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mALX
post Dec 11 2015, 05:57 AM
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Although some of you already knew about it; I didn't want to talk about this on here until it was a done deal, and really glad I didn't because of all the delays that have occurred in this - but it has finally happened, so ... going to share it with you all.

Since October 16th I've been tied up in buying a house. This was one of those investment houses that are foreclosures or short sales that you can get for 1/4 their market value; do a few repairs and upgrades, and a year or two down the road sell for full market value in a better selling market.

(so yes, it does need repairs).

I didn't buy it for me, but for my son. He will be getting out of college by the time this house is ready to turn over, and so this is his Birthday/Xmas/and Graduation presents combined, lol. When he decides to sell it, he will make a sizable profit on it; and meanwhile he has learned a few things about how investments in real estate work. I hope the lesson will serve him in his life as well as it served me in mine.

Anyway, all kinds of delays popped up in the last couple months, but we finally closed on the house two weeks ago; the seller paid off their portion of the property taxes 2 days ago, and the Registrar of Deeds has just recorded it - so I can finally tell you all about it!

Here are some pictures of it. you can see the deck railings need repairs by these pictures, lol.:



http://i.imgur.com/HIovS5R.jpg



http://i.imgur.com/JtOZ70m.jpg



http://i.imgur.com/dJ2USJa.jpg



** And Mirocu, you can probably see by the first picture why I need a driveway, the idiot person who built the drive angled it to drain watershed directly into the foundation of the house instead of giving it a tilt (or at least a curb) and draining the watershed off the sides and away from the house's foundation. What were they thinking?

The retaining wall and redesign of that driveway will probably be the biggest expense of any other repair; everything else it needs is really minor and really low cost. A roof, decking repairs, some exterior plumbing repairs; some paint, etc. Nothing else major.

So, WOO HOO !!!!






This post has been edited by mALX: Dec 11 2015, 05:43 PM


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mirocu
post Dec 11 2015, 08:40 AM
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This is just so awesome, mALX!! biggrin.gif biggrin.gif Flipping heck, I´ve never gotten a friggin house from my parents!!! laugh.gif I really like the insides too, so cozy! Btw, is that a fireplace to the left in the second pic?


Yeah, kinda corny way to design the driveway. You never ever want water running towards the house like that. Geez... What´s the address? I´ll send you my cavator tongue.gif



Congrats on the deal! happy.gif cake.gif


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Acadian
post Dec 11 2015, 02:48 PM
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Congrats, mALX, I know it has been a long and sometimes tortuous process but I'm sure it will be well worth it! goodjob.gif


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mALX
post Dec 11 2015, 03:15 PM
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QUOTE(mirocu @ Dec 11 2015, 02:40 AM) *

This is just so awesome, mALX!! biggrin.gif biggrin.gif Flipping heck, I´ve never gotten a friggin house from my parents!!! laugh.gif I really like the insides too, so cozy! Btw, is that a fireplace to the left in the second pic?


Yeah, kinda corny way to design the driveway. You never ever want water running towards the house like that. Geez... What´s the address? I´ll send you my cavator tongue.gif



Congrats on the deal! happy.gif cake.gif



Thank you!

Yes, that is a very large fireplace - I like that you can sit on the bench-type hearth to warm near the fire! I'm actually looking to get a woodstove inserted in that flue to use the heat from the fire more efficiently - and heat the house without using electricity, etc.

But the chimney has to be inspected first; and several trees are too close to the roof, have to have some tree-climbing guy come lop off the branches that are too near the roof.

On the driveway - Yes! Who does that? Especially when the house is on a hill, that water is eroding the soil! Grrrrr. Not just that, but the watershed from the road will freeze up in the winter, causing my son to come skidding downhill on a sheet of ice and not be able to stop - and there are no railroad ties to keep him from going over the edge either, they made the perfect driveway to crash the owner!

So yeah, that needs fixed most def. I'm going to have a retaining wall built and completely redo that driveway. It will still be a semi-circle; but more level with the road and tilted slightly back toward the road instead of toward the house - and with drainage running all water off into culverts to each side of the property, well away from the house.

But until I can do that, I'm getting a bag of "QuickCrete" and making hand-made curbs to keep the water from shedding down that drive. I had to do that at my old house too; rural towns don't have curbs on the roads, the homeowners have to make their own if they want them. And living on hills without curbs usually means someone is getting water in their basement. (my son won't have that problem, but the soil erosion is most def an issue).





QUOTE(Acadian @ Dec 11 2015, 08:48 AM) *

Congrats, mALX, I know it has been a long and sometimes tortuous process but I'm sure it will be well worth it! goodjob.gif



Thank you! Yeah, it sure was - and you had to live through every delay with me, too; bless your heart! laugh.gif Thank you, Acadian.



This post has been edited by mALX: Dec 11 2015, 03:06 PM


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ghastley
post Dec 11 2015, 03:38 PM
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QUOTE(mALX @ Dec 11 2015, 09:15 AM) *

... several trees are too close to the roof, have to have some tree-climbing guy come lop off the branches that are too near the roof.

If you have branches too close to the roof, I'd suggest taking out the whole tree. That way high winds can't put the rest of the tree through the house. Anything that can go wrong will, and so trees shouldn't be closer to a house than their own height.



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mALX
post Dec 11 2015, 04:13 PM
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QUOTE(ghastley @ Dec 11 2015, 09:38 AM) *

QUOTE(mALX @ Dec 11 2015, 09:15 AM) *

... several trees are too close to the roof, have to have some tree-climbing guy come lop off the branches that are too near the roof.

If you have branches too close to the roof, I'd suggest taking out the whole tree. That way high winds can't put the rest of the tree through the house. Anything that can go wrong will, and so trees shouldn't be closer to a house than their own height.



Well, the branches near the roof might damage the shingles in a storm if they fall; and/or since these trees are closer than 25 feet of the chimney (and they are WAY taller than the chimney) they can cause downdrafting down the chimney flue. That would make it unsafe to use the fireplace if the wind picked up while you were burning.

I think the codes for chimneys call for them to be 5' higher than anything within 25 feet of the chimney, and these trees are probably 100' tall; so no way to make the chimney higher than they are, lol. So I have thought about removing a couple of them.

There is one tree I most def want rid of; it is in the driveway and leans toward the house. Sitting up on the road that way, it will catch any wind no matter the direction; and the way it leans toward the house is ominous, lol.

But how do you safely remove a 100' tree that is 25 foot from your house?







This post has been edited by mALX: Dec 11 2015, 04:16 PM


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Grits
post Dec 11 2015, 05:13 PM
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Congratulations, mALX! I love that raised hearth. Good luck with the renovations!


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ghastley
post Dec 11 2015, 05:26 PM
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QUOTE(mALX @ Dec 11 2015, 10:13 AM) *

But how do you safely remove a 100' tree that is 25 foot from your house?

They'll usually rope it from other (large) trees, so it can only fall the right way. (That's away from the house, if they need to be told biggrin.gif ). And most of the time, if they have enough access, they'll slice the top off a few times, so by the time the lower part is felled, there's less than 25 feet left of it.



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mirocu
post Dec 11 2015, 05:44 PM
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Yeah, I´d say definitely take those trees down if they are too close and on your grounds. That´s exactly what Dad and I are doing now. The last oak we took down also leaned in the completely wrong direction, but we tied the line from the tractor and while I worked on the tree with my chainsaw, Dad continously applied power on the line, forcing the tree in the direction we wanted.

We can come do it for you if you just pay for the plane ticket. And transport of the tractor. And cookies for the coffee... biggrin.gif


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mALX
post Dec 11 2015, 05:52 PM
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QUOTE(Grits @ Dec 11 2015, 11:13 AM) *

Congratulations, mALX! I love that raised hearth. Good luck with the renovations!


Thank you, Grits! I love that hearth too, really hope the chimney can pass inspection and get one of those wood stove inserts in there that show the fire inside but burn the wood more efficiently than a regular fireplace. The house is really well insulated, a good wood stove could keep it warm in the winter easily.

And I've never seen so much closet space in one house before, it is a closet lover's dream come true!


QUOTE(ghastley @ Dec 11 2015, 11:26 AM) *

QUOTE(mALX @ Dec 11 2015, 10:13 AM) *

But how do you safely remove a 100' tree that is 25 foot from your house?

They'll usually rope it from other (large) trees, so it can only fall the right way. (That's away from the house, if they need to be told biggrin.gif ). And most of the time, if they have enough access, they'll slice the top off a few times, so by the time the lower part is felled, there's less than 25 feet left of it.



Wow, that does sound efficient and quick. I wonder if they could use those long sections of tree for the retaining wall and save me the cost of those materials? Drive steel rods down through them to hold them in place ... Hmmm !!!!!





This post has been edited by mALX: Dec 11 2015, 05:53 PM


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mALX
post Dec 11 2015, 06:12 PM
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QUOTE(mirocu @ Dec 11 2015, 11:44 AM) *

Yeah, I´d say definitely take those trees down if they are too close and on your grounds. That´s exactly what Dad and I are doing now. The last oak we took down also leaned in the completely wrong direction, but we tied the line from the tractor and while I worked on the tree with my chainsaw, Dad continously applied power on the line, forcing the tree in the direction we wanted.

We can come do it for you if you just pay for the plane ticket. And transport of the tractor. And cookies for the coffee... biggrin.gif



I do wish you and your Dad lived nearby, that is for sure! That one tree at the driveway - I'll need to make sure it doesn't fall in any direction, not on my house or the neighbor's properties either - or even the city's property. It is right in a pivotal spot where it can do property damage to the street or a couple neighbors (or my son's house) if care isn't taken in removing it.

And it is a high one too. Though not as tall as the trees in the back yard, it is well over 50 foot high, and the trunk is probably 5' in diameter at the base. I'm just worried it is leaning toward the house due to displacement of the soil; which would really make it unstable.





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Grits
post Dec 11 2015, 06:39 PM
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I hired a crew to take down a few huge pines in very tight spots that were too close to my and the neighbors’ houses. They were amazing to watch. They had to lay one down between some dogwoods and a maple tree with about a tree trunk width of room to spare. They knocked some leaves off of the dogwoods and maple, but not even one branch.

I’ve also had some out-of-town family members come to help when we had nineteen storm-damaged trees that had to be felled in our woods. Around here these folks would be described as “country.” They got the job done but there were some very exciting moments. At one point we had a free-falling human with a tree going down at the same time. Thankfully no one died.

When in doubt I would hire tree professionals!


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mALX
post Dec 11 2015, 07:08 PM
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QUOTE(Grits @ Dec 11 2015, 12:39 PM) *

I hired a crew to take down a few huge pines in very tight spots that were too close to my and the neighbors’ houses. They were amazing to watch. They had to lay one down between some dogwoods and a maple tree with about a tree trunk width of room to spare. They knocked some leaves off of the dogwoods and maple, but not even one branch.

I’ve also had some out-of-town family members come to help when we had nineteen storm-damaged trees that had to be felled in our woods. Around here these folks would be described as “country.” They got the job done but there were some very exciting moments. At one point we had a free-falling human with a tree going down at the same time. Thankfully no one died.

When in doubt I would hire tree professionals!



laugh.gif Oh yeah, my former neighbor came over after a snootfull to help trim branches at my old house, sat on the branch he was cutting with a chain saw; I had to run out there and take the chainsaw away, and force him down out of the tree before he cut his own leg off! I probably saved his life, but I got a bad reputation for being a britch from him over that, rollinglaugh.gif (but that didn't keep him away from the dinner table at our house on holidays, lol ).

The structural engineer that did the inspection on the property has a list of preferred service providers, I'm pretty sure I saw tree service professionals on that list. Will def be lining up some professionals for that, not inviting any neighbors to help, rollinglaugh.gif

The trees; chimney; and retaining walls/driveway fix are the only things I don't have priced yet; every other repair has already been contracted out and is just waiting for the bank loan to pay for it. Meanwhile I'm lining up contractors for estimates on the retaining walls; may as well line them up for that tree too, see if the cost of that can be budgeted in.



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Decrepit
post Dec 11 2015, 07:49 PM
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Speaking of trees, my small yard once contained a decent number of them, all planted soon after I moved in in the early 90s. Three dogwoods in the back yard died before they had a chance to settle in. Five Leland Cyress lining one side border grew to full size then uprooted one night following a lengthy period of almost constant rain in which the ground because over saturated. My full size bradford pear sheared into pieces during a nasty ice storm circa 2007. A crepe myrtle that materialized without me planting it grew to full size but was too near the house so had to come down.

The only tree I have left was sold as a bush and advertised as growing to only 4'x8'. It's now much much bigger than that. I removed all its lower branches so that it does indeed appear to be a tree. Sadly, I planted it near the house based on its advertised mature size. I don't have the heart to remove it. Not yet. It's a nice looking tree and is virtually indestructible. Besides, it provides the house with a bit of needed shading during the hot summer months.

This post has been edited by Decrepit: Dec 11 2015, 07:52 PM


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mALX
post Dec 11 2015, 10:41 PM
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QUOTE(Decrepit @ Dec 11 2015, 01:49 PM) *

Speaking of trees, my small yard once contained a decent number of them, all planted soon after I moved in in the early 90s. Three dogwoods in the back yard died before they had a chance to settle in. Five Leland Cyress lining one side border grew to full size then uprooted one night following a lengthy period of almost constant rain in which the ground because over saturated. My full size bradford pear sheared into pieces during a nasty ice storm circa 2007. A crepe myrtle that materialized without me planting it grew to full size but was too near the house so had to come down.

The only tree I have left was sold as a bush and advertised as growing to only 4'x8'. It's now much much bigger than that. I removed all its lower branches so that it does indeed appear to be a tree. Sadly, I planted it near the house based on its advertised mature size. I don't have the heart to remove it. Not yet. It's a nice looking tree and is virtually indestructible. Besides, it provides the house with a bit of needed shading during the hot summer months.



My husband's property has a row of Boxwood bushes that went completely berserk, they are between 18-20 foot high and over 8' in diameter wide. We can't even flat-cut the tops; we would need to build a scaffolding to do it.

At my old house, I had a row of high hedge that did the same thing, they even grew across the gated area in an arch without being trained to. Never needed a fence to keep my dogs in that yard, they could not get through the bushes.





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Callidus Thorn
post Dec 11 2015, 10:54 PM
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Wow mALX, congrats!

I really want to make a joke about a gift with strings attached, but I'm drawing a blank right now. laugh.gif


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mALX
post Dec 11 2015, 11:09 PM
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QUOTE(Callidus Thorn @ Dec 11 2015, 04:54 PM) *

Wow mALX, congrats!

I really want to make a joke about a gift with strings attached, but I'm drawing a blank right now. laugh.gif



My late X-husband wanted to buy the neighbors a nice swimming pool as a gift = strings attached?

Well, according to him/his reasoning behind it - THEY would have the higher homeowner's insurance; cost of maintaining the pool; all the neighborhood children in THEIR yard - and the hook is that they could never deny you use of it since you bought it for them, rollinglaugh.gif

Of course, if they were really smart; what they would probably do is to sell the property (now for double what they could have gotten due to the pool); and the new neighbors who bought the house would not have any loyalty owing to you for buying the pool, so my husband would have been out his money for nothing, laugh.gif





This post has been edited by mALX: Dec 11 2015, 11:12 PM


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Callidus Thorn
post Dec 11 2015, 11:12 PM
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Ah, one of those ever-so-cunning schemes with just one little flaw... rollinglaugh.gif


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mALX
post Dec 11 2015, 11:13 PM
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QUOTE(Callidus Thorn @ Dec 11 2015, 05:12 PM) *

Ah, one of those ever-so-cunning schemes with just one little flaw... rollinglaugh.gif



Right!!! laugh.gif




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mirocu
post Dec 12 2015, 08:30 AM
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QUOTE(Grits @ Dec 11 2015, 06:39 PM) *

When in doubt I would hire tree professionals!

A very good advice smile.gif

QUOTE(mALX @ Dec 11 2015, 07:08 PM) *

The structural engineer that did the inspection on the property has a list of preferred service providers, I'm pretty sure I saw tree service professionals on that list. Will def be lining up some professionals for that, not inviting any neighbors to help, rollinglaugh.gif

And a very good call laugh.gif

QUOTE(mALX @ Dec 11 2015, 10:41 PM) *

At my old house, I had a row of high hedge that did the same thing, they even grew across the gated area in an arch without being trained to. Never needed a fence to keep my dogs in that yard, they could not get through the bushes.

Oh, I wish we had that at our place! laugh.gif

QUOTE(mALX @ Dec 11 2015, 11:09 PM) *

My late X-husband wanted to buy the neighbors a nice swimming pool as a gift = strings attached?

Well, according to him/his reasoning behind it - THEY would have the higher homeowner's insurance; cost of maintaining the pool; all the neighborhood children in THEIR yard - and the hook is that they could never deny you use of it since you bought it for them, rollinglaugh.gif

Of course, if they were really smart; what they would probably do is to sell the property (now for double what they could have gotten due to the pool); and the new neighbors who bought the house would not have any loyalty owing to you for buying the pool, so my husband would have been out his money for nothing, laugh.gif

QUOTE(Callidus Thorn @ Dec 11 2015, 11:12 PM) *

Ah, one of those ever-so-cunning schemes with just one little flaw... rollinglaugh.gif

rollinglaugh.gif


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