Opportunity Or Nightmare?

eweisner

Greetings...

First of all I have been in the construction industry since I was 17. This being my first post I hate that it takes on a personal nature. I have a situation that I am not sure what to do with. My father built a "structure" in the mid '90's to run a small engine shop out of. He made two mistakes...
1) he hired his father-in-law as the contractor.
2) He didn't get it past the town hall.

He had a neighbor lady convinced that he was going to start building airplanes in it. To make a long story short they told him no, and he thumbed his nose at them and moved in it as a residence. His wife has decided she's tired of waiting to finish it and wants rid of it, so they have bought a new house. I've recently gone through a divorce and have been living in it for a while. They want me to buy it at the price of a finished home in the area. While I realize that you cannot comment on what it would be worth I am looking for validation on some of my concerns. At this point the condition of the house needs to be reviewed:

1) It is located in middle TN.
2) It sits on 1.5 acres.
3) It is 24'-0"x48'-0" and built of rough cut poplar.
4) The roof is metal sitting on 1x4 slats @ 16".
5) There is not ridge vent ( he used thin smooth metal to "cap it off")
6) It is ballon framed (that's the term I have always heard anyway...There is a full two story length stud with a 1 story length stud that the floor joist sits on). The second story has 4'-0" side walls and is "sloped / cathederal" to finish ceiling height.
7) 85% of the drywall has been hung.
8) 30% of the drywall has been finished and painted.
9) Two rooms are completely minus finish flooring
10) There is one bathroom that is useable (floor, drywall finish, and paint would complete it)
11) It has no finsihed flooring
12) It's on a turned down slab that has moisture issues and has been sealed
13) He has most of the vinyl siding but only about 20% hung
14) The stair case is metal, and needs to be replaced
15) There is no fascia, ergo no gutters down spouts etc.
16) the chimney needs to be torn down and replaced....and the list goes on.


Okay...that's the general description of the house, and there are still more issues. My first question, will rough cut lumber pass codes? Can it be insured? Can I get a certificate of occupancy? What do you use as an hourly charge for estimating? Is it worth trying to finish or should I hire a dozer?

Thanks

plumguy

I think I would start by calling 3-5 reputable building contractors in the area. Get their opinions since they should know the local codes and inspectors. It would even be worth it to pay them for their time.

mdshunk

I'm counting at least 5 serious code violations in your short list, with the balloon framing without fire blocking being among the most serious. No vapor barrier in the slab... recipe for mold. Native timbers as structural members with no grade stamping or engineer seal. Holy cow... I think it's pretty safe to say that almost nothing in that "dwelling" meets any code that ever existed in the last few decades.

Just for kicks, it only costs about 200 bucks for a real estate appraiser to give you a market value. I've found that any home that's not 100% habitable is almost impossible to insure, and you can't get insurance on a home that has no siding. Tar paper or Tyvek doesn't count as an exterior finish material.

My opinion... that "dwelling" has no value except for the value of the land it's sitting on. No more, no less.

K2

Yes, land price minus any cost of disposal. Mold , the A word etc. If you are comfortable living there I would ask them to carry the note at the price you are willing to pay for rent with nothing down or very little down. If they don't like that idea let them put it on the market and maybe you can stay for a few months paying rent. If it is as you desccribed they will be back to offering it to you in a few months. If it goes as far as you buying it on payments make sure you know the difference betwen a land contract and a note and deed,( or what ever it might be called in your state). Time to get a lawyer. If your do a little fix-up and the housing- land price goes up you could be sitting pretty nice. If everything goes to crap you can walk away without too many problems except that they are family. >That is my opinion and I've got in trouble with that before. RT<P>


" Too old to die young"

Crawdad

You have codes there? When we built our log cabin here in Northeast Tennessee, we were surprised to find out that there were no building codes.
Of course, plumbing and electrical inspections were needed, but that's it.
That place would be a mansion here.
You say, he has most of the vinyl siding, and 20% is installed. If you put the rest up, would it match? Has the stuff that's up faded at all? I don't do siding, so I don't know how fast it fades, if at all. Can you still get that color, or is that "last year's color?" Many times, colors are not around forever.
I think you should do as Plumguy said, get some builders to look at it.
Get a price from a demolition company, too.
Crawdad

PipeGuy

I'll bet "they" do

Cole

Dozer that bad boy.

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