Scary Cabin

We have a rough plan for the remodel — gut it and rebuild it all. Simple.

Ok, not so simple when you go down to the next level of detail. The though process went something like this … Remodel downstairs first leaving the upstairs alone. Start with the bathroom and kitchen, once we finish those, it
becomes easier to spend nights in the cabin. Also, the bath and kitchen should be the most time-consuming and difficult so get them finished first.

The bathroom has been gutted. It’s taking at least 3 times longer than first estimated but otherwise it is progressing well. What have we learned so far?

1) We don’t know enough to know what we need when. We get stuck either because we need to buy tools/supplies or we don’t have the tools we need with us.

2) Tasks take longer than expected. I think this is because we’re taking the time to think things out as we go. So now we’re trying to plan out the tasks for each trip with more detail.

We’re starting to put the bathroom back together. A new fan/light has been installed, most of the electrical is done. A new plywood underlayment is going in. Soon we’ll be calling in a plumber and then it’s sheet rock time.

Closing was delayed by a week because of issues getting documentation from the HOA but all was resolved and the Scary Cabin in the Woods is now ours.

We’ve been stockpiling things that we need to take up there which consist mostly of tools at this point. We did take a risk and ordered cabinets and counter tops before it actually closed mainly because of the good sales and lead times. Our first trip as owners will take place soon. It will mostly be an exploratory trip. We can now open things up and really start to understand what needs to be done.

We’re nearing the end of the buying process. Assuming nothing goes really wrong we will be the proud owners of a scary cabin in the woods in a couple of weeks. We had a home inspection and a pest inspection. Neither one found anything that was surprising. It needs a lot of work but nothing really big.

The appraisal for the loan was less thorough and listed nothing that wasn’t noted in the inspections. The loan underwriter highlighted three things that need to be taken care of.

1. Electrical issues specified in the report must be fixed and certified by a licensed electrician. That make sense except that the report didn’t list any electrical issues. It did include a picture of an uncovered j-box. We’re all assuming that’s all that needs to be fixed. So $150 to have someone come out, put a cover on the box and certify that it now meets code.

2. The leaks in the upstairs bathroom must be fixed and certified by a licensed plumber. The bank had the leaky toilet fixed so it’s done.

3. A stove must be purchases by the buyer and installed. Hmm, we are planning to remodel the kitchen so the fact that there’s no stove is a benefit to us. Well, not to the loan company. We found a stove for cheep, but getting it properly installed is another problem. 40 years ago, electric stoves used less power and the codes to install them didn’t require neutrals. Any modern stove will require a neutral and will need larger breakers. The electric panel is full and can’t accommodation larger breakers for the stove. That means a new panel. Our loan officer has been pretty understanding and go with the definition of “installed” that means it is located in spot in the kitchen where a stove would go. Replacing the panel seems a bit unreasonable for a place we don’t yet own.

Next step; “install” the stove and supply the required paperwork. Meanwhile, the list of things that we need to do grows larger every time we see the place.

We’re attempting to purchase a vacation home, one that I refer to as the “scary cabin in the woods”. The idea is to have a nice weekend getaway that can be used for both winter and summer activities. However, how we get to that point is still a bit un-clear.

The cabin in question is a foreclosure. It was built over 40 years ago and looks like it has not really seen any renovation in that 40 years. Unless you count putting up ceiling fans and running extension cords through the walls to power them.

To achieve our vision of the perfect cabin getaway we have a lot of work to do. So let’s get started…