Project: Circa 1920 Craftsman Style Home Renovation, Ball Ground,
GA
Time
Estimate: 6-8 WeeksProject Budget: $58,000 plus $8,700 Contingency
Project Scope: Remove addition that closed in original side porch, update kitchen, all new electrical, add master bath, refinish hardwood floors where available, turn office into master bedroom.
Potential Georgia State Tax Credits: $12,500
General Contractor: Dustin Arnold, Arnold Building Group,LLC
Electrical Contractor: Jody Waldroup, Wesco-Electric
My name is Stefanie Joyner and I am the Executive Director
of the Cherokee County Historical Society. As preservationists, we are always
telling others the importance of saving buildings. We advocate for their
rehabilitation and talk about how economically feasible it is to reuse, rather
than demolish older buildings. Well, now I am the owner of a house in need of
renovation, so I’m practicing what I preach and putting my money where my mouth
is! It’s not easy, I’ll freely admit. Mainly it’s the fear of not knowing what
you’ll find, or what’s...underneath the dingy carpet, underneath the outdated
wallpaper, and definitely what’s underneath the house itself. So before you
commit your money, you do the inspections to make sure that the foundation is
solid and the floors don’t feel “spongy.” Most importantly, you bring in the
professionals to verify that information. Because despite my Master’s degree in
historic preservation, I rely on the craftsmen who do this for a living, and
have their hands in old walls or galvanized plumbing all day. My good friends Steven Thacker and Glen Bliss
tell me that I’ve bought a good house. They have renovated dozens of houses in the
area and this is the third house that I’ve dragged them to look at for me. It’s in Ball Ground, on Old Canton Road north
of the 4-way stop near the intersection of Commerce Drive. It’s a craftsman
style home and I think it was built around 1920. I still have to do the research, but I bought
it from the Holcomb family and it was where Bessie & Grady Holcomb lived
for over 50 years and raised their family. It was important to the family that
it be preserved; I will be making changes such as adding a bathroom and redoing
the kitchen, but I will keep some of the mementos left from their residence
including the children’s names written on shelves in the hall closet. I will
also be applying for the 25% Georgia State tax credit, and the 8 1/2 year tax
assessment freeze for my renovation expenses. Fortunately, the house is in the
Ball Ground Historic District and qualifies for these benefits. Unfortunately, Steven
& Glen are already committed to another job, so I am fortunate to find another
great renovation crew.
I closed on the house September 28, a Monday afternoon. It
was not an easy closing. I applied for a 203(k) loan, which is a purchase and
renovation loan put together. I thought that this would save me money rather
than doing two closings, but as it turns out the fees for this loan probably
equal what it would have cost to do an outright purchase and then a home
improvement/equity loan. But that Monday afternoon I was happy that I could
move in after living at a friend’s house for the past month. As I took a walk around my new, old house, I
got this sick feeling in my stomach accompanied by the thought of “What did I
get myself into…” As you can see from the photographs, the house is not in bad
shape, mainly outdated. My plans include turning the middle bedroom into the
new master bath, the former doctor’s office space into the new master bedroom,
taking off the enclosed addition to open up the original side porch, update all
of the electrical, redo the kitchen and restore the hardwood floors where
possible. The renovation plan seemed reasonable to me, but contractor’s
eyebrows rose when I said I was going to live here during the process. And that
first night as I walked through the rooms, I was overwhelmed.
To feel more productive, I began by removing the drapery
from the windows. The former occupant had made custom drapes and while they
were nice, they just weren’t my style. The house had also been empty for 4
years, so they were quite dusty. To help combat my nerves, I turned on most of
the lights, cranked up the a/c and got to work. I made good progress, but
turned in after a few hours and tried to get comfortable on my air mattress. At
about 3:30am I woke up and smelled something burning. It was strongest at the
a/c return right outside the bedroom door, so I turned off the thermostat and
grabbed a flashlight since the unit is in the basement and the only access is
from the outside. There was no sign of fire & smell wasn’t strong in the
basement, so I headed back upstairs. I’ve seen many historic buildings go up in
flames due to old wiring, so I decided to call the fire department. They arrive
about 20 minutes later and agree that it smells like burning rubber. They check
the basement, then head upstairs to the attic where we find the smell is
stronger. Strangely enough, the smell is strongest outside the house. The
firemen go over each rafter in the attic and open all the closets, but can’t
find anything. They leave about daylight and tell me to call again if the smell
persists. I’m still a bit nervous, so I call my electrician, Chris (his boss,
Jody was on vacation). He tells me he’s on his way to Big Canoe but will fit me
in between his other appointments. About
15 minutes later he arrives & said he thought he’d better come by my house
first. I’m definitely relieved, but don’t really expect much so while he goes
up to the attic I’m puttering around downstairs. All of the sudden I hear him
yell, “TURN OFF THE POWER NOW!” I freak out and run down to the basement and
stare at the electrical panel and realize I don’t know how to.
It’s not like the breaker panel I’m used to and I don’t want to get electrocuted. Of course I don’t want my house to burn down either so I run back upstairs & meet him on the way down. He goes to the fuse box and begins pulling out the tubes. He tells me that the electrical wiring in the attic is basically wrapped in cloth and covered by loose insulation, and that the smell was from the insulation burning. Chris shuts down my power, but comes by twice more that day just to make sure everything’s OK.
It’s not like the breaker panel I’m used to and I don’t want to get electrocuted. Of course I don’t want my house to burn down either so I run back upstairs & meet him on the way down. He goes to the fuse box and begins pulling out the tubes. He tells me that the electrical wiring in the attic is basically wrapped in cloth and covered by loose insulation, and that the smell was from the insulation burning. Chris shuts down my power, but comes by twice more that day just to make sure everything’s OK.
I find out later that day that I need a new hot water
heater, and we can’t get one installed until we get the new electrical panel. After
working all day I’m covered in sweat so the thought of a cold shower doesn’t
bother me too much. Unfortunately, all I get out of the showerhead is a drip. I’m
exhausted since I’ve been up since 3:30am, so I just go to bed, determined to
figure it all out tomorrow.
Oh boy! Can't wait for the next episode! You can do it Stefanie! This is your dream! :-)
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