kkelly said:
I just bought a flat here for £73000 and i thought i was doing good! but $18k il have 4 please
Johnny69 said:
I don't appear to like you any more Mickey.
To all that are
over the purchase price of my house, don't forget what it looked like when I bought it....
We have since replaced :
The septic tank (self contained sewer system)
ALL wiring
ALL plumbing
ALL flooring
ALL drywall on interior walls
ALL lighting fixtures and wall sockets
we have also done :
Brought in 5 cubic yards of black dirt to try and level the yard.
Completely wore out one riding lawn mower and almost knackered a second clearing the yard.
Chopped down, chopped up, hauled away/burned at least 30 trees.
Chopped down, chopped up, and burned at least 30 cubic yards of underbrush growth.
Built and installed a porch and patio.
Reinforced the roof in the garage.
Moved and wired the storage shed.
Installed all the phone lines.
Installed the sattelite TV system.
Hauled in 2 cubic yards of gravel to try and bring the driveway above the water table.
Insulated two exterior walls, working on the third. Fourth I will hopefully get to before winter.
Things still to be done :
Finish the siding.
Replace all original windows with vinil double paned energy efficient ones ($$$$$$$$$$$$$)
Install and hook up the outdoor woodburning stove.
Tear down and replace the garage.
Haul in and hook up the other house as an addition.
So, if you include all the hours of labour we've put into it and have paid "proffessionals" to do it, we'd most likely be WELL above our home's value right now. And there's still a LOT to do.
It all depends on your skills and abilities. I grew up in a house that was barely above (sometimes not) poverty level. If something needed repaired, we HAD to do it ourselves as there was no way in hell we could afford to pay someone to do it. So we learned. Quite often the hard way. But it taught me some valuable lessons in carpentry, plumbing, electrical, gardening, automotive repair, small engine repair, etc, etc, etc. And I'm still learning. 5 years ago what I knew about moving a house could have been explained in two words : diddly squat. I'm now trying it myself. I'll probably make twice as much effort at it than someone who knows what they're doing, but it'll have cost me some hours of my time and a little petrol in my truck. Not the $25,000 I've been quoted for a "proffessional" to do it for me!!
I think it all comes down to what you consider more important to you - your time or your money. For some they equal each other. For me, I had the time, I didn't have the money. So I did a lot myself and saved a bundle. Others if they had spent the amount of time I have on the house probably could have paid for a nice house with the what they would have made in that time. And actually done a lot less work.
Credit..
Seriously though, although I could easily afford to buy and run a £20k+ car, I'd never do it if it were my own money and would instead go the used route.
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