Question about Complete Home Renovation

So DH and I are considering buying his mom's house ( he grew up in it). Its kind of a weird siuation but his recently widowed, unemployed and kina sick mom and maintain the home and we are looking for a house to move into the next phase of our life with our DS.

We basically would be able to give his mom a nice chunk of $ and she could not worry about the house - however she will move in with us... not to keen on that - but seems its my destiny...


My question after all that is - what am I potentially getting myself into - when I say yes lets buy her house and "knock it down and rebuild"

Its an older house Id day at least 60 yrs old and has had NOT ONE THING updated... not the windows, electrical wiring, roof... nada- zilp... its just a mess...

years of smoking inside, lots of pets and just 40yrs of wear and tear...

We love the neighborhood its DH's "hood" - the BX

I dont even know where to start... cost, contractor, design...

Any advise would be appreciated
tx!

Re: Question about Complete Home Renovation

I'd start with an architect and contractor to start figuring out what you could build and what it may run you. Then add 20%. If you can comfortably afford that plus whatever you have to pay his mom, then you should consider it. Tearing down and building from scratch means you get what you want, but I imagine it will also cost a huge amount of money and take a long time.

Question about Complete Home Renovation

Remember also that if you're redoing the entire house, you probably won't be able to live in it for at least part of the time.

Whether it's worth it also depends on the value of the house. If your renovations + payoff to his mom is going to be more than the value, you might not even get approved for a loan so that's another thing to think about.

Re: Question about Complete Home Renovation

I would also consider looking into a pre-fab house. It would probably be cheaper and definitely faster. And if you have the room, I would try to make your mil her own apartment or suite so she (and you) have your own space.

Re: Question about Complete Home Renovation

Are you sure it's a total knockdown? I would invest in a home inspection and then, as others have said, get estimates from a contractor as to what you want to do.

But unless the layout is REALLY unworkable to you, and the house is way too small (that even adding a dormer or addition wouldn't help), I find it hard to believe that you should knock it down to the foundation and rebuild.

If the house is say, built in the 1950s -- because you are estimating it's around 60 years old -- I imagine that at some point, the roof WAS updated. Most roofs, even if one layer and done really well, last 30-40 years tops. So I can't see it being a 60 year old roof and still being functional.

If the windows are original, but still functional, they can be replaced over time. It would be more efficient to have newer windows. But if you don't go for the highest end windows in every room (e.g., Pella, Anderson), you could get replacement windows for $100-$200 each.

Same with the electrical - - most homes that were built in the 1950s don't have completely updated electric. Sometimes people upgrade the panel, for more amperage, but that doesn't mean the electrical has all been updated. I have a 1959 home with a 200 amp panel (and CAC and other upgrades), but one of my outlets just burned out and they all really need to be updated now.

So my point is, the house may need upgrades and renovation, even a gut renovation, but I think a knockdown situation is extreme.

New sheetrock, new paint, new flooring can get rid of pet and smoke odors.

Also consider how your taxes will be affected by rebuilding versus just renovating the interior. If you leave the original foundation, it's not considered new construction for tax purposes, but if you rebuilt it bigger, adding square footage to the house or additional improvements, the taxes will go up.

Also, if it really needs that much work, is it mortgageable (if you plan to get a mortgage)? I would just consider what price you'd be paying and what you have to put into it before you buy ... you have to figure out if it's really a good deal for you. It may make more sense to sell that house, and then pool your resources to buy a mother/daughter home with your MIL that is more move in ready.

Re: Question about Complete Home Renovation

think long and hard before you move into this house, its great that you'll be able to completely renovate it, but I'm in this situation now (we bought the home my DH grew up in) and I absolutely hate it! It just doesn't feel like my home, I'm constantly reminded by my MIL and other family members of the history that was there before "us" and I really can't stand it!

Re: Question about Complete Home Renovation

Message edited 10/4/2014 12:01:01 AM.