Choosing a Neighborhood? Choose This.

Image by Martin LaBar via Flickr
WSJ’s Juggle Blog posted a story yesterday about the factors in choosing a neighborhood - a topic of interest to most urban escapees. It reports these findings:
Given a choice, most people don’t care as much about the local economy as they do about the social offerings, physical beauty and openness […]

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More Buried Treasures

Eric, our awesome contractor, came by the grocery today to give Brian two things he dug up from the root cellar (aka wine cellar) during our last work installment (when he removed the floors). Eric’s been busy all summer and I know why: he rocks.Anyway, here’s what he found (click thru for a larger image):

It’s […]

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Buy This House. Please.

UPDATE! 11/17/2009 - We have a new neighbor!! And we like her… Christmas has come early!
—
First: what I get out of it. Well, I live nearby. I’m invested in two home renovations, a business, and an urban farm here. That’s because I believe in this up-and-coming neighborhood and the city in general.
Here’s why I think, […]

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A Modest Post for Granddaddy

My grandfather died recently. He was 93. He’s already missed. Here’s a shot of my father and I with Granddaddy shortly after I was born.

Granddaddy was many things and this short post couldn’t begin to do justice. I’ve struggled to put it into words internally. Forget about how to mark his passing here on my […]

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We're Not the Only Ones

Just came across this press release, confirming the trend of leaving cities and working from points once considered “off-the-map”:
New communications technology, coupled with increasingly congested and expensive business climates in large metro areas, has driven many large employers to base operations in far-flung areas that no one would have considered viable merely 20 years ago.
At […]

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4-1/2 Announcements

Whew! Very busy lately. But it’s all good busyness so without further ado, our four and one-half announcements:
First, the 1/2: Work begins again at Jefferson tomorrow morning. Our contractor will be removing all of the flooring. This is in preparation for the structural repairs associated with the addition. Unfortunately we were unable to find someone […]

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Should We Save the Suburbs?

Old homes hold the key to rethinking how we live and making it “greener”.

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We’re Selling

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We love our house, but, we’ve decided to focus on other projects. We’re asking $79,000, with owner financing available to a buyer who will retain the home’s single family status.

More info here: 110NorthJefferson.com

katie @ July 17, 2010

Born Fighting

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Cover via AmazonI read the book Born Fighting by James Webb months ago and have spent the better amount of the time since boring anyone who will listen. (But not you. Not yet.)

The amazing book Born Fighting is proof I’m open minded enough to read books endorsed by John McCain...as well as proof that you’re always a product of your cultural and historical background (for better or worse).

And yes, this book actually has a parallel with home restoration. (The “fighting” part - certainly!)

However, I’ve been too busy working and in the middle of a bathroom renovation project to give the book its due. So, here goes - as abridged as I can make it.

This book is fascinating. (Particularly, of course, if you too are of Scot-Irish descent.) I’m not one for the Roman era, where the book begins, but, reading it set the stage for the American experience. It was here that got me all riled up.

Why? Because as a cultural history the Scot-Irish experience is practically invisible (on one level). Yet, once revealed… Suddenly, I could see the influence of the Scot-Irish experience on modern America, and how this history is even relevant to my personal and familial experiences in America! Webb’s assertion is that the Scot-Irish experience shaped the concept of what it means to be “American”, particularly our love of the scrappy underdog taking on larger forces.

In addition, the book sheds light on diverse topics such as:

• Why did all the “poor people” end up in, and stay in, western Virginia/West Virginia?
• Why did poor Scot-Irish Southerners fight a war in which they got no rewards (particularly given most did not own slaves)?
• Why the concept of “race division” between Scot-Irish and poor blacks was manipulated and encouraged by those in power…
• How class and religion still play out in politics and perceptions today (!!) …

The parallel to home restoration? Well, despite the obvious mindset required (equal parts determination, nerve, ego, creativity, and case of the crazies), I think anyone who wants to restore an old house also wants to (literally) touch a piece of history. It’s certainly appealing to me.

I think, for me, the book really helped frame my personal family history. On a personal family note there is a story (true? untrue?) that one branch came to America as indentured servants to pay someone else’s gambling debt and we’ve been “fighting” ever since. It helped me understand why my ancestors settled in this part of the country, as well as new perspective on the Civil War (with ancestors on both sides of it). Moreover, his book solidifies my personal connection to this part of the world. Thank you, James Webb, for writing it!

Bonus? Chapter one, page one mentions Staunton, Virginia.

katie @ May 21, 2010

Insurance Killing That House?

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Image by Joan Thewlis via Flickr

If you’ve ever driven by a could-be-beautiful-again home and wondered why no one has restored it, here’s one piece of the puzzle: insurance.

Our insurance company called this week to inquire about changes to the property’s value to renew the policy. Due to the state of the property (presently uninhabitable) we don’t qualify for normal homeowner’s insurance. Instead, we must carry commercial contractor’s insurance, which yes, costs more.

So I ran down the changes we made thus far:

• removed lean-to structure on western side of house
• removed all non-original partition stud-work
• removed all floorboards
• temporarily shored southern addition to main house frame
• removed all debris from dwelling
• temporarily weatherproofed home for winter season

Here’s where it gets tricky. What does this mean for the present value? Well, overall market drop across the country notwithstanding: zero. These changes have all cost us, but, we’re aware that in order for the project to work we have to shoulder a period, perhaps a lingering period, where we’ll have more money in the property than it is worth.

And being risk-takers, we’re okay with that. Here’s why.

When we purchased the property we had our financing in place to restore the home soup-to-nuts. But, we were hesitant to commit to that once we determined that we’d rather start a business than trade our move for a commute to larger markets like Charlottesville or Harrisonburg.

So, we decided to do it in smaller chunks, on our terms. The biggest risk will in fact concern one of the next steps: restoring the stone wall. This step is expensive and necessary, and, will firmly place us on the “wrong” side of the ledger for awhile. (By this I mean more money invested in than could be recouped in its present, uninhabitable condition.)

But back to the insurance, and the problem with it:

The insurance company - knowing there are limited companies who will insure homes in this condition - has stated it will now require us to pay insurance based on the home’s FUTURE, totally restored value. (Even if, at that point, we’d qualify for normal homeowners insurance.) Their rationale is that we should have “already fixed it up”. We’re guessing its really a matter of “we want to charge you more money.”

We’ve called bullshit on this, and, are seeing what if anything can be done about that. Which begs the question: can protecting your restoration project from fire and flood ultimately be the method by which its killed?

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katie @ January 30, 2010