Bid accepted: My first house!

[podzol]

Big day for me!

It has been a long road of many timely rent payments (about 300 payments over the years), but I finally have found a home! I bought it at about 15% less than market value. 6 miles from work in the small historic section of a farm village.

It's an 1890 Victorian fixer upper with great large interior spaces, tall ceilings, tall narrow windows, and a nice lot right next to a old but active church and it's associated neatly maintained 19th century cemetery. Spooky!

I can't wait! No more rent!!!
Lot's of wire pulling and drywall! :)

[chosen]

thats awesome blake. we just got our first house in about 10 yrs. weve been living on base for like forever. are you up for the big move that comes with a new house? stressful.

[podzol]

Sure thing, Chosen, moving is a BIG challenge.

I just moved across the country with a kid, two dogs, two canaries, and a cat in the cab of a Uhaul towing my jeep on a trailer in a heat wave last July. That's stress!!

I think a local move over the course of a month will be a breeze (knock on wood!)

Actually, I still have much in boxes from my move to this part of the country, so even packing will be easier!

I'm so happy. The kid and I are going out for a late night ice cream celebration.:D
This was post 600!

[James_Potter]

wow, that is a beautiful house!!
I really like old ones.

[chosen]

I just moved across the country with a kid, two dogs, two canaries, and a cat in the cab of a Uhaul towing my jeep on a trailer in a heat wave last July. That's stress!!


wow! thats crazy. i only mvoed a mile from my house.

I really like old ones.

......





:)

[phlegm]

Wow, that's a big project! I've been working on my smallish condo for six months now. Good luck with your new place!

[James_Potter]

......





:)
old houses, don't you like them?

[GILD]

I just moved across the country with a kid, two dogs, two canaries, and a cat in the cab of a Uhaul towing my jeep on a trailer in a heat wave last July. That's stress!!
You should put that on your CV, that and nothing else.
It reads like the missing sentence from Heinlein's 'specialisation is for insects' (http://specializationisforinsects.com/)quote.

Congrats on the new place. Is it in a good unicycling area?

[uniMcPeat]

old houses, don't you like them?
Ya, I like old houses. I wish I could live in an old house...but I have to live in this 10 year old one.:( :(

[podzol]

Hey Gild, THanks.

I if write a memoir someday, that adventure will have its own chapter. Due credit must be given to the kid, who was happy, patient, made good conversation, and had to use the rest room less frequently than most adults would have. He never complained when the motel that allowed pets didn't also have a pool or when we passed by another fast food place in favor of the apples, carrots, pretzels, and wasabi peas we had for travel snacks.

I later heard that my colleagues back in Washington had a betting pool on whether I would make it without major incident.

The remodel/fixing up will probablytake 5 years or so because I am so busy and also because I am very tolerant of construction-type messes.

I'll post more pictures when I get in the place again with a camera. The first priority will be getting rid of the 60amp knob&tube and modernizing the wiring.

[Borges]

Nice house, it'll be really great when you're done with it.


I just came back from helping my sister and her family move, so here's a bit of advice, in case you're going to move out of the house again at some point:

If you're hanging something on the wall and two screws are enough to hold it, DON'T USE 14 JUST TO BE ON THE SAFE SIDE.

Thanks for letting me get that off my chest. I'm fine now. Really.

[yoopers]

Nice house, but how's the soil? Is the foundation settling? Can you plant a successful garden? Do you have chinch bugs?

Seriously, mucho congrats and happy homeownership! It's a great day! Let's celebrate!

Bruce

[domesticated ape]

Congratulations Podzol, that's a cool house. It looks pretty huge, plenty of room for more unicycles:)
Does it have a garage or anywhere big enough to practice indoor in the winter?
Good luck with the move!

[podzol]

The foundatation is stone and has done all the settling it will do. the house is all plumb and square, no sways and sags.

It has a garage, but indoor practice will be done on the first floor, which largely open w/o walls and pine wood floors, well worn, so Unicycling won't damage them. If I put in new oak flooring down the road, that plan may change. We are almost right across the street from the elementary school playground that has plenty of places to ride in its yard during spring summer and fall.

Can't wait! It is 50 and sunny here today, so we'll be out at the park afterlunch riding and celebrating for certain!

[nick]

congrats!

[cathwood]

Happy house-buying day.

Cathy

[chosen]

so this house isnt in pennsylvania right? where is it

[podzol]

Yeah, It's in central PA just out of State College.

[bugman]

Congratulations on the new house. Sounds like you have many years of weekend projects ahead of you to keep you busy. Love to see more pics of the place. I love old houses. Always reminds me of the house I lived in during 1st and 2nd grade. Good times.

[Tim Morin]

Kudos. My wife and I bought our 1st in 05. Very exciting, and it feels way better than pissin away $$$ on rent.

[podzol]

Kudos. My wife and I bought our 1st in 05. Very exciting, and it feels way better than pissin away $$$ on rent.

You got it.
I knew it was time to buy when every rent check I wrote made me feel queasy!

We did the home inspection today, No surprises for an older home, but it is a fixer-upper indeed. Bug man was right, many YEARS of weekend projects ahead.

I noticed the gardens today. All Wisteria and lilacs around the perimeter of the propoerty it will be beautiful in the spring.

I've got about 1000 ideas for the interior. I think I will have plenty of time to daydream about the finishing touches on the interior while I am wiring and making repairs to the roof.

this is a forum I found that will be a great resource to me:http://www.contractortalk.com/index.php

[chosen]

Yeah, It's in central PA just out of State College.
hmm i hear thats quite the party school. any plans on inviting those crazy college kids over?:)

[podzol]

hmm i hear thats quite the party school. any plans on inviting those crazy college kids over?:)

Those crazy college kids will get free beer and a designated driver (me) after they help me move!!

At my job I do research but I also work closely with students facilitating their education, so I will probably have a fair number of BBQs with the students. They are all very good people and social gatherings like that are great for morale.

I don't drink much at all, so my parties are usually pretty tame.

[podzol]

Hey folks,
I closed on my house today!
Finally a home owner. I couldn't be happier!
Well, I guess I'll be happier after my stuff is moved in.

Here's to not having to pay rent!
B

[phlegm]

Here's to not having to pay rent!

Yay for property taxes!! Oh, wait... ;)

[yoopers]

Wahoo!

[lucky_8]

nice house

[Gilby]

Yay for property taxes!! Oh, wait... ;) Yay for the broken fence that needs a fixin'.
Yay for the rotten front door that needs replacement.
Yay for the masterbathrrom shower that somehow sunk half an inch and needs fixing.
Yay for the unexpected broken garage door spring that broke at the wrong time.
Yay for the housemate that hasn't been current on rent (I need to give an eviction notice tomorrow :().
Yay for the the nagging mom that wants to redecorate the entire house.

Hmmm... maybe that last one would be fine if I knew what I wanted.

Anyways, congratulations on purchasing a home. It's not bad, really! Yay, for being able to have unicyclists stay at my house for the weekend (that was lots of fun), and yay for being able to offer 9 unicyclists floor space when they found out they couldn't stay in the gym at mondo (though they found another place to stay instead of my place).

[maestro8]

it feels way better than pissin away $$$ on rent.
what, better than pissing away $$$ on repair and remodel jobs, contractor's and inspector's fees, finance charges and taxes?

[podzol]

Exterior
1. Gutters
2. Remove plants that are close to foundation.
3. Replace rot on porch.

Interior
1. cut archways between Kitchen and drawing room, drawing room and parlour, and two small betrooms. rebuild closets to suit my need for larger storage.

2. Remove wall between stairwell and living room, install new beam, install bannister.

3. Remove plaster 3" to floor throughout. Redo electrics and duct work. Install wainscoting.

here comes winter again

4. Install wood stoves.

5. Ornamental plaster cornice around ceiling of drawing room and parlour.

6. Bathroom remodel.

7. Kitchen remodel.

Thanks for the congratulations, It is a big step for me.

[habbywall]

my spanish teacher is looking at houses, he said he viewed like 5 sunday and 7 yesterday, thats alot

but podzol i thought you lived in the yoop?
whats up with that tour da yoop thing?
your organizing it but you dont live there, thats different

[podzol]

Hey H. Wall.
I used to live there and my folks still live there. I miss it a lot it's beautiful!

The UP is really a very special place for many reasons. Even the people there are tied closely to its history (eg. Bruce aka Yoopers). I had a similar feeling when touring CA north of sacramento in the old gold mining towns. Beautiful scenery, significant history and a lot of regional pride.

The UP has recently experienced financial hard times because methods of copper mining have changed and jobs went to places with copper ore instead of native copper. The copper industry was the major industry in the western UP since the area was really developed in the 1920s with the wiring of the US. There are a lot of families who live far from hospitals, hand to mouth, many even off the grid. there are some very wild places there. The charity I am working with will help provide transportation for kids in rural areas to get to and from the hospital. That's where the most significant un answered need is according to the health officials up there.

Thanks for asking! Tour planning is moving along. I need to update the website again soon!

[yoopers]

Blake,

Word of advice: Don't start or rip apart many projects at once. If you get too far into your demolition, the satisfaction of the finished projects are too far down the road and it can get depressing. Tackle one, maybe two at a time and work those until done. It's a great feeling to finally step back and take a deep look at your accomplishment. Besides, you have many, many years ahead of you to work on your home.

Bruce

[GILD]

what, better than pissing away $$$ on repair and remodel jobs, contractor's and inspector's fees, finance charges and taxes?
Yeah, cause you get (some of) that back when you sell.
The landlord get's money back on your rent when he sells.

[yoopers]

There are a lot of families who live far from hospitals, hand to mouth, many even off the grid. there are some very wild places there. The charity I am working with will help provide transportation for kids in rural areas to get to and from the hospital. That's where the most significant un answered need is according to the health officials up there.

I once interviewed at Copper Range Company, a copper mine in White Pine, Michigan, about a stone's throw from Lake Superior in the Western U.P. As Mary and I were touring the small town of White Pine, pop. 300 fine mining folks, we came across the White Pine Hospital. The front door of the hospital had a sign on the glass, "Closed for lunch. Back at 1:00"

[yoopers]

Blake,

I'm not quite finished with my upstairs bathroom remodel project yet. I originally stripped the bathroom down to joists and studs (left the ceiling intact) and installed all new everything. Behind the access panel to the bathtub/shower piping, I wrote on the back of the tub surround, "Ben and Daddy remodeled this bathroom, then we both signed it and included the current year, 1995."

[JJuggle]

I'm not quite finished with my upstairs bathroom remodel project yet."This appears in this week's New Yorker.

[maestro8]

Yeah, cause you get (some of) that back when you sell.
The landlord get's money back on your rent when he sells.
But do you get the countless hours of your life back that you invested in learning how to remodel, demolishing, remodelling, redemolishing, re-remodeling, etc.? You can't put a price on that. I'd rather spend my weekends riding than figuring out how to rewire a bathroom or replace a plumbing fixture.

[yoopers]

But do you get the countless hours of your life back that you invested in learning how to remodel, demolishing, remodelling, redemolishing, re-remodeling, etc.? You can't put a price on that. I'd rather spend my weekends riding than figuring out how to rewire a bathroom or replace a plumbing fixture.
Oh, but Mr. Tro8, that's the best part about it. I consider working on my home as one of my hobbies. I love working with my hands, working with hand tools, mentally designing on the fly, countless visits to the home improvement stores, ripping stuff apart (with Mary's permission of course), carefully putting it all back together better than it was before, stepping back and gazing for long hours at our finished project, and finally enjoying the benefits of living in an new or improved environment.

And it doesn't just stop with the home itself. Our freezer quit working last month. I broke out my multimeter and studied the wiring schematic on the back of the freezer. When all was said and done, I had ordered and installed a new part and watched the freezer come back to life again. What a great sense of satisfaction.

Bruce

[podzol]

But do you get the countless hours of your life back that you invested in learning how to remodel, demolishing, remodelling, redemolishing, re-remodeling, etc.? You can't put a price on that. I'd rather spend my weekends riding than figuring out how to rewire a bathroom or replace a plumbing fixture.

I think some people have the temperment for it others don't. I am a process oriented person. I love finishing things, but I am always quick to start another project. It will be a great thing for me, even though I expect I will have bare studwalls in a decade. :)
Nothing wrong with a SPF stamp in plain view, eh?

[yoopers]

I think some people have the temperment for it others don't. I am a process oriented person. I love finishing things, but I am always quick to start another project. It will be a great thing for me, even though I expect I will have bare studwalls in a decade. :)
Nothing wrong with a SPF stamp in plain view, eh?
Of course all done with the proper building permits, right? :)

[maestro8]

Oh, but Mr. Tro8, that's the best part about it. I consider working on my home as one of my hobbies.
I can understand this if you like general carpentry... I'm a hands-on kinda guy myself but I'd rather be playing with gears and pulleys in my shop rather than tearing down drywall in my house.

Which leads to my dilemma... I'm starting to purchase stationary power tools, but that's gonna restrict me to renting houses with garages, which is a bit of a commodity in my area. Oh, well, I guess we all "pay for it" one way or another.

[yoopers]

I can understand this if you like general carpentry... I'm a hands-on kinda guy myself but I'd rather be playing with gears and pulleys in my shop rather than tearing down drywall in my house.

Which leads to my dilemma... I'm starting to purchase stationary power tools, but that's gonna restrict me to renting houses with garages, which is a bit of a commodity in my area. Oh, well, I guess we all "pay for it" one way or another.
Wasn't it you who was discussing such a potential garage set-up with my buddy Steve (machinehead61) once upon a time? He's a machinist and a gearhead and whatever else he can get his hands on. He and I are currently trying to swap an engine in Ashley's '97 Chevy Corsica. You should see his garage; mills, lathes, blasters, welders, big stuff, teensy stuff, etc. He's got quite a collection and it's pretty impressive for a small town guy on a tight budget.

I know where you're coming from though because Steve would much rather spend time hammering on a good hunk of steel out in his garage than fixing his bathroom plumbing. He's machined up components for various things for me so many times. But it's always turnabout as well. Some time ago in a quick emergency, I threw together some plumbing under his kitchen sink one Sunday before church. And once his toilet almost fell through the floor so I spent into the early hours of the morning replacing his bathroom subfloor and floor. We also put in a new toilet, sink and cabinet while we were working in the bathroom.

Friends is as friends does.

[maestro8]

Wasn't it you who was discussing such a potential garage set-up with my buddy Steve (machinehead61) once upon a time?
Nope.

I know where you're coming from though because Steve would much rather spend time hammering on a good hunk of steel out in his garage than fixing his bathroom plumbing.
Yep.

Friends is as friends does.
Yep. *hands yoopers a root beer*

[yoopers]

Yep. *hands yoopers a root beer*
Ummmmm....only the best. Thank you.