but a whole redo that improves it

[fatnslow]

IDK, that vinyl siding makes a quick exterior pressure wash real easy and you'll never have to paint again.

[krp8128]

Is shiny galvanized the new white picket?

[tuco]

IDK, that vinyl siding makes a quick exterior pressure wash real easy and you'll never have to paint again.

Shit gets brittle after 15-20 yrs, at least in Utardia

[sirbumpsalot]

$100K more and no need to remodel (if it doesn't get in a bidding war):

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/6...23600907_zpid/

If you don't mind the choo choo train and can do work yourself on the extra floor:

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1...23602749_zpid/

[old goat]

Old photo of the house from Bellingham's permitting / assessor department. Wish this was from the front, but yeah, that funky entrance is original.

The asymmetrical front extension and roofline makes a lot more sense with the chimney. When they took off the chimney did they put some kind of heater in the hole--doesn't look like it.
In this market I wouldn't walk away from that house because of the funky entrance alone.
Eventually you'll get used to it or sell it. I wouldn't spend a lot of money just to make it look better. Or if you decide you want more space in the front room you could turn the front extension into a full height wing and solve the cosmetic issue at the same time.

[Ted Striker]

Sought after Craftsman style home with a SHOP in an unbeatable Columbia neighborhood location!

Except that house isn't in the Columbia neighborhood, it's in the Cornwall Park 'hood. Fucking agents

[altasnob]

My friend has similar stoop (without funky roofline) and wants to jackhammer it out and do something like this.

[house]

Can the front of this house be fixed? How would you do it?

Decent location, has potential inside, but the front of the house is a non-starter. How would you fix this ugly duckling?

https://www.redfin.com/WA/Bellingham.../home/15818684

Attachment 382201

Here’s a spitball idea. Replace stoop with full house-width covered porch. Use existing gable (not a gable? Pointy top whatever) to establish top of roof hips to extend over porch. Not a trivial job, but you could probably live in the house comfortably while that is done.

The heinous scalene triangle can stay, meaning less surgery on the existing house structure, but it would be invisible above the porch soffit.




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[Vt-Freeheel]

The kitchen in that house is the lowest end 80's style, love the stove under the window to add a grease film to the glass. Lack of bath photos leads me to believe they are due for replacement as well.

[spanky]

The low ceilings in the upper level and basement make me claustrophobic. But maybe it’s because I’m 6’3”.

[spanky]

Here’s a spitball idea. Replace stoop with full house-width covered porch. Use existing gable (not a gable? Pointy top whatever) to establish top of roof hips to extend over porch. Not a trivial job, but you could probably live in the house comfortably while that is done.

The heinous scalene triangle can stay, meaning less surgery on the existing house structure, but it would be invisible above the porch soffit.




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Looks better already.

[fastfred]

The kitchen in that house is the lowest end 80's style, love the stove under the window to add a grease film to the glass. Lack of bath photos leads me to believe they are due for replacement as well.

what he said bathroom scary but what do you want for 575k
that'd be a 120k house in iowa wouldn't it?
I mean there is something about those cabinets that screams retro cool the insides of them have to be pretty gross but well built huh
the fence lets not go there white trash junk yard style

[old goat]

Lot of house shaming going on in this thread.

[riser4]

Get a massive PA and projector and run a drive in movie operation


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And show only 70s hairy bush porn.

[tgapp]

Lot of house shaming going on in this thread.

+1000

ya, sorry I'm a millennial and can't afford a fucking nice place. we're DINKs with well paying professional jobs, and, well, I guess it sucks to suck. sorry I was born 10-20 years after all you gen-Xers

we own a brick house built in 1948 on the busiest street in SLC. our concrete steps are crumbling and we have a million things wrong with it. our kitchen is outdated tile and Formica countertops. i'd be shocked if this place fetched $100k in Kansas City, but it just got appraised at 500k.

oh, and the best part? we just bought a place with our parents so that we could afford to live closer to the mountains, so now we're basically going to live in their basement. place #1 should make a decent rental, which is awesome. and we are making the basement into a sweet pad (it's not as bad as it sounds, lots of natural light), so onwards and upwards.

--

and honestly, as absurd as all of this is - we are exceptionally lucky and privileged for our generation. many of our friends don't (and likely won't ever) be able to afford a place, certainly not in a market like SLC.

so yeah. pretty stoked on what we have, even if it ain't much. i try to avoid this thread because i honestly believe that the secret to happiness is to want what you have, and what i've got is a fuckton of awesome pets, access to great skiing, an awesome wife, and housing/food security. can't ask for much more, except for maybe some nicer concrete.

be stoked with what you got

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[snowaddict91]

+1000

ya, sorry I'm a millennial and can't afford a fucking nice place. we're DINKs with well paying professional jobs, and, well, I guess it sucks to suck. sorry I was born 10-20 years after all you gen-Xers

we own a brick house built in 1948 on the busiest street in SLC. our concrete steps are crumbling and we have a million things wrong with it. our kitchen is outdated tile and Formica countertops. i'd be shocked if this place fetched $100k in Kansas City, but it just got appraised at 500k.

oh, and the best part? we just bought a place with our parents so that we could afford to live closer to the mountains, so now we're basically going to live in their basement. place #1 should make a decent rental, which is awesome. and we are making the basement into a sweet pad (it's not as bad as it sounds, lots of natural light), so onwards and upwards.

--

and honestly, as absurd as all of this is - we are exceptionally lucky and privileged for our generation. many of our friends don't (and likely won't ever) be able to afford a place, certainly not in a market like SLC.

so yeah. pretty stoked on what we have, even if it ain't much. i try to avoid this thread because i honestly believe that the secret to happiness is to want what you have, and what i've got is a fuckton of awesome pets, access to great skiing, an awesome wife, and housing/food security. can't ask for much more, except for maybe some nicer concrete.

be stoked with what you got

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FKNA solid perspective. We are also DINKs with two good jobs and I couldn't afford to move back to SLC, where my job is based, if I wanted to. It's nuts. But yeah, life is pretty good in the grand scheme of things.

[tgapp]

oh shit this is the home remodel thread, I thought it was real estate crash thread (aka mags brag about their z estimate thread)

ya this thread is super helpful, especially when killer mags like SFB loan me their tiling equipment and share their knowledge with me and even send me home with garden tomatoes.

but still, want what you got. no shame in taking pride with what is a big deal to you.

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[fastfred]

house shaming is the best
hence why no photos of mine it ain't nothing special my counter tops and backsplash are embarrassing
I've got employees who live in rvs in the middle of shit town dust bowl usa and they know how to shame a house question peoples taste and design choices and crap all over the smallest thing like a drawer pull or the choice of counter top material all in a five million dollar home

[old_newguy]

Does anyone have a recommendation on a home owner grade laser level?

I just need something simple for leveling floors, decks, pavers, etc. I can measure down to to figure grade, I’m not in production mode where it makes sense to have those features be built in.

[Kailua_Boys]

The house on the previous page looks a little weird but really isn't that big of a deal.