More advice - the worst kind of vice...

So it has been a very long time since there was an update regarding the house, its progress and any new information.

That is partly due to the fact that after discovering the 'hack-job' that was completed on the underside of the house we came to the conclusion that we couldn't finish this project on our own. It simply got too big, and too complex. What started out as moderately complex, now became unrealistic for two DIY-ers to do on evenings and weekends.

We bit the bullet, hired an architect, and began researching the permit background on the house. In the time that we've done that I've learned several things:

1. DO YOUR RESEARCH before starting any job. OMG, why don't I follow my own damn advice I'll never know.

If we'd done this first, (which BTW is really quick and easy to do in Oakland) we would have found out that the 'addition' wasn't legal in any sense of the word. It was originally a porch that was enclosed, poorly at that, and even the porch wasn't in the original plans for the house.

2. If you hire a 3rd party, DO YOUR RESEARCH!!!

Again, I am stupid for not following my own advice. The first architect that we went with... well he was a complete and total flake. To just avoid further pain we paid him off for 4 months of not calling, producing substandard drawings and leaving us in the lurch with permits. (e.g. he'd never filed for permits, and provided only external elevation drawings - no structural drawings of any kind)


3. Be patient, but consistent with everything.

One piece of advice we got from a cousin who does commercial and residential renos; Make sure that you hire someone who has solid business sense over an expert craftsman. Truer words could never have been spoken.

In my limited experience with contractors and subcontractors, I'd rather deal with the business person who shows up on time, provides updates, checks in with me (without me having to hunt him/her down) provides paperwork and completes the job as requested; than work with the craftsman. Remember the craftsman is an Artiste in the truest sense of the word... as a result the work, (when and if completed) is a thing of beauty. But its worse than having your molars pulled by a team of Clydesdales hopped up on amphetamines to get the craftsman to actually do the work, and do it on a budget and in a reasonable amount of time.

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editorial note: I added this entry, as this was about the date and time when we expected to get a response back from the design office regarding our permits. unfortunately we didn't.

About the blog

I write this to entertain, amuse, and inform. My goal is that someone can benefit from the discoveries and experiences that my wife Kira and I are enjoying. It is always nice to be able to avoid missteps, so I offer my mistakes to aid others. I think through collaborative participation we can all have deeper understanding of the world we live in.

I believe that that the true beauty in life in the aggregate of human experience. The more we participate the more there is for others to enjoy. Here is my contribution to that.

So My wife and I bought this house...

My wife and I bought a house. We had been searching for some time. For those of you who are familiar with the SF bay area, you’ll understand me when I say this... it was a long and arduous journey.

We had been searching since 2004 so we have looked at easily more than100 homes. When we began looking at houses it was at the high water mark of the housing madness. When we finally managed to find our house the search ended at bottom of the housing bubble… or at least that is where we believe where we are.

Incidentally, it is misnomer to say that there is no one buying out there, because somebody IS in fact buying houses. Since the “Great Bank Meltdown of 2008” prices have gotten much more reasonable, so homes that were previously unattainable have become reasonable. In addition there is a lot open inventory out there, depending on where you looking to live and what you want to pay?

During our Saga, I remember being outbid at least 8 times and two of those occurrences where in between 2008 and now. During the worst of the bidding wars, my wife would submit offers to homes, sight-unseen, just to make sure that we could get our foot in the door with the sellers.

Even through all of this turbulence with financing and layoffs there were still five and six bids on houses. We had bid on a home and we where outbid (again) and we where just about to give up and but really liked the area. So we did one more half hearted search and my wife found something interesting.

About 6 months ago she found this little place. I am not expert on architectural styles and classifications but my wife calls it a cottage. It was built in 1929, it was about the size we where looking for, and needed some work. After getting the opportunity to visit the house we quickly became very enamored with the place and the best part…. It was CHEAP. As with all things that are cheap there are things there are caveats. Aside from the shady listing agent, funky bank rules, and escrow drama, we did get the house.

This house has been though a lot since 1929 and it really needs some love. We are going to put some time and love into this place and this is our story.