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Updated almost 11 years ago,
First renovation - OMG
I have an option to buy (for $11,500) an attached 2 story brick (2br, 1ba- 864 sq ft, with basement) as a complete gut renovation in Newburgh, NY. I really liked the idea of a smaller unit as my first real property renovation for resale, and anticipated ripping everything out to the studs on both floors and then rocking from basement up. I had originally thought each building was a standalone four sided brick building attached to each other, and I was hoping the electrical was OK, but I did not anticipate having to re-framing the entire flat roof!
So today, I finally got into the building and OMG.....the roof collapsed on the building next door, and standing in the small living room and kitchen, you can see into the other building. I took a peek through some boarded up windows, and realized the identical half building is a shell- no roof or floors.
It appears that the original builder built a brick rectangle 32 x 50 (next to a third brick building), and then split the box into two 2-story buildings- I want to own the left side. So standing in the living room of the unit I’d like to buy, the wall that separates the other building was actually about 6-8 inches of wood lathe and plaster- not a brick wall. What a disappointment, but that’s a gotcha…
Here is my question: how do you frame half of a 32 x 50 brick shell, when you only own half of it? The side that meets my neighbor is open to the elements, since there is no roof, or floors (see below).
The unit I seek on the left also needs a complete new flat roof, second floor, first floor.
When I got home, I did some research, and I have located the owner, and placed a call to him to find out what he plans to do with his half- perhaps I could buy his side…
The easy answer is to just walk away, but that is not my style, and I love challenges, and I'm open to cutting my losses when necessary.many areas
Here is some info on myself: I have renovated all of my previously owned homes, collectively: “100” squares of pitched roof, 1000s of square feet of oak flooring, tiling, 300+ sheets of wall board and Durock, plumbing and gas lines, so I am not exactly a newbie. I have done some light framing in vaulting a master bedroom, but never a flat roof from scratch, or a 2 story building from basement up. My preference is to hire a contractor for all of the framing- if it is even practical. To be fair, my spouse is leaning towards walking away from it…
I look forward to hearing from some of you with more experience. Cheers.