My First Flip
It’s hard to believe this is an Italianate Victorian. Built in 1890 it has been striped of all her grandeur; she needs some love. It has sat empty since 2010. Previous owner butchered/gutted the inside to create what he had planned to be a 4-bedroom (at closing he told me he wired the 3rd floor to accommodate a 5th bedroom), 2 bathroom house, but stopped work in 2014 after passing his plumbing and electrical rough-in inspections. I don’t share his vision.
One of the full bathrooms he placed on the 1st floor, reducing the size of kitchen. The bump out on the rear of the house I assume was built when indoor toilets were made available, it houses a waste line for a toilet room. He was leaving that and created a full 3-piece bathroom. I’m removing the bump out as it’s not framed correctly and closing off the back wall to enlarge the kitchen. I will create a powder room on the first floor instead. It appears he tore out two walls to create an open concept living and dining room. Looking at the patches on the floor it also looks like he tore out fireplaces, which is disheartening.
On the second floor he created three bedrooms. What is the middle bedroom for him I will convert to the master bathroom and 2nd floor laundry closet, leaving only 2 bedrooms on the 2nd floor. The existing roughed-in bathroom on 2nd floor will remain. His 4th bedroom, 3rd floor, will be my third. When I’m done it will be a 3-bedroom, 2.5 bathroom house.
I was hoping to restore the exterior to its original wood siding, but have discovered that underneath the vinyl siding is a layer of asphalt siding. My budget can not justify the expense to remove. I will remove the yellow vinyl siding in order to restore all the windows to their original heights. When the vinyl siding was installed decades ago the owner at that time reduced the height of the windows, removing the original wood windows (except for two in front) and installed shorter aluminum windows, while also completely covering two windows on rear of house.
Purchase Price: $75,000. Timeline: Projected Nine Months.
Sold Price: $288,150. Timeline: Actual 15 Months
Following are pictures taken from the real estate listing followed by an equivalent after picture. To see more after pictures see the blog post Restoration Complete
(previous owner removed two walls)
(bricked in, not functionable)
(previous owner removed walls, room on left is his 2nd bedroom)
(will be my Master bath/Laundry room)
(will be my 2nd bedroom)
(will be my 3rd bedroom)
(potential off street parking)
