Bob’s Update for January 2023
Hello and Happy New Year Reader’s. Welcome to Bob’s DIY Blog update for January 2023, it’s a new year and time to start fresh and new. As 2022 wrapped up I’m looking back on what was an exciting first year retired from the Army and as a full-time real estate investor/rehabber. I’m looking forward to 2023 being even better. In this post I’ll tell you about a few of the joys of North Country winters, I’ll update you on how my current flip is shaping up, a few challenges I ran into, and talk about what I have planned for this year. So, with that let’s get going.
North Country Winter
Norther New York is known for its snow. There’s a reason we half-jokingly start saying winter is coming as early as July. This winter has been a strange one to say the least. So far there has been over 9 feet of snow fall. Warm weather with rain came after each big storm and melted the majority of the snow. That has put a damper on a lot of the normal winter activities I enjoy.
Despite the snow melt there’s been no shortage of snow blowing and shoveling with several big storms. The first storm brought us about 4 feet of heavy lake effect snow over the course of two days. It’s amazing how much large volumes of snow weigh. You don’t realize this until you’re shoveling it, or it comes off your metal roof. On a sunny day snow slides off my roof. I also know a lot of snow sliding off is damaging or dangerous. After the first big storm about 3000 lbs of snow came off my roof. It slammed down onto my back deck and completely demolished a 8 foot section of railing. Thank goodness no one was out there when it came down. Entertainingly enough my security cameras happened to catch part of it.
It’s safe to say repairing this will be a project for the spring. If you’re curious about what kind of security cameras I have, they’re Blink Outdoor Cameras.
January Flip Update
It’s been full speed ahead working on one of the two properties I’m currently renovating. Finally, the end is in sight. Since my last update we’ve nearly completed laying new laminate flooring throughout the downstairs.
The bathrooms are almost completed too. I finished the tile surrounds, installed sliding glass doors, tiled the floors, and installed the vanities.
The Toilet Debacle.
I ran into a setback in the upstairs bathroom, which proved to be a more challenging than I initially anticipated. It really started during the demolition phase of the project. I didn’t notice how close the toilet was to the partition wall for the shower until I was reinstalling the toilet after tiling. As much as I wanted to say oh well not my problem, I just couldn’t leave it like that. To fix this issue I had to move the toilet flange over several inches.
I knew this wouldn’t be simple since I had to move the existing drainpipe and flange. Plus, I would have to redo tile I had just laid, but the complications didn’t end there. Once I started opening up the space to get to work, I quickly realized why the toilet was so close to the partition wall. At some point, probably in the 1970’s, the bathroom was remodeled to adding a shower. During the remodel the owners did not move the toilet drain. This was probably due to plumbing being the original cast iron drains from when it was built in the 1920s. They had taken the easy way.
I didn’t let this stop me and I created my plan and began cutting the drainpipe so I could move the flange over. It was then I noticed the Y junction connecting to the main drain stack cracked wide open. Long story short I ended up cutting open walls and replacing the entire drain stack. Then I replumbed all the drain lines for the bathroom. It wasn’t that bad of a project once I decided what had to be done. Still I hope I don’t have to do that again in future projects.
What’s Coming in 2023?
I’ve got big plans for this year. On the business side of things, I’ll hopefully finish up the one flip and have it on the market no later than March. As soon as I’ve finished work on it my focus will go back to my farmhouse property. I originally planned to flip it as well, but I’ve been kicking around the idea of holding it as a rental property. Time will tell.
This summer I will be moving a to be closer to my son. Yes, I know it’s a crazy time to be buying a home with interest rates through the roof, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned as I have progressed as a real estate investor is markets change and interest rates do to. If interest rates drop in the next couple years, I’ll just refinance then.
The house I live in now I am planning to turn into a rental property. I have a hand full of things to do to it to get it rental ready, but it’s in a great location and should command a good rental price.
What’s my plan when I move? I’ve been working heavily on fix and flips for the past couple years. As much as I hate to say it I’m not getting any younger. I don’t want to be swinging the hammer all the time. I’m planning to make a shift to purchasing a lot more rental properties to put in my real estate portfolio. Fortunately, the market I’ll be moving to has a lot of potential. Wish me luck!
Bob’s DIY Blog (www.bobsdiyblog.com) is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.