All Forum Posts by: Tim Anderson

If I fixed the house up into 'salable' condition, without fixing the foundation, I'd be about 45 grand in on it total, so I don't mind just selling it heavily discounted rather than fixing the foundation issue and then possibly STILL not being able to sell it because of the previous damage the foundation issues have done to the flooring, plus it would have to be disclosed and that might turn a buyer off, even if there is a guarantee on it.

It isn't like the floors are going to collapse or anything, so I'm hoping someone will appreciate the discounted price and otherwise nice condition of the home(large home, newer siding, windows, 1000sq ft garage, good neighborhood, new furnace system, new stainless appliances) and we can both benefit, so to speak, from my mistake of investing in this home.

OK, so the house that I'm rehabbing has some floors that are uneven. Some are worse than others. It's made worse by the fact that there are baseboards from the boiler system still there to accentuate that there are issues. It's an older home (1937), so I'd expect some settling, but it's beyond that. The master bedroom upstairs is particularly bad. I was quoted over $3,000 to bring the upstairs master only to level. With this particular house, the numbers are going to end up being too tight for me to have work this costly done. My question is, are there any 'tricks of the trade' so to speak, to bring this floor to level on a budget? I've noticed the rooms that have tile in them(2 baths, kitchen) the sloping is either not present(doesn't make sense when it's noticable in all of the rooms without it), or the tile is doing a hell of a job in not making it noticeable.

I have a few questions here:

1) The dining room isn't completely level, would I be better off using tile or carpet? Can I even install tile on an uneven floor?
2) Can anything be done with the master bedroom upstairs, to bring the floor to a respectable level, without putting a ton of money into it?
3) I know that dark colors are a no-no when trying to sell a house, but would you go darker with paint/carpet to try to lessen the visual of the foundation issues? Or stick with antique white walls, white ceiling/trim and lighter carpet?

Any insight, as always, is very much appreciated.

It sounded a lot worse upon reading it back. What I mean is, the new homeowners will be getting an inspection done on the property before they purchased it anyway, so everything should be all good. He was also talking about a worst case scenario in terms of liability. Talking about people dying is taking it a little far, imo.

I'm just going by what I know. I know 2 things for sure about this guy. #1) He's probably one of the chillest guys I've ever met in my life. #2) He has a conviction for drug trafficking.

So, yes, he's an extremely cool guy to talk to, BUT... it is obvious that he is capable of doing some shady stuff.

I'm afraid that if I do this, knowing what I know now (him being arrested for drug trafficking), that he may do something absolutely crazy to me, my home or my family.

I don't mind opening myself up to that sort of liability, mainly because I will most likely sell the home before I think about turning the heat on. As far as him getting injured, he does have insurance but I've also got legal documentation he signed that should keep me in the clear there.

How can I get this homeowner permit? Does it mean I can't tell anyone that I hired this work done? I have to act like it's me and a friend helping me?

Honestly, this guy is EXTREMELY cool and seems very knowledgeable about everything I ask him. He maybe lied when he absolutely shouldn't have, but he is a very good dude on a personal level. I wouldn't have a problem with him completing the work, as long as I can get a permit and not have all of his work ripped out of there.

First of all, as always, would like to thank you J Scott for your insight, you've helped a lot in some of my other questions I've had.

I figured if I put in the contract that he was required to be licensed, that would be enough, and since I checked on the insurance information he gave me with his insurer, I figured he was legit. Apparently I was wrong. I will not make this mistake again.

I did do this part.

Isn't it standard to provide the money for materials up front? I'd have to think the furnace and duct work would have came close to 1800 bucks.

I checked the Ohio database link that was provided in the thread, he isn't licensed. I did some "google stalking" on the guy and found out he was arrested earlier this year for drug trafficking. Safe to say, I won't be getting the money back that I've already given him.

I normally would not lie, but I really don't want to risk them coming in and ripping out all of the work he already did and hit me with a fine on top of it. It's basically damage control at this point.

I asked the HVAC guy to tell me exactly what the inspector said to him, and he responded with "not too much of anything". There was nothing posted on the property when I went to see what was going on, but he certainly could have taken whatever the inspector would have put on the house and thrown it in the trash.

I'm able to pull the permit myself for the HVAC work? Do I need to bend the truth a bit to do it, or tell them I hired someone to do the work and be 100% honest? I've never pulled a permit for anything, so I'm a little uncertain about how it works. I had assumed the people I'd hire to do the work would be doing this.

He's running all new ventilation for a 2-story 1800 sqft house that previously had a boiler system, as well as installing the new furnace that he provided, for $3700.

If that's the only way I'll be able to legally finish this job, then I will do it. Problem is, the house is not my primary residence and I have a vacant insurance policy on it currently, so I don't know how that would work.

OK. I hired a guy off of craigslist to do my HVAC work, since the other estimates from actual HVAC companies were absolutely ridiculous, lowest quote was $8,500. I had him sign a contract stating that he was licensed, insured and would acquire all proper building permits and that he would not receive the 2nd half of his payment until it passed inspection.

After a day on the job, he sends me an e-mail saying he needs me to file a permit, due to a building inspector stopping by. I asked him what the building inspector said, to which he replied " not much of anything, just wanted to see what was going on", I don't believe it. Anyway, I refer to the contract, in which it states you (he) "will acquire any necessary building permits and the job will not be seen as complete if for any reason an inspection of the work done does not pass code;". To which he responded with that he does not have a license for our county. He says he'll take $200 off the job if I get the permit. That small amount of money isn't my concern right now. My concern is that... how the heck can I get a permit myself to do HVAC work if neither he, nor I, is licensed to do it? Is there any way that I can? He's telling me that there's a 'loop hole', where I can get the permit and say I'm having a 'friend' help with the work. This is my first time dealing with something like this and I'm getting paranoid they're (inspectors) going to rip out all of the work, and I'll still be out half of my money. Does anyone have extensive experience with building permits? What can I do in this situation?

I basically just want to do the bare minimum, because it's just my personal feeling getting something like an HE furnace wouldn't see a good ROI at this price point. Am I wrong thinking this? Conservative ARV on the house is only 90k.

Hello. I purchased an older home for a flip (built in the 30's), it currently has an inoperable boiler system. I'm wanting to switch from that over to forced air. Needless to say, none of the ventilation is in place currently. I've gotten a couple of estimates, and the lowest is around 4 grand. This seems high to me, based on reading a couple of other threads. Being that this is my first flip, I'm very cost conscious, but at the same time I don't want to run into a headache by paying a dirt cheap price and having the work messed up.

My question to the forum is, what is a good price to pay for the new furnace/ac/new ventilation? The house is a 2 story with a full basement. 1800 square feet, 3 bed/1.5 bath.

Second question I have is, am I better off buying the furnace and AC system online and then having them install it? Or should I just go with what they provide? One would think they would mark up the equipment a good amount. Thanks very much in advance for any input.

Btw, if anyone knows a good HVAC guy in NW Ohio/SE Michigan, let me know! :wink: