Considering fixing up 200 year old house- Are we nuts???!!!

[llcoddington]

DH grew up in an old Victorian home- over 200 yrs. old. A few years ago, his parents moved out of this home and since haven't been able to sell it. The house is a mess. Filled with junk and needs major work. I think everyone who has walked in considering buying it has walked right out with a headache!

The house is in upstate New York and in a good part of town. Structurally, the thing is solid as a brick. But, it needs everything from new electrical wiring to a new kitchen, bathrooms, new heating system (baseboard heating), new inside walls (they are old horse hair which is crumbling), etc, etc, etc. The garage needs to be torn down, an addition needs to be torn down (rotting), the wood floors need to be refinished, closets need to be built, bedrooms resized, etc.

This is beginning to sound awful. But, it has such potential! The house has an attic and basement the entire size of the house. One huge room in the attic (with windows) and the basement is huge with a wine cellar!

Are we completely nuts? Would this be a $100,000+ project? We could get the house dirt-cheap. I think for DH it would be awesome because he grew up in it. He can't believe he is even thinking of this considering that we have bought new construction in the past!

Anyone out there done something like this? Sounds to me like an incredible amount of work, but in the end, amazing!

Lana
mommy to Lauren 12/5/03

[C99]

W/ the amount of work you're talking about, I think it would be a $200K+ project. But if you enjoy renovation and could put up with the dust and things not working (and think Lauren & subsequent children could too) for the years it will likely take to finish the project, it might be worth it. But it could be a total nightmare as well: http://www.houseinprogress.net/

[caleymama]

If you have the $$, the time, and the inclination then I would say that you are not nuts. In my very un-expert opinion, though, it's going to be a HUGE job and very expensive. That said, I love old upstate NY towns and especially the original homes and the sentimental value for your DH is one of a kind. We recently moved back to upstate NY after several years in VA. We bought a home that's about 100 yrs old. Luckily the previous owners updated all of the important stuff, but the kitchen needs a re-do and the bathroom is, ummm, quaint with it's clawfoot tub and rigged up shower system. We also still have to replace about 1/2 the windows. I absolutely love the character of the floors and woodwork, the worn-in narrow stairs, the beautiful doors and doorknobs, etc. and am willing to live with the other stuff (mini or no closets, teeny kitchen ...) until we can afford to upgrade it.

If you can make it work, I would say to go for it. Other than really knowing what you're getting yourself into before you commit (and realizing that there will likely be things that come up along the way that you hadn't anticipated), my only suggestion would be to maybe live someplace else while the initial work is being done, especially since you have a small child.

Good luck! And I'm curious to know where this is - PM me if you want.

[llcoddington]

Oneonta, New York. Are you anywhere near?

Lana
mommy to Lauren 12/5/03

[kfcboston]

Oooo - my husband and I are Colgate alums, and he lived in the Albany area during the high school years.

I love old houses, but have never been able to take the leap on them. Good luck to you!

[caleymama]

We're probably a little over an hour northeast of there. I've driven by Oneonta but have never stopped there. Other than that it has SUNY Oneonta and Hartwick, I don't know much about it. I mentioned this post to DH and his initial response was "if you have the money and the time, go for it" but then he said to keep in mind what the potential re-sale value of the house would be. If you make a huge investment in remodeling it and upgrading and then decide to sell someday, you may not get back what you put into it. I don't know for certain, but around here even the biggest, most beautiful in-town houses go for less than they would elsewhere.

Katie - One of my best friends went to Colgate and I dated a guy in college whose hometown was Hamilton. Such a pretty town - I used to love visiting there.

[twinmama]

Oh wow, sounds like my dream house! If I had the time, the money, the know how and the patience, I would do it in a heart beat. How cool would it be for your kids to grow up in the same house as their dad?

Can you get someone knowledgeable about renovations to do a walk through with you and tell you exactly what needs to be done and about how money and time it will take? Also, will you be able to live in the house while redoing it, or will you have to make major changes before you can even move in? Keep in mind you will have to pay for a rental place or for hundreds of fast food/restaurant dinners while you redo the kitchen. Also, most renovation jobs take longer than you think they will. Once you start tearing down walls, you usually discover something new that needs fixing.

The best thing to do would be to live in your current house or a rental house nearby while the old house is being fixed up, but that's obviously going to be more money. It might be best for your sanity, though!

If you're the type of person who can deal well with chaos and is ok with not having your house to yourself until everything is done, I'd say go for it. Like you said, it definately sounds like it has great potential. Good luck!

-Lisa

Edited for spelling

[llcoddington]

I don't think I deal too well with chaos! Having a baby just about sent me over the edge (gets better every day though!). However, I have this strange tendency to look for chaos and somehow get myself into chaotic situations. Ugh.

Good idea to have someone walk through the house. Hadn't thought of that.

We would have several options as far as where to live. They are all a bit chaotic, but they are options. DH's parents live an hour away (living with the in-laws???!!!), DH's grandparents live a couple of miles away and spend their winters in Florida, so we could live there. Or, we could rent something. Basically, we need to find out how long it might take to fix this house. We don't want to be displaced until Lauren is 10!

Lana
mommy to Lauren 12/5/03

[egoldber]

Have you ever watched This Old House? :)

I agree with whoever said this would be a 200K+ project. The things you KNOW need fixing would cost more than 100K. And once you start tearing down walls and looking at more of the structure, you are guaranteed to find more that needs fixing.

I wouldn't do this without paying both a general contractor and an architect for detailed estimates of what it would take to do what you want. They will also give you valuable insight into other things that may need to be done that you aren't aware of (local building code requirements, etc.).

That being said, it is mine and DH's dream to do something like this. :) I would also have somewhere very close by to live during the remodel. You will want to come by every day to check on progress and contractors.

But if its a house you love in an area where you really want to be, then it may be worth it.

HTH,

[cilantromapuche]

We live in an 1815 home in upstate New York that we love and I have to agree with the 200K range. If you are going to do it you need to have reliable and good workers that costs money. Our house was structurally fine but cosmetically we wanted to return it to the original style. We have already put more into it than we ever will ever get out.
That said we just put in to buy a 1940's colonial revival with insulation and non-drafty windows (my idea of nirvana)

[lukkykatt]

DH has family in Delhi, NY!

[lukkykatt]

I guess my answer is that it all depends...

My father bought a 100 year old rowhome in Phila. when I was in HS, and renovated the whole house almost entirely by himself (down to building his own kitchen cabinets). The end result was amazing. But there was A LOT of hard work between the time he bought it and the time it became amazing.

It sounds like you and your husband would be hiring someone to do the work in this case? If so, I agree that you should definitely consult with someone very knowledgeable before you even think about it. Also, it sounds like you would need housing the whole time the project is being done - that is another cost to consider. Once you have more information on the cost and scope of the project, you will be able to make a better decision on whether it is something you want to do.

After growing up in my 100+ year old house, I am now living in a 20 year old house, which is too new for me! When I know where we will be living into retirement, I will be looking for an old home, that is for sure!

[ShayleighCarsensMom]

It sounds like such a grand adventure...one thing you need to be aware of in old homes is that some of them are contaminated with lead and toxic mildew....I mean, lead in the paint, water pipes, everywhere to the point that it can make you family gravely ill. I would definitly hire someone to have it completely checked out before stirring up the dust.
Keep us posted!

[llcoddington]

We have decided that we would be crazy to do this! We probably have a few years to decide though, as that house will probably not be sold! Thanks for all your replies. I still think it would be amazing, so perhaps we will do it yet.

Lana
mommy to Lauren 12/5/03

[emilyf]

We gutted and totally renovated our 100 year old rowhouse. It cost us over 100k, and our place is much smaller I'm sure, so I think the 200k is probably closer. I would highly recommend that you find somewhere else to live while the work is being done if at all possible. All our friends who have lived through rehabs found it very difficult-and most did it without children. I would be nervous about lead paint exposure if you were to live through a rehab with kids. We were able to stay in our old house which worked well. Once work got started it took about 6 months although shopping contractors and drawing up plans took a few months before. We love it now and it was fun to have everything done to our specifications. Let me know if you have any questions-
Emily \r\nmom of Charlie born 11/02