Restoring a house - pls encourage me

[Anonymous No.1568581]

I'm a 31 neet who never had any ambition or project except to enjoy life, and I failed badly at it.

Last year, on a personal ads website I saw a derelict house for sale for cheap in the countryside. I thought it could be nice if I bought it and restored it, maybe to live there if I can or to sell it back and make money.
That was just a silly, empty idea.
But a few months ago my two grandparents died and I'm set to inherit some money. And today I looked it up and saw that the house was still for sale and the price down.

It's an old stone house, over 300m2, with 14000m2 of land, right on the outside of a little town with a bit of tourism, with a storefront on the street. They say the roof is okay. The rest is badly damaged. It's 30 000 euros. If I buy it I would have 20 000 left to start working on it.

Do you think I could do it ? I'm not afraid of manual work, and I did some restoration work for other people before, but I don't have experience with anything that grand.

Pic related.

[Anonymous No.1568583]

>>1568581
Sorry to say but I doubt 20k would be enough.

[Anonymous No.1568591]

>>1568583
How can I estimate the amount it would require ?

[Anonymous No.1568608]

>>1568581
I think these kinds of restoration jobs are a great adventure. More pictures would help.
For example, What’s under the floor we see here? That would show if work is needed there before re-flooring.

[Anonymous No.1568625]

>>1568581
it's a great idea, but don't blow all your money on it unless you're committed. i mean, if you're a 31 year old neet there's you probably have issues. so if you have depression and sleep 14 hours a day, or a drug addict, or whatever, then don't do it.

[Anonymous No.1568661]

>>1568625
I am highly skilled and worked hard for my last ten years. Still have a depression. Wat do?

[Anonymous No.1568688]

>>1568661
As Charles Nike III would say

Just Do It

[Anonymous No.1568691]

>>1568581
30k euros now, what was the price last year? You may have some haggle room. Maybe if you walked up with 20k in hand they'd take it on the spot. Also seconding >>1568608, moar pix.

[Anonymous No.1568812]

>>1568581
>They say the roof is okay
thats good, because the bits underneath look like shit. Need moar photos, but by the looks, no-one buying that in a hurry. Offer them 15k, cash, no negotiation. BUT looks like a time and cash pit desu - dependent on your situation/location, maybe more sensible with a cheap foreclosure flat and rent that out. You'll soon get used to /diy/ then. But life aint about being sensible evry day either. Think of the money as if you had earned it, and don't piss it away
>>1568691
>20k in hand
at most. Buyers market, this

[Milwaukee No.1568861]

if i were to into something like this i would have to look at it this way;

>They say the roof is okay. The rest is badly damaged.

so that might as well mean the entire structure is no good. if i were to buy in i would add up the costs + 30% to build a complete new house. then take the value of the land with new house, compare it to the asking price, and see if theres any profit to be made. the plus 30% isnt the profit margin, its added because it doesnt matter how thorough you think you are adding up the costs there will always be fuck ups, and lots of them. its just a cushion for if(when) shit doesnt go as planned.

so @OP is the land itself worth 30,000 eurodollars, with no house on it? if not, dont buy it

[Anonymous No.1568869]

>>1568581
> Do you think I could do it

Possibly. Took a project like that on myself, so I've got some experience. Things you will likely have to do:

* New plumbing and central heating. I only know German prices but you can expect something on the order of 20-30k for a house this size if you do all the prep work (cutting slits and holes for the piping) yourself. For a project this size you might consider buying a fitting press and dies (~1000-1500 Euros depending on how many sizes you need) so you can do the piping and the radiators yourself. That might save you a whole lot of money and gives you the freedom to do rooms you do not currently need later.
* Knock the plaster off most walls and plaster them. That ain't gonna be cheap. You'll probably have to hire somebody because that's notoriously tricky to do.
* New windows: you can do these yourself, but you won't be able to do more than one or two a day. And they'll still be expensive (~300-500 Euros a piece. More like 500 if they're the size in your picture.
* Bathrooms: maybe tile (probably have to knock a the tiles off if you or the plumbers need to run hot water or gas lines through the wall), replace toilet bowl/washbasins/bathtub. If you can leave the tile in place that's about EUR 1000 per bathroom in material.
* Flooring: you may want to shovel out the dirt between the joists and replace it by thermal insulation. That's going to take loooong. And then you'll have to put a new floor in there. Expect about EUR 50-60 per square meter for OSB under layer and half decent laminate (thin layer of real wood - not plastic printed with faux wood pattern - on MDF)

These are just a few guesses based on what often needs fixing though. If you supply pictures of a few things in need of fixing, I can give you an estimate on these.

[Anonymous No.1568878]

>>1568581

Here’s the thing

Chances are, if you want to do it ‘properly’ then you would probably need to strip it right back to its structural carcass.

So we’re talking new plastering, decorating, finishing carpentry, plumbing, electrical work etc.

You may well also need to repair certain structural elements, maybe some minor roofing repairs.

Is it connected to mains water/gas/electric? Gas you can do without but the others aren’t going to be cheap to set up.

Then there’s the outside, you can have it looking the bollocks inside but you might have your work cut out for you with gardening, landscaping, groundworks etc.

If you’re patient, you COULD teach yourself how to do a lot of the work. But that can involve a lot of fuck ups which will add to the cost and your only alternative is to pay a professional to do it which obviously won’t be free.

Honestly m8, it’s all good and well having a good attitude towards manual labour, but if this place really is a complete and utter shithole then it could cost you a fortune to sort out and also cause you a great deal of stress getting there.

I would avoid it if I were you, go for something that requires less work and make sure you’re fully aware of what you’re getting yourself into.

Wait until you’re a bit more experienced, knowledgeable and confident with this type of endevaour before you go tackling the really big and difficult jobs.

[Anonymous No.1568888]

>>1568878
>Wait until you’re a bit more experienced, knowledgeable and confident

I kind of disagree on that. If you never take the plunge, you'll become more experienced, knowledgeable and confident. That being said, do pick your battles. I.e. take a very close look at what you are buying and plan out your renovations, including a rough cost estimate for each step. It's probably going to get more expensive than you estimated, but you'll have a lower bound on the sort of money you need after you've bought the place.

[Anonymous No.1568891]

>>1568888
>you'll become

Sorry, meant to write "you'll never become".

[Anonymous No.1568920]

>>1568591
>How can I estimate the amount it would require ?
Take the amount of money it costs to build a new house, then add 25%, along with a bunch of wasted time and frustration.

I'm basically in the same position, except the roof is far from okay. But I like history, and the land value of my place will only go up, short of a massive financial crisis.

One thing's for sure, I seriously doubt €20k would cover much. It may cover the remedial work you're likely to need done, but it won't renovate a house, even with all the /diy/ in the world.

[Anonymous No.1568926]

>>1568878
>>1568888
>Wait until you’re a bit more experienced, knowledgeable and confident with this type of endevaour before you go tackling the really big and difficult jobs.
I'm >>1568920 and I'd disagree as well.

You don't know his position, the market's position, or the timeframe he has in mind. The timeframe I've made for renovating my house is 5-10 years, and personally I'd rather live in a run down shithole for a few years than rent a relatively nice place, such is my disdain for landlords.

[Anonymous No.1568932]

>>1568920
>Take the amount of money it costs to build a new house, then add 25%, along with a bunch of wasted time and frustration.

I'm really tired of that particular nugget of wisdom. I did buy an old house for 50K and I'm halfway through with repairs/renovations, so my estimate of how much I'm going to spend in total has become more and more accurate. Once I'm through with the renovations I'm going to have paid somewhere between 90-110K. That figure includes the money I bought the house for.

Buying a new house would set me back 40K for the plot alone. Another 20K for the slab. Somewhere between 40 and 60K for the bare structure. Another 30K for the roof. 10-20K for the windows. 10K for electricity. 30K for plumbing and central heating. About 10K for plastering. 10K-20K for the bare minimum in interior shit (doors, stairways, kitchen). And just like that we're already north of 200K. And that new place won't come with the huge-ass barn my old farmhouse came with.

> One thing's for sure, I seriously doubt €20k would cover much.

For me it covered new windows and central heating. It wouldn't do that for a house the size of the one OP is looking at, though.

[Anonymous No.1568942]

>>1568932
Nugget of wisdom? I just made that statement up based on my own experiences. We're not simply talking 'old houses' here either, we're talking run down shitholes that clearly haven't had maintenance done on them for a long time.

The equivalent of €20k for me is just the initial money I need to get my house piers replaced, before I can even work on the house itself.
>but I'm going to get piers dug down to the bedrock because soil movement has been a historic problem here

[Anonymous No.1568948]

>>1568942
> Nugget of wisdom?

Yeah. I've heard that from lots of people and it's simply not true if you chose your old house carefully.

> We're not simply talking 'old houses' here either, we're talking run down shitholes that clearly haven't had maintenance done on them for a long time.

Ok. I'm definitely talking carefully picked old house, myself. I made sure it was structurally sound, the roof wasn't leaking and picked one that already had a central boiler for hot water (that's where the central heating furnace ended up going).

> The equivalent of €20k for me is just the initial money I need to get my house piers replaced, before I can even work on the house itself.

Ouch. I've got the opposite problem: the house sits on bedrock (granite), so absolutely no soil movement or setting there. Unfortunately that also means a huge slab of granite jutting into the barn smack in the middle and eating up 4 square meters of space. Oh well. The ceiling is high enough. I'll just encase it in concrete and extend the concrete slab all the way to the walls left and right of it. That'll make for a nice loading dock :-)

[Anonymous No.1568950]

>>1568608
I dunno, that's from the ad's pictures and they don't show much more.

>>1568625
The light inside me broke but I can still work (and wake up early).

>>1568691
45 000. Now it's already very cheap for what it seems to be if I compare to other offers I see around.
I suspect it might be an extraordinary opportunity.

>>1568861
30 000 seems to be a reasonable price for the land itself.

>>1568869
>>1568812
>>1568878
>>1568920
Thanks for the advice.
It is connected to the towns networks (phone, electricity, sewers, water).

I would have to go and see it to know more about the real degree of damage.

[Anonymous No.1568954]

>>1568950
>I would have to go and see it to know more about the real degree of damage.

You need to do that. Take lots of pictures and ask lots of questions about the questionable stuff. Doesn't matter if they answer truthfully or not, as long as they get the impression that you have doubts. That's a good bargaining position for pushing the price down later.

Taking a look never hurts. Even if you decide not to buy. For the more houses you look at, the better you get at evaluating them.

[Anonymous No.1568955]

>>1568581
burn it to the ground, collect insurance money.

[Anonymous No.1568970]

>>1568581
If you dont mind living in a half finished shit hole go for it.

[Anonymous No.1568979]

>>1568970

Living that dream right now. It's got its treats.

> tfw you never need to take your boots off when going inside

[Anonymous No.1568982]

Christ this thread is stressing me out.
Don't do it, OP. Lets say you get in over your head--how long has this house been on the market? You think you'll be able to sell it if you need to? Get your money back?
Why not take up an apprenticeship with someone who does this regularly, learn as much as you can (and make more money)? My uncle did that, now he's his own boss and turns a good profit. Has fixed up shit holes for family as well.
Good luck either way, OP.

[Anonymous No.1569024]

>>1568970
I guess I wouldn't.

>>1568982
>You think you'll be able to sell it if you need to? Get your money back?
Well... It doesn't sound completely impossible, but what do I know ? little.

[Anonymous No.1569027]

( ͡º ͜ʖ ͡º)

[Anonymous No.1569038]

>>1568581
I think you can do especially if you have other income. Just be careful that you do not run out of steam on big projects that last more than your moods.

[Anonymous No.1569044]

>>1569024
>I guess I wouldn't.

If you don't live there (or next door). It will take you a very long time. Because there's a world of difference between "I'll quickly go next door and put up a few lamps" and "I'll spend an hour driving just to put up a few lamps", especially after a long work day...

[Anonymous No.1569048]

>>1569044
I meant I wouldn't mind.

[Anonymous No.1569050]

>>1569024
>>1569044
>If you don't live there (or next door).
I would strongly, STRONGLY recommend living there (or next door), otherwise be prepared to have low life junkie cockroach scumbags undo any hard work you do, in order to sustain their parasitic existence.

Nearly got to crack some junkie skulls tonight even, but they got away before I got outside. Also, if the block is covered in blackberry bushes like mine is, cut them down but don't mulch them, instead pile them up next to the property line. 100% organic, all natural barbed wire that even the retardedest of countries (like mine) won't make illegal.

[Anonymous No.1569052]

>>1568869
>german prices
so multiply by 0.1 in any other country that is not cuckistan

[Anonymous No.1569054]

>>1568979
Kek

[Anonymous No.1569055]

>>1569050
>cut them down but don't mulch them, instead pile them up next to the property line.

Does that only apply to the blackberry bushes or to the junkies as well? Asking for a friend.

[Anonymous No.1569058]

>>1569052

I don't know about the rest of the world, but it's similar or even worse in other European countries. But people there have more money.

[Anonymous No.1569067]

>>1569055
Piles of junkies does tend to ward off other junkies, but for some reason has the nasty habit of attracting government officials. I'd stick with the blackberries, as once your house suffers an infestation of government, it's almost impossible to get rid of, they're even worse than blackberries!

[Anonymous No.1569073]

>>1569067
Can't you make jam with them ?

[Anonymous No.1569094]

>>1569073
You can if you really want to, but junkies taste awful.

[Anonymous No.1569102]

>>1568581
>pls encourage me

I'd like to but that is cheap for a reason, it looks like a shell. You'll have to do floorboards, electrics, plaster the walls and so on. Definitely not a project for someone who hasn't already done a few homes. These type of properties are usually taken on by builders.

[Anonymous No.1569129]

>>1568581
>I'm a 31 neet who never had any ambition or project except to enjoy life, and I failed badly at it.

And all of that effort is going to go into a house that is the proverbial (you).

>euros

House isn't worth shit. "Location Location Location" as they say

>Do you think I could do it ? I'm not afraid of manual work, and I did some restoration work for other people before, but I don't have experience with anything that grand.

No. Buy a trailer.

[Anonymous No.1569131]

>>1568581
If you can find it, get the place financed with a mortgage and improvement loan on it while keeping your assets as liquid as possible.

[Anonymous No.1569227]

>>1568581
All these replies relate to cost.
What’s the value of a completed comparable building? A storefront brings more than a residence, and both could be really good, depending on OP’s real estate market.

[Anonymous No.1569467]

You should check how much other properties in a good state are selling for in that area. That should give you some idea of the kind of return you could get.

If amount spent > amount you could sell it for, then the question becomes 'is it worth X amount of my inheritance, and X months of my time, to learn how to do a major house renovation?'

[Anonymous No.1569472]

>>1569227
>all srs business
dude, theres fuck all enough info, in which case, most haave to err on the side of caution. this with good reason. Theres fuck no way, OP gets that heap livable for 20k, maybe, wind and watertight, if hes lucky. If thought he'd live thro it and not have to sell a half-finished ruin for 15k again, great, live the dream bro. But, all sounds a bit blue-eyed desu, and no interest in seeing ppl fuck themselves over just for being too ambitious. If/When OP says, 'can buy cheap caravan, can live there, have also job/cash elsewhere, its my total dream and not some rnd ruin that caught my fancy..' etc. - different story then, maybe, innit. Otherwise, bit of realism is not always welcomed, but, sometimes necessary. As said, more info (where?) - can judge storefront rentable etc - otherwise, burnt fingers hurt

[Anonymous No.1569473]

>>1568581
I have a house that was about in that condition.

Honestly remember, when you're doing work for yourself, pace yourself, do some demo and make a pile, add to it whenever you're feeling down, sledgehammering and prying shit is a good stress release.
Then when it's down to the studs insulate. It's very simple and cheap, and helps tons, think about the difference you'll notice. Then put the drywall on. Floating drywall is always a calming experience to me - I can get into the application and sanding, making it perfect is so satisfying. painting seals it all up and gives you the satisfaction that you did it - it looks like it's supposed to and you know that you achieved it.

I always contract out flooring though, I hate it and when I do it it looks like ass.

[Anonymous No.1569479]

>>1569473
>Then when it's down to the studs

Europe, so down to the raw brick.

> painting seals it all up and gives you the satisfaction that you did it

Now this one is a thing in Europe, too. Painting is usually one of the last steps. Once you peel of the foil and reveal a proper finished fucking room underneath...feelsgoodman.jpg.

[Anonymous No.1569504]

>>1569467
>>1569227
Professionally renovated farmhouses with a lot of land seem to go around 1000/1500euros per m2. I can't say what the storefront is worth, but in these little towns shops close more often than they open.
Ideally I want a place where I can live, so it's interesting to me, to maybe open a pizzeria or something to sustain myself. Selling it back would be the plan B.
>>1569472
Realism is welcome too.
I could live there, I don't have a job elsewhere, it's just something that caught my fancy.

But fancies are all I get.

[Anonymous No.1569508]

>>1569504

Is that the place? France, huh?

From the architecture, the area looks mediterranean, so you won't have to worry about heating/insulation quite as much and can do the windows bit by bit rather than all at once because you have to keep the heat in.

> Ideally I want a place where I can live, so it's interesting to me, to maybe open a pizzeria or something to sustain myself.

Given the size and location of the place, tourism might be an option, too. One or two rooms to rent out. Maybe on a working holiday "You help me renovate for room and board" kind of basis at first, then graduate to paying customers :-)

[Anonymous No.1569520]

>>1569504
>maybe open a pizzeria
determined to get burnt fingers ;)
Merde, when its that? can see the attraction now desu. Def. looks 1000% better already, esp. as avoids incriminating detail of being actual fucking ruin. With 'living there' (caravans, etc) - what is meant, you CANNOT live in that shitheap, when limited cash/time, for maybe a year or so at least, realistically - thus, the caravan. Added expense, but needed, can also resell if/when ever done. Go the fuck for it, put in a lowball offer (inheritance/disinterested owners? - you gold) - keep at it, post some updates. Sort your electrics for a weeks free board (+ beer) - depending location. Shithole in Shithole, that's still not good. Otherwise, get it fucking bought bro, before you dead of indecision

[Anonymous No.1569525]

>>1569520
>you CANNOT live in that shitheap
Meh. I did worse in the past, though never for more than a month.
>>1569508
Yeah, that was on my mind too, but I checked and there's already quite a lot of rooms to rent in the area. There's also a camping place ~2kms away. I don't know if it meets the demand or not.
Working holidays are a must. I did it myself in the past, now I could avenge myself and be the exploiter.

[Anonymous No.1569529]

>>1568581

1. DO IT

2. Get someone who is experienced with old houses to take a look at the house you want to buy. Don't fall for some big corporate bullshit company who will charge you 2000 bucks for a "report" or anything, just get an old, seasoned, experienced guy who knows what he's doing. You'll need to look up some small companies for that, ask around, someone will know someone and point you to the right guy. Pay him a bit of money for his time, idk, 100 bucks or something for an hour or two walking thru the house and looking into dark corners would seem OK for me.

3. If he says it's shit, don't buy THAT house and look for a different one.

My dad almost bought a horrible timesink of a house, but my granddad pointed out all the really bad things that could go wrong and would need insanely expensive fixes, so he didn't. Instead he bought another house which still was a lot of work, but not as catastrophic. Always helps to have a bit of guidance from a person who is not emotionally entangled in the project and has a level head. If you you know anyone like that, preferably with some experience, drag him along for a look at the house.

If the house has been listed for a while, and hasn't sold, and they even dropped the price - do the math. It is a hard sell. They shouldn't give you a hard time getting a good deep look at it, and probably you can wiggle the price down a bit, too.

[Anonymous No.1569546]

>>1569529
This is actually reasonable advice.

Dump houses can be a steal IF they don’t need everything replaced. You need someone who knows though.

Investors can’t afford to buy them because labor is the most expensive part of building/remodeling.

I would look at the house, make sure the floor isn’t heaved or buckling, make sure the exterior (stucco/brick/siding) doesn’t need to be replaced, make sure there is wiring run everywhere (some old houses have <1 outlet per room- I would replace the wiring but not having to drill through studs saves you a week of work), see if the garage doors still work and just need paint, walk the roof and sight the roof line- if it’s straight or close and you can walk everywhere on the roof without falling through, you should be fine.

If most of these are good to go, offer them the cost of the lot - half the cost of tearing the house down ($2-4k).

If they agree, you know you’ll need to re roof, replace the furnace/ air, replace all the windows with off-the-shelf cheap ones from your nearest home store (Blowes or Hoe Depot competitor).

The climate control will cost you 3-10k depending on who does it, the roof will cost you 2-3k if you do it yourself and the windows will be about that.

Wiring will run 3k if you do it yourself, drywall ~1k, flooring won’t be less than 3k if there aren’t re-finishable hardwoods, etc etc.

So when you add everything up, you need to work a job to pay for the last 30% of the remodel. But, if you do it all, you’ll will have accomplished something for once and might even make some money doing it.

I would dive in if the house checks out, pick up a job at Home Depot or similar for the discount and then work 25 hours a week there and 35 hours a week on the house.

I’d have the house finished in 6-8 months because I would plan everything out and keep to the schedule.


The most important advice I can give you on deciding whether on not to do it is to be reasonable

[Anonymous No.1569547]

>>1569546
You notice I left out plumbing.

You obviously don’t know anything about plumbing, so I would just re-finish the house as is. Plumbing is not that hard but high risk. I always hire a plumber because I hate doing it and don’t want a flood.

Just plan on restoring everything where it currently is.

You can move non-load-bearing walls but beyond that, just reface the existing

[Anonymous No.1569569]

2 and a half years into renovations of a 2 bedroom home and its very nearly finished. I'm completely fucking over it, it has stolen all my free time and consumed my every thought.

Be ready.

[Anonymous No.1569570]

>>1569569
>not having every detail down to trim and cabinets worked out before jumping into it

You sound like my dad.

He’s “flipped” 3 houses and only made a profit on the first one by accident.

He doesn’t think anything through, doesn’t write anything down and it takes 3x the time and 2x the money.

You get >10:1 return just writing a fucking a schedule.

Yes, it’s not hard but contractors make money almost solely on scheduling.

[Anonymous No.1569581]

>>1569570
> You get >10:1 return just writing a fucking a schedule.

I've found schedules only add extra stress. Only make them where they are required, for instance when you need to rent heavy equipment and want to be sure you have it for exactly as long as you need it.

You need to make plans and a bill of materials for any non-trivial bit of renovation, though. Otherwise you'll waste time and money on fuckups, guaranteed.

[Anonymous No.1569636]

>>1569504
So, when finished, you’ll have a place worth 300,000. After estimating the costs to complete, it’s feasible to borrrow to finance the work.

[Anonymous No.1570312]

>>1568581
I'm no expert either, but logically speaking, if you have 20k left to invest, why don't you focus on restorate the parts that are worth restorating and wrecking the other parts? In the future, if you have money, just expand on the current building.

[Anonymous No.1570460]

>>1568581
In general : make sure the foundation is good. If it isn't, then walk away. Start on the roof to keep rain out of the walls. Then windows to keep wind/rain/snow out of the rooms. Then walls, then flooring. I know people who've turned rotting shacks into masterpieces, but it took them years of living in saw dust.

[Anonymous No.1572177]

Wait wait wait
>14000m2
If you buy the land you could get free food and live rentfree then you could turn the place into a 1 floor house

[Anonymous No.1572269]

>>1568581
>Do you think I could do it ?
Your ancestors survived all the wars that occured in Europe.

You need confidence and humbleness.

Humbleness as in, knowing that when it comes time for interior electrical and plumbing you need to get help from professionals/friends.

Go get one of the Home Depot DIY homeowners guides. Read the whole entire thing. Next go to their saturday classes (free). This knowledge will build up so quick. I restored an entire house. I couldnt believe how much i was able to learn and never would have believed i could have done it had i not just gotten in there.

[Anonymous No.1572284]

>>1572269
>Next go to [Home Depot] saturday classes (free).
OP maybe cheaper just hiring a pro, what with the airfare and all. This an actual thing tho - who goes ? I'm envisaging lesbians and bored OAPs, some reason

[Anonymous No.1572364]

>>1569529
>>1569546
>>1569547
>>1569569
>>1569570
Good remarks, duly noted.
>>1569636
I would like as much as possible to avoid loans, because I don't plan on having a stable and sizable income for the long term.
>>1570312
Wrecking a stone house goes against my religion.
>>1570460
How do I know if the foundation is good ?

>>1572177
Yeah, being able to grow most of my food is one of the things I want.
>>1572284
>>1572269
Good idea. There might be similar courses available in my country.

[Anonymous No.1572377]

>>1572269
>Your ancestors survived all the wars that occured in Europe.

>doubt.jpeg

[Anonymous No.1572401]

>>1572284
Link to the workshops?

[Anonymous No.1572407]

>>1572269
>> This knowledge will build up so quick. I restored an entire house. I couldnt believe how much i was able to learn and never would have believed i could have done it had i not just gotten in there.

Valid. I started by buying an abandoned house during the crash & had to do some basic drywall & painting. Kept expanding my toolbox & skillset with every new house. I think I could build a place from scratch now.

YouTube is an amazing resource. Pick a topic, watch 6 or 8 videos & pick the method that makes the most sense to you. None of it is rocket science.

[Anonymous No.1572409]

If this ever gets finished, please for the love of god make your ass the "shop keep"--bear with me now.

Go behind the shop counter with your bare naked ass hanging over it, and be sure to put a little shop-keeper apron over your ass to make it look official. Use your dangling ballsack to punch in numbers in the cash register and clap your butt cheeks together to grasp bags and items. Most important, be very jolly and be the best buttman cashier that ever was.

[Anonymous No.1572415]

>>1572401
(def) asking the wrong guy here mate, however, assuming you at least Murican:
>By The Power Of The Googles, I Brings You:
https://www.homedepot.com/workshops/#change_store
*Do-It-Yourself workshops help anyone kick off their project with confidence
*Do-It-Herself workshops mix demos and hands-on learning to help wimmins tackle a variety of home improvement projects.
*Kids workshops provide a lively environment mixing skill-building,creativity, and safety for future DIYers.
I (guess..) just select a store and see what (if any) is avail, the choice (Incompetents/Wimmins/Kids) is yours otherwise. Was still interested anyone had attended one, as non-Murican, idle curiosity. Once tried to organise open-air welding class(es), lesbian(s) was best/most interested, but the guy I'd earmarked to teach it turned out a bigger pisshead than the rest of us put together. Which was indeed an achievement

[Anonymous No.1572822]

>>1568581
Nothing wrong with owning some land if you are able to, even if you decided to tear the house down, the possibilities are massive.

[Anonymous No.1572825]

>>1572822
>even if you decided to tear the historic stone villa down
Damn boomers, get off my Internet!
>[shakes technology above head with aggressive intent]

[Anonymous No.1572829]

Contractor here. I'd say 20k would get that room done to modern standards if you hired me.

[Anonymous No.1574540]

>>1568954
Yea. This.

The first thing I ever do when interested in a property is visit the location and do a thorough inspection. Don't believe them about the roof. Check it.

20k is probably not enough but it will get the lions share done if you save on labour by doing everything yourself. Keep in mind this reno will probably take several years to complete.

It could be a eeally positive thing, keeping you busy doing something productive for yourself. However you must plan ahead and work out how to get finances to add the finishing touches in the future. Otherwise what state of mind will you be in, living in a leaky, draughty run down shack with no money to continue.

I am sorry OP but there is no respite from depression. All you can do is minimise cause and find the determination to struggle. Because to live is to struggle.

You should probably do it. The experience will make or break you. It's your choice.

[Anonymous No.1574828]

>>1574540
> The experience will make or break you.
That's an attractive prospect, honestly.

[Anonymous No.1574935]

>>1568581
It's a fantastic project but 20k is nothing. Get the roof checked and don't believe it blindly, if it isn't good there's more than 20k gone already

[Anonymous No.1575391]

>>1568581
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/couple-went-buy-glasgow-flat-14146708
if these wombles can do it? anyone can..

[Anonymous No.1575419]

>>1568950
>>1568869
I've been working on a summer house from 1920 that I bought two years ago. Here are some tricks that helped me save costs:

>Knew a guy who changes his windows form 1990s to brand new windows. He gladly gave away all the old ones and I used them to upgrade winows for free. Two layer glass is fine.

>Reasearched how to do all electric work myself. Bought and prepared everythign where it was going to be, called electrician and he spent just a few hours plugging stuff in. Saved a lot on this.

>Studied details online and demolished and rebuild the bathroom myself. Took one month of hard work from start to finish. Never done conrete slab/tiles before. Much less frustrating than expected. Also: Make sure to get advice and approcal from people who know their shit.

>Bought an incinolet incinirator toilet to skip all costs and applications for plumbing. But made sure I can upgrade to plumbing at a later point if i prefer so.

Also: OP, download season 10-14 of grand designs on 1337.to, much to learn from their mistakes.

[Anonymous No.1575422]

>>1575419
>>Reasearched how to do all electric work myself. Bought and prepared everythign where it was going to be, called electrician and he spent just a few hours plugging stuff in. Saved a lot on this.

Same for plumbing by the way. When I got central heating the plumbers ran the pipes but I cut all the slits and holes myself. Saved a ton on that one. If they had had to do that bit themselves, they would have spent two extra weeks and I would have paid about 5k more. If you can reduce the job any tradesman needs to do to the very core of his trade, it'll be a lot cheaper both because you won't have to pay through the nose for a lot of extra labour and because they'll treat you better on account of not having to do the tedious but necessary scut work.

[Anonymous No.1575427]

>>1575422
>>1575419
Why didn't you do all the plumbing and electricity work yourself ?

[Anonymous No.1575430]

>>1575427

Plumbing:

I did the bathroom remodel (new toilet bowl/tank, new washbasin, new bathtub) and I'm going to do the kitchen myself. The pipes for heating need a special fitting press and a set of dies that alone would have cost about 1500. I paid about as much in labor, so I chose to let the plumbers do it right away rather than try it myself, fuck up, retry and in the end spend more than those 1500. Also, furnace installation itself takes a licensed plumber since it's gas fired.

Electricity:

I do everything up to the fuse box myself, usually. And 3 phase I leave to electricians, too. That may change eventually, but I'm not at that point, yet. Ask me again in two years.

[Anonymous No.1575431]

>>1575419
>season 10-14
the rest (seasons) crap, or just not ruin-porn related?

[Anonymous No.1575434]

>>1575431
He revisits all the good projects from 1-10 in 10-14. So if you start at s1, then you will have to rewatch a lot of the projects. The best ones are shown in 10-14. In the latest season you get to see projects done 15 years ago etc. If you want bubble porn: watch grand designs australia. Retards spending 6 million dollars on terrible houses where they change their mind every week, but they think its fine because of the "location".

>>1575427
You're qupting two different people btw. If I did the electric myself and there was a fire, then I wouldn't get the insurance. By having the electrician confirm it to be safe, it's on his company.

[Anonymous No.1575435]

>>1575431
>>1575434
>>1575427
I meant 10-17 btw. That's the torrent available at 1337.

[Anonymous No.1575440]

>>1575435
>>1575434
>>1575431
>>1568581

Seems like a lot is on youtube as well. Here's one for OP:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gO-JMq35KCI

[Anonymous No.1575444]

>>1575435
>meant 10-17 btw.
yeah onnit, good man cheers..
vpn-on stops me 4ch shitposting as well, but, theyve also got their bad points

[Anonymous No.1576440]

>>1568581
Talk the down to 20 or 25k and buy it. If it's on the edge of a mildly tourist town set the rest of your money to making at least one liveable and rentable space where people don't have to see the derelict shit. If you can get someone to rent it that's money coming in. You can make decent enough money most places doing something like organic chicken farming or whatever.

If you fuck that up then start going to property get rich conventions in your area and convince some idiot there you've got something great to invest in, get a loan, then flip it or something.

[Anonymous No.1577366]

>>1568581
>>1568583
I'm on a metered connection so I won't bother to read the rest of the thread to see if anyone has already suggested this, but look into any sort of grants or funding or tax cuts or whatever that your town/region/nation has in place for people doing remodeling. if it's an old stone house in the countryside near a tourist area then you might be able to get funds to restore it. having a cozy stone house with smoke coming out of the chimney is much more aesthetically pleasing to tourists than an abandoned dump.

finding this sort of information can be a pain in the ass if you're a neet like me and only search for things online. your best bet would be to physically go to government buildings and ask people directly, or call them on the phone - if you don't immediately get in touch with the correct person then you'll be directed to them.

[Anonymous No.1578856]

I waited too long, it's gone.
And I don't think I can find anything comparable.

Another missed opportunity.

[Anonymous No.1578874]

>>1578856
nah you dodged a bullet homie

[Anonymous No.1579066]

>>1575427
>Why didn't you do all the plumbing and electricity work yourself ?
In some dictatorial shitholes (eg. Australia), it's illegal to /diy/

[Anonymous No.1579130]

Since you’re in the EU, I’d say drop it. The construction regulations are getting so bad you pretty much have to be a lawyer to do anything on a building these days.

Fuck the EU.

[Anonymous No.1579179]

>>1568581
> I saw a derelict house for sale for cheap in the countryside. I thought it could be nice if I bought it and restored it, maybe to live there
As someone who has done exactly this, I can say the risk can be worth the reward depending on the situation. A few things you should already have before undertaking a job like this are the skillset and equipment, financing, and support from friends and family.
>b4 pic

[Anonymous No.1579181]

>>1579179
after

[Anonymous No.1579182]

>>1579181
And my barn

[Anonymous No.1579184]

>>1579182
Which is now my garage

[Anonymous No.1579185]

>>1579179
Hey! Looks like my house!

[Anonymous No.1579191]

>>1579185
That pic is after I tore off all the additions and dumb shit added to it since 1898. It actually looked worse when I took possession

[Anonymous No.1579199]

>>1579182
what's up with the pos pontiac?

[Anonymous No.1579209]

>>1579191
Yeah, I'm in the same boat.

>pic related
>Generation 1: wiring inside metal conduit
>Generation 2: discoloured wiring from a couple decades ago
>Generation 3: my "totally legal" temporary wiring until I have the money to do renovations

[Anonymous No.1579210]

>>1579209
>>1579191
Fuck sake, forgot to attach the cunt.

[Anonymous No.1579248]

>>1578856
>Another missed opportunity.

Nope, it was merely a catalyst. You are now interested.
Take that money, stow it away. You need to do research into finding a decent house to flip or rent. There are always opportunities out there.

[Anonymous No.1579258]

>>1579179
>>1579209
>>1579210
>>1578856
I just made a new, more general thread about housing investments
Hopefuly we can get something started over there because ive been seriously considering buying a rental house, or a flipper house for a while but havent pulled the trigger.
Hopefully get some longer term discussion since the house in the OP is gone

>>1579256

[Anonymous No.1579287]

>>1568581
Come on faggot, you can do it. The ability to buy cheap land, with a structure on it, and by the sounds of it in a third world country where you can what the fuck you want without planning regulations up your ass? You're living the fucking dream. Do it. Especially if you're depressed, at a loose end, too much time on your hands etc. There are few things that build character and self esteem like creating with your own two hands. Doubtless you'll make all kinds of expensive fuck ups along the way but that's part of the process. Just try it, man. Even if nothing comes of it you can resell the land, potentially for a profit.

[Anonymous No.1579330]

>>1569131
theres no way any bank would lend you money with a house in such a sorry state. The best you could do is pay for it upfront and hope for the best. Where do you live? There has to be better properties that you can take advantage of.

[Anonymous No.1579396]

>>1579130

Live rural, and the law of the land is basically still "don't ask, don't tell", as it always has been. Sure, you'll be liable if shit goes wrong, but

(a) Take some goddamn responsibility!
(b) Do the job right so shit doesn't go wrong.
(c) hire somebody with experience if you know you absolutely cannot pull off (b).

> t. rural German

(And just in case it isn't obvious: Germany is the 9th circle of the EUSSR's regulation hell).

[Anonymous No.1579398]

>>1568581
I had to translate from poverty units but 3.5 acres is nice.

[Humble croatian red aerated te(...) No.1579422]

>>1568581
Godspeed anon!

use this as a reference

[Anonymous No.1579845]

Do it OP!

My parents bought a cheap house in way worse condition than every house i ever saw on /diy/, rebuild it themselves and now it's worth 400k+€ above the original price. What they found was that while working full time you're not really able to spend more than 1-1.5k€ a month on building besides the big investments like heating systems etc So that 20k, while probably not enough as some people mentioned, will last you a long time if you are carefull. If you look out for used stuff and are willing to put a lot of work in it is absolutely doable. Building material sometimes comes near free/only the cost for gas to pick it up.

What you'll do though is exchange money for time. It's not going to be finished in 3 months. For a lot of years of my life i basically lived on a construction site.


>>1579422
Don't agree with everything but especially the reinforced concrete stuff. It is NOT fragile in any way. Properly dimensioned it will last forever. I know several 80 year old buildings in my neighborhood made from reinforced concrete and while completely unmaintained are unchanged. I have no doubt they will last at least another 300 years.
Prestressed concrete is a different thing though. I won't trust that beyond 40 years.

[Anonymous No.1579867]

>>1572364
>How do I know if the foundation is good ?

The house is old. If the foundation is bad, then walls sag and cracks develop. It will be very visible. If nothing is obviously visible, i would reckon the foundation is still good. I'm not a foundation expert, merely speaking from a bit of experience fixing houses and just logic.

[Anonymous No.1580391]

Leave the house as is.
Make soap in the kitchen.
Fight in the basement.
Never talk about it.

[Anonymous No.1580828]

>>1568581
Ask to view the property, and bring a construction company with you to get a quote.

Also the land might be worth it if you can haggle the price. You could get a cabin with the remaining money. Then live there rent free and use your income to finish the main house over a couple of years.

[Anonymous No.1580903]

>>1568581
Sorry to rain on your parade, but you should start with a smaller house first that maybe needs a few renovations to see if it is something you actually like to do. That way you aren't spending all your money at once, can figure out if you like it or not, and have the ability to resell the house later.

The option you are going for is a great way to lose THIRTY THOUSAND euros dude.

[Anonymous No.1581032]

>>1568583
not even close to enough...also depends on how much of the work you can do and what you local codes and standards are..

[Anonymous No.1581033]

>>1572377
well yeah, lots didnt in a sense, but survived to reproduce and that off spring survived the difficult aftermaths of such wars.

[Anonymous No.1581042]

>>1578856
that gated garden would have been soo nice...

[Anonymous No.1581072]

I thought I ask here...
Pic is similar to what I'm having issues with, The front door of my apartment has water damage, making it scraching the floor when it moves.
Will taking it down, sanding it off, then applying varnish would fix it?

[Anonymous No.1581074]

>>1580903
>>1580391
>>1579845

It's already sold to someone else. I have been looking for something else but nothing is quite as attractive. Mostly because of the location. Now I have a regret.

I hope the sale doesn't go through and it comes back. But oh well.

Thanks to everyone in this thread though, lots of good advice, little negativity, no sarcasm. You're pretty good people here on this board, it was a nice surprise.

(hope sage still works)

[Anonymous No.1581504]

>>1568581
>31 neet
>never had any ambition
>pls encourage me
FUCK you.

[Anonymous No.1581546]

>>1581072
>would removing the part that gets in the way help
Dunno anon, I will consult with NASA.

[Anonymous No.1581549]

>>1568581
Do not enter

[Anonymous No.1581712]

>>1581546
I'm asking because I have no knowledge on how to fix wood or finish it.