All Forum Posts by: Doug W.

Oh, it's a total money grab. It's the government! :)

In my house the floor plans in the neighborhood were all identical at one point. Given the inspector's experience he would have known the walls were there at some point in time. I probably could have taken the walls out, fixed the surrounding area (floor, drywall, etc.) and painted and then claimed the house came like that when I bought it. But it wasn't worth the risk considering that I have permits for electric, gas, and plumbing so the inspector was going to be in the house at one point or another. Like you I do everything above the line. 

I didn't think that doing the work was very hard but I also think it's a subjective answer. I was comfortable doing the work and had the means to complete the project so I did it to save money. 

Are those hardwoods just a standard red oak? Were they under the carpet or is it all new? Looks like the kitchen floors are definitely all new. 

Looks awesome! 

My Realtor suggests exactly what Will suggested. Leave the instruction booklets inside the appliances or inside the cupboards but remove all stickers, etc. 

Don't forget costs for plat surveys and annual taxes/fees. That is on the front end. On the back end you need to consider the agent's fees; which is roughly 6% if you have an agent for both yourself and one for the buyer. And then you have fees for the title company.

When I bought my flip I called the title company and asked them to estimate my costs. They did.... but came up a little short of the actual cost. 

If you have a contractor ready to roll I would have them look at it with you. I would assume he would find it worth his time if he was going to be the one getting the job. 

I just knocked down two walls. The first was  between a kitchen and dining room/living area. The wall was about 64" wide plus there was a 32" doorway. Now the entire 96" (8 ft) is open. The second wall was a partition wall in a closet. 

My county requires permits to remove any walls. In this case I was able to pull them online and via the phone because they were not structural. Each wall needed its own permit and, in my case, it was $90 per permit. My electrician and plumbers had their own permits though they weren't really having anything to do with the walls.

To be clear -- I did the actual work of demoing the walls. During the permit application process it specifically asked who would be doing the work: homeowner or contractor. Both were inspected and passed.

The chain link fence is.... interesting. Right now the budget isn't there to replace it. My Realtor is insisting in keeping the property with a fence around the entire perimeter. A lot of the homes in the neighborhood have chain link. I'm not saying that is a reason to keep it but rather pointing out that I'm not an outlier. 

@Mary lou L. - we removed most of the bushes but left these boxwoods on purpose. They are in great shape and we will plant some seasonally appropriate flowers to give the space some color. 

@Louis Leone -- good call. Black shutters are on my shopping list and I'm hoping to put them on next week.

@Raven Parmer -- I like the robin egg blue idea. Thank you! I think "cute" is a good way to describe what I'm going for. I'm in a neighborhood with nothing but ramblers so I want to stand out.... in a good way. 

Everyone else -- all good ideas and good input. Thank you very much. 

Looks like my posts with photos which I tried to upload while on a hotel wifi connection didn't work. Here is the photo I was trying to embed in my message on 9/6 to @Andrew S.  Of course I forgot to confirm that exact type of SW paint was used. 

FWIW, the builder who put in the new wood came by today and commented on how good he thought the paint looked. I didn't ask him specifically about it but he clearly had zero concern about what painting the pressure treated would do to it long term. 

In case anyone wants to know, the grey on the floor is Glidden Porch and Floor Steel Grey -- straight off the shelf at Home Depot.

Sorry - it appears that when I posted the photos via hotel wifi that the pictures did not work. Trying again here:

New paint w/ new light, mailbox, and numbers. You can also see the boxwood bushes that will be staying. Flowers will be planted in front of them and near the steps when we get closer to the date of listing the home.

New walkway -- it is grey and blue

There will be a new storm/screen door and new hardware going on the front as well.

Thanks, and sorry for having to double post. Tagging @Steve Babiak , too, since he reminded me to show the photos.