The joys of being a homeowner

[Kimmyt]

Sigh.

This is my first run-in with stupid stuff that happens and you have to deal with when owning a house. Before, it was just 'call the property owner and they'll take care of it'.

The Boy and I were starting to winterize our deck the other day. We turned on the water to the hose in the back and waited for it to come out. And waited. Hmm. I heard water, but where was it coming out?

So, down to our (finished) basement filled with fun electronic stuff where we spend all summer hiding from the heat (it stays perennially 50degrees and cool down there) and where I house my wine due to the neutral temps.

To find, rushing from the ceiling, a waterfall of epic proportions. :eek: So we shut off the water and set up coolers under the leaks to catch the drainage. A few hours later, more water in another part of the ceiling starts to flow.

Sigh.

At least my job is understanding, and I was able to take the afternoon off to deal with the insurance adjuster, the plumber, the restoration company and oh yeah the random glass guy that The Boy asked me to have quote us for a stray broken window we'd been meaning to get around to fixing.

The floors are shaking as drywall is being torn down in my (formerly) lovely basement and I'm wondering just how much this is gonna cost me. Well, hopefully the insurance adjuster will do his job.

Sigh.

Being a homeowner stinks sometimes. But at least I have Masters Swim class tonight to take my mind off of it (and if the Plumber and glass-man get here soon maybe I can leave them unattended while I go for a quick run to get rid of this tension!)

K.

[indysteel]

Sigh.

This is my first run-in with stupid stuff that happens and you have to deal with when owning a house. Before, it was just 'call the property owner and they'll take care of it'.

The Boy and I were starting to winterize our deck the other day. We turned on the water to the hose in the back and waited for it to come out. And waited. Hmm. I heard water, but where was it coming out?

So, down to our (finished) basement filled with fun electronic stuff where we spend all summer hiding from the heat (it stays perennially 50degrees and cool down there) and where I house my wine due to the neutral temps.

To find, rushing from the ceiling, a waterfall of epic proportions. :eek: So we shut off the water and set up coolers under the leaks to catch the drainage. A few hours later, more water in another part of the ceiling starts to flow.

Sigh.

At least my job is understanding, and I was able to take the afternoon off to deal with the insurance adjuster, the plumber, the restoration company and oh yeah the random glass guy that The Boy asked me to have quote us for a stray broken window we'd been meaning to get around to fixing.

The floors are shaking as drywall is being torn down in my (formerly) lovely basement and I'm wondering just how much this is gonna cost me. Well, hopefully the insurance adjuster will do his job.

Sigh.

Being a homeowner stinks sometimes. But at least I have Masters Swim class tonight to take my mind off of it (and if the Plumber and glass-man get here soon maybe I can leave them unattended while I go for a quick run to get rid of this tension!)

K.


I feel your pain. I've been a single homeowner now for about 5 years and have, so far, "dumped" a good $14k into the house to fix things that my flipper/seller did wrong and/or my home inspector didn't catch. My basement has flooded several times, although thankfully it's really just a glorified storage area. It took several disasters before my initial reaction wasn't to cry or call my father. Now my initial reaction is to grab the checkbook! :o

I've learned over time that I absolutely have to save a good 3-5% of the purchase price each year to cover big ticket items and repairs. Hopefully, one of these years I'll be able to move on to something fun, like getting hardwood floors or getting rid of the icky tile in my bathroom.

Good luck. One of piece of advice. Start compiling a list now, before you might actually need them, of experienced and dependable plumbers, electricians, carpenters, roofers, handymen, locksmith, general contractors and the like. Having someone trustworthy that you can call in an emergency or when you need a project done quickly and correctly, lessens the pain.

[teigyr]

That sounds horrible. I rented a house with the option to buy and as I saw more and more what needed to be done (eventual roof replacement, plumbing problems, etc) it scared me. I own a house now but it was DH's house before we were married. He's good at working on things and he knows the house very well - he grew up in this house. It's an old 1930's brick house and just to replace the windows is something like $30K :eek:

I am so sorry you're going through this but hopefully it'll get sorted out and will be a one time problem. The joys of being a grown-up, huh :D

[singletrackmind]

All I know is I've learned a heck of a lot of do it myself as a single home-owner for 15 years and now not so single home-owner for 5. From broken pipes on Christmas day to building a new kitchen complete with dishwasher to fixing the everyday sorts of happenings.

And I get to plant gardens wherever I wish. :D

[salsabike]

THAT is a classic story if there ever was one.

I was just thinking yesterday that it was almost a year ago that the builders flooded our basement, right after the big remodel started and we moved down into said basement for six months. And just before I broke my toe from living in too small a basement bedroom and whacking my toe into the wall....etc.

Indysteel's advice is very good. Get names now from friends or co-workers of good pros in all the major house-gone-wild areas so you can call someone you trust when the time(s) come.

Just remember that as a homeowner, at least you no longer have to listen to fellow apartment dwellers stomp around over your head or play horrible loud music on the other side of your bedroom wall. There are real pluses to homeownership...and all the broken stuff WILL get fixed eventually.

[Zen]

that sounds like a major headache and one of the reasons I'm trying to sell my place and move to a condo.

More riding time.

[HillSlugger]

I hope your electronics and bikes are OK!

Thank the goddess for insurance.

[Kimmyt]

Oh, our bikes were never in any danger, they live up in the living room, where proper members of a family belong!!

[Trek420]

that sounds like a major headache and one of the reasons I'm trying to sell my place and move to a condo.

More riding time.

I dunno. In some ways with condo ownership you have all the "Oys of homeownerships" and few of the "Joys". :)

Sure if the roof needs replacing, outside needs painting I don't do that. But all the "oys" of inside problems, neighbors are too dang close, many of them are renters who don't give a hoot and I don't necessarily get to plant what I want :mad:

In todays troublesome market I'd buy or keep your house. A condo would be harder to sell.

[Mr. Bloom]

Go rent "The Money Pit" - an 80's movie. We rented it the weekend we bought our first house and it proved to be a prophetic irony on things to come. Watch it and you'll count your blessings.

Strangely enough, I had the exact same thing happen to me when I was a teenager at my parents house. Flooded the entire basement while I was putting a fire out in the backyard that the lawn mower started!

And, if that doesn't have you counting your blessings, remember that the Silvers have two homes that we live in, 120 miles apart, in two different time zones...and we commute back and forth...and have to maintain both!

See, it could be worse.

[Zen]

Sure if the roof needs replacing, outside needs painting I don't do that. But all the "oys" of inside problems, neighbors are too dang close, many of them are renters who don't give a hoot and I don't necessarily get to plant what I want :mad:

I can look into renter ratio if I ever get to that point, I'm tired of living so far out in the hills. I want to live in town where I can ride my Mariposa on errands and get to docs, pts, and the gym without it being a major trip.

[Kimmyt]

Hi Guys. Thanks for the thoughts! Mr. Silver, the first thing we said when it happened (well, other than 'Oh, ****') was that we needed to watch that movie.

All in all, it's not as bad as it could be. We're still waiting to hear from insurance. The Boy thinks we've done the wrong thing by going to an adjuster, because of the fee, but I know we'll be able to get much more money for it than we would if we messed with the insurancy agent ourselves, especially since we've got AllState who is apparently The Worst. He was up all night crunching numbers in his head (I've been there, where the anxiety makes you create things that aren't going to happen) and he's convinced we'll get screwed and end up with $300 to fix a half-unfinished basement.

The plumbers came in this morning to fix the pipe, and it wasn't a horrible fee. Here's the culprit (doesn't it look like it's talking?):

http://kurt.hoffmann.net/basement/Desktop-Images/18.jpg

Cross your fingers the $ situation gets sorted out (at the very least, I think we'll be learning to put in our own drywall, a friend is finishing her basement and can show us and help us, to save money). We've got it in savings, but had been hoping to spend it on a wedding. Looks like the wedding might be smaller than we'd planned.

K.

[northstar]

Boy, I know what that waterfall sounds like...our only bathroom is on the top floor (very old house) and we had a pipe burst up there...cue waterfall through our kitchen's false ceiling (picture floating fruit in the fruit bowl), down through the walls and roaring in the basement.

I feel your pain. Hang in there.

[LBTC]

Here's the culprit (doesn't it look like it's talking?):

Drooling, actually. :D

Kimmy, the whole thing really sux. We've had a flood, and were so grateful insurance covered it! You'll get through this and you'll be surprised at the wonderful things that happen to make your wedding perfect, regardless of what you have to steal from that fund now.

Sending lots of patient, wonderful butterflies that will make sure the insurance comes through for your completely!

Hugs,
~T~

[Zen]

That pipe is mocking you :mad:

[Kimmyt]

I know exactly what you mean Zen!

The minute I saw it I pictured evil psychadelic-inspired talking creatures and heard the voice of the plant from Little Shop of Horrors, 'Feeeeeeed Me, Seymour!'

K.

[Trek420]

I know exactly what you mean Zen!

The minute I saw it I pictured evil psychadelic-inspired talking creatures and heard the voice of the plant from Little Shop of Horrors, 'Feeeeeeed Me, Seymour!'

K.

That's my whole house :rolleyes: Latest project is removing the dingy awful carpeting. I kinda shudder at what I may find under there :o

[Mr. Bloom]

The Boy thinks we've done the wrong thing by going to an adjuster, because of the fee, but I know we'll be able to get much more money for it than we would if we messed with the insurancy agent ourselves, especially since we've got AllState who is apparently The Worst.

I think you did the right thing. A lot of people don't know that agents get a bonus tied to low claims experience. To me, this is an inherent conflict since the agent is usually perceived as your trusted advisor!

I will not say anything libelous about Allstate, but my experience with them in the past has been very negative and required an attorney to resolve my dispute.

[salsabike]

I think Zen is right. That damn pipe is LAUGHING. Humph.