Does Anyone Rehab Historic Homes?

Question

Hi All. Has anyone restored or renovated a historic home or one in a historic district? I landed a great deal on one and the bones are pretty solid. It was built at some point in the 40’s and everything is in really great shape. Just old.

The wood floors look fantastic. All of the bathroom and kitchen tiles are in great shape but just need to be cleaned. The doors are solid wood with brass door knobs. Most of the closets are cedar wood and the basement is all knotty pine with a built in bar. It has a slate roof and carriage house doors on the garage.

I want to preserve most if not all of the classic features of this house.

Unfortunately the HVAC system is 25 years old and the electric is outdated with only 50 amps coming into the house (according to my electrician – don’t know how the HVAC was able to work).

My thoughts are to replace the outdated HVAC with a 2 zone system, brand new without running any duct work through the cedar wood closets (the rooms have plaster walls so I may end up running the duct work behind the walls and sheetrocking - can’t use existing duct work, btw). Does anyone have other ideas for where to run the duct work?

Also, I’m going to completely rewire the house and bring it up to 220 amps. I’ll likely replace all of the plumbing in the basement including the undersized hot water heater (may go with a more expensive tankless, yet more efficient water heater). And I’m going to get the slate roof professionally cleaned.

That takes care of the guts.  But I’m not sure where I want to go with the kitchen and baths. Again they’re all in great shape with good tile. Except there’s ugly wall paper all over the place. So I was thinking of getting rid of the wall paper and painting the walls while having the tiles professionally cleaned and the tub glazed. I also want to replace the bathroom and kitchen fixtures. Any thoughts? Does anyone here rehab historic homes?

Aaron McGinnis · Answer

I don't think I've bought a house newer than 1958 in years. Right now we're working on a house that was made sometime before 1930... I've got a thread about it.

Separate in your mind the difference between "Renovation" and "Restoration"... renovation is expensive and time consuming, restoration is ridiculously expensive, time consuming, and requires a lot of special trades.

Case in point... when you're talking about walls, they probably aren't made of sheetrock. They're probably plaster and lathe. If so, running new ductwork, electrical, and plumbing is going to be very hard unless you're willing to find (and pay big bucks) for someone to work on plaster walls, or just resign yourself to replacing a lot of plaster with sheetrock (Which is what often happens)

Figure on full mechanical replacement. Including a new mast!

Restoring old hardware, sanding down and restaining or painting old doors, and maintaining a slate roof are all "surgical" restoration activities. They are labor-intensive and require real technical skill to perform... you will have a hard time finding someone who is really good enough to perform those kind of tasks.

Also, you need to be worried about lead and asbestos. Asbestos insulation, tile, etc. can be fryable and may actually pose a real health hazard to the guys working on the house. (You were planning on reinsulating, right? Old houses generally have close to nothing for insulation)

Wall paper is generally removed with a combination of water and fabric softener and a lot of hand labor. On sheetrock, the process can create a real mess. If you're on plaster, god help you... you may be better off in terms of expense and time to simply remove the plaster and lathe entirely and then go back with sheetrock. Otherwise you need to find someone who can repair the plaster after you've gouged it up removing the wall-paper.

If you're planning any exterior work, and the house is in an actual historic district, you need to check with the city/district building department and see what they will and won't let you do and what sort of permission you need to get to do things. This can be the biggest issue... even a color-change can be a no-no in some places.

Good luck. Historic restorations are a challenging PITA, but hugely rewarding.

Account Closed · Answer

most homes i flip are historic in nature..however, i've only actually done one in an official historic district....in my area, they'd love you..you don't want to change the outside is like saying you want to keep the original essence of the house...the historic district in charlotte doesn't care what you do on the inside..they only care what it looks like from the street..my struggle with them was that i was adding a 1500 sq ft second story addition

Steven Hamilton II · Answer

Yes, they are quite specific.

Thomas Morris · Answer

I know this thread has been dormant for a while, but I am in the process of planning to rehab a historic property myself, and would like to hear more on the topic. I am working on the tax credit piece first, because if you do it wrong, your tax credits can be disallowed. The tax applications require lots of documentation.

Steve D. · Answer

I am in process of rehabbing a commercial building in a historic area and I decided I would do this one utilizing state and federal grant assistance. It's a real hassle, and adds to the up front costs, but in the end, after the tax credits and small grants I will come out with same costs as not going by the guidelines. You really need to do the proper research (I hired a consultant specializing in the process and applying for the money) to ensure you are not in violation of any historic requirements as well as not leaving money on the table. I am excited about this project as it will be a real jewel when done.

Tod R. · Answer

Ibrahim, I'm only replying because no one else has chimed in yet.  I do not have any experience with historic homes, but I have heard that you need to be aware of any restrictions/regulations if it is in a historic district.  I saw this online that might give you some more ideas.

http://www.oldhouseweb.com/blog/

Does Anyone Rehab Historic Homes?

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