My last post was slamming new construction. After that I went to look at a finished product by a colleague. Holy Cow, it was beautiful, but very wrong.
The impact, or over all effect, was very good. Fantastic placement on the lot maximized the southern exposure. The master bedroom extended past the line of other houses on the block to have a sitting room that opend onto a deck. It was very livable for a young couple or single person.
I thought the price was right. It was very exciting to see. The problem was the rehab did nothing to address the structural issues that made the house a bargain to begin with.
This house had a ton of structural work done at some time in the past. It was another one of those cinder block perimeter support jobs that was popular some time in the past, recent, but before my time. The perimeter support allows the center to sag over time. In this particular house some one recognized the sag at some point in the past and put in a big ole center support post. That support post didn’t have the corresponding lateral supports to take the load back out to the perimeter, but it was enough to stabilize the sag.
The problem with center support issues is that as you jack up the center to get the floor level everything else rises. The plaster, sheet rock or whatever cracks. Doors become out of level, cabinets skew, and the roof can develop leaks. Flooring can usually handle the lift, but if its glued or tiled it will also be ruined.
In the house I talked about in an earlier post the rehabber had poured concrete in the middle of the house which only added to the sagging. In this house, if adressed before the rehab, or remodel, I don’t think the over all impact would have been sever. It looked like a complete gut to me.
Over many, many years I have had my wives, or friends, or relatives berate me for doing things in a property that never shows. It’s true there was no money in doing support work properly unless it translated to the finish product. I’ve tried to be judicious in my in wall, or structural, work. A guy who worked with me for many years used to tell me not to be such a perfectionist. There’s a point where you have to let it go. He was right, and over these years since I’ve learned to temper my work.
In this particular house, not doing structural work to plum up or level only created more work that now has no value. Best example is that it is much easier to hang a sheet of sheet rock on a plum and level wall that “make It fit.” It’s even worse for cabinets, or that slab granite. There are also two bathrooms that are effected.
So rehab doesn’t mean better in every case. Some times it’s actually worse.
