All Forum Posts by: Cathy Svercl

Just clarifying that Clearwater Beach is part of the City of Clearwater.

Thanks for not wanting to be "those people"!

i've used Vicky at All County for several years.  https://allcountyfirstchoice.c...

i would be interested in comparing their services to another.  how do i find @Jay Michalec ?  i cannot find him in the BP Members.  thanks.

I’m an architect. Suggest you contact a local structural engineer such as 

Www.BeckPizorEngineering.com

i live nearby (Dunedin-Countryside) and unfortunately agree with most of the comments here.  definitely a learning experience!  you mentioned that the neighbor will be building a new house - is that the lot currently occupied by apartments next door?  being next door to apartments, and/or next door to future new construction (noise, dust, etc) are also things a new home buyer would not like.  agree with the fridge-stove location swap.  agree that renting it out for now may be a better solution.

do you have a sign up on the Trail side?  good marketing for locals.  would also get more professional photos, including the backyard area (dress it up!).  so many trail neighbors have wonderful, fun backyards.

sorry about your plight. this sounds like a wood frame Bungalow house built between the 1910's and 1950's, or wood floor framed block home built in the late 1940's or 1950's, here in Clearwater.  we (Architect) were contacted by another recent Homebuyer who found similar items, but they were able to contact the previous Homeowner and came to some financial agreement on the repairs.  you may want an inspection by another Home Inspector (many of whom are retired Contractors), or better yet a Structural Engineer who will crawl under the house.  

on the Bungalow homes, which typically have wood beams and piers that sit on individual concrete footings, the footings & piers may also need to be "straightened" because of 100 years of rain and wind, or replaced due to rot (not often, since they were built with heart pine).  

or, as another commenter said, it may indeed just need the subfloor replaced, but i'm guessing there is a water leak if it's just rot - roof leak or burst water pipe under the floor.  we have also found that people have removed or replaced old mechanical floor vents (18"x24"), which ends up with a soft spot because there are no floor joists there.  

finally, you might want to look up any permits that were pulled for the property. 

https://www.myclearwater.com/g...

you can email me for a Structural Engineer referral if you would like. good luck!

good luck!  at MidFlorida, everything mortgage-related is handled by the Lakeland headquarters, so just call their main phone number.  they were very responsive for our refi - i think there were 3 different people we talked to or emailed documents to during the process.  they just request that MidFlorida becomes your primary bank for biz checking/savings, so we moved half our $ to them as well.

3/2 duplexes are definitely unusual here in Clearwater, but they do exist. can the Appraiser enlarge the area he is including? have you talked to some Realtors who are also Investors, and get their suggestions? finally, have you approached a local/regional bank for re-financing? they have their own Appraisers, but after you've started the process, obviously. (we used MidFlorida for our triplex re-fi. however, there were plenty of comps in a neighborhood of SFH, duplexes, and small multi-family buildings)

i also have a triplex in Clearwater (and live nearby), although i only managed it for 2 years before using a property manager.  my goal when i bought the property was to update it and hold on to it.  have you run the numbers to compare what a property management company might cost you?  would you still make money, be able to re-finance your mortgage?  do you want to hold on to it or sell it?  maybe you prefer to have your next rentals closer to home?  good luck!

Storage sheds that are stick-built or assembled from kits here must conform to the Zoning setbacks and height restrictions, and some jurisdictions require sheds more than 10'x10'x10' to conform to wind loads (hurricane straps, etc). Storage sheds that are converted to living space must then conform to Zoning for the Main House or ADU setbacks, and may need to match the architectural style of the house (every jurisdiction is different), as well as Building Code, including correct footings or slab for flood areas, hurricane straps for winds, current requirements for septic tanks/fields (common even in Pinellas County), and the egress (one 36" door) and bedroom window emergency escape requirements. So it is do-able, just make sure you do your due diligence in these cases. In many cases, the Engineering may cost the same as the kit/materials for the shed itself. As to Zoning and Tiny House requirements - yes, you'll have to call the individual jurisdiction.

FYI in the upcoming edition of the Florida Building Code, which goes into effect 12/31/2020, there is Appendix Q "Tiny Houses" which can be adopted by individual Building Departments, but is not automatically adopted.  So there may be some future opportunities for these.  However, you will have to check the Zoning for the individual property to make sure you 1) can add a second/accessory dwelling, and 2) it will fit on the lot in accordance with any setbacks, etc.  the Florida Building Code is free to access on the website www.FloridaBuilding.org -> click Florida Building Code -> on the next webpage again click Florida Building Code -> click on the RESIDENTIAL code 7th edition (2020)