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327 N. McNeil is SOLD!

The renovation at 327 N. McNeil in the Evergreen Historic Distric of Memphis, TN is complete and the buyer just closed.  Its not mine anymore and its always weird knowing that I may never step foot in a house again even though I’ve gone to it practically every day for six months.  The family moving in got a killer house.  If you don’t believe me, check out the video below.  Also, check out the before & after pics on our Facebook page.  Make sure you “Like” our page too if you haven’t already.  On to the next house.

1625 Arcadia Rehab Update #1

We’ve picked up the pace on the renovation at 1625 Arcadia in Colonial Acres.  The same can’t be said of how frequently I’m updating the blog.  We are halfway through with the job and I’m just now getting around to writing about this awesome house.  We actually had an offer just as we were finishing demo but decided not to accept it. 

Check out the video.  I didn’t do a before video so this will serve as a good walk through and progress update.

327 N. McNeil Rehab Update #5

Here is another quick video update on the 327 N. McNeil renovation in the Evergreen Historic Distric of Memphis, TN.  It’s a pretty dramatic transformation since the last video.  Check it out and let me know what you think.

 

327 N. McNeil Rehab Update #4

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Things are starting to take shape out our American Four Square renovation project in the Evergreen Historic District of Memphis.  On the interior, the floors and walls are now closed up so the full effect of our layout changes is now evident.  We’ve laid new plywood subflooring and concrete backer board in the kitchen, laundry and bathrooms.  I’ve picked out the tile and bathroom vanities so it won’t be long before those are installed.  With the shower system and tile I’ve picked out for the master bathroom, I gaurantee it will take your breath away the first time you see it.  All the sheetrock work is done.  We have some plaster repairs and trim work to do before we can start the interior painting.  Prior to the sheetrock going up, we insulated the walls in the bathrooms and laundry that had been gutted.  We used a flash coat of closed cell spray foam and went over that with batts.  We also insulated the attic to an R-30 value with new blown-in.

On the exterior, we removed the existing walkway in the rear and re-poured a new one.  I really like the result.  After testing multiple colors for exterior paint, we decided to stick with Sherwin Williams Messenger Bag as the main trim color but changed our mind on the minor trim color.  Instead of Tansy Green, we are going with Sherwin Williams Garden Sage.  These colors are a close match to the colors Four Square style homes were painted when they were originally built, plus it goes well with the light khaki colored vinyl siding the previous homeowner installed.  The exterior is partially painted at the moment.  We have to remove all the storm windows before we can paint the original wood windows.

We would like to wrap this renovation up in four weeks time so we need to pick up the pace just a bit.  After we finish the exterior, all we will need to do on the outside is the landscaping.  The inside is where most of the work is so we are looking forward to another productive week.

 

327 N. McNeil Rehab Update #3

Progress is steady at the 327 N. McNeil renovation in the Evergreen Historic Distric of Memphis, TN.  We passed our electrical and gas inspections this week but weren’t so lucky with plumbing.   We should get that taken care of in the coming week along with our mechanical and framing inspections.  Once those are done, we can close everything up, lay down new sub-flooring in the bathrooms and laundry and sheetrock the studded walls.

We filled in the trench dug for the new 1″ main supply line and pressure washed the exterior of the house.  We are starting the exterior paint tomorrow.  After talking to the Memphis Landmarks Commission about typical paint colors for American Four Square style houses, we are going to use Sherwin Williams Messenger Bag for our major trim color.  It’s a brownish green color.  We will use a brighter green around the windows.  We haven’t decided what this color will be but the leading candidate is Tansy Green, also from Sherwin Williams. 

Next week should be busy.  Three inspections to pass, exterior painting, some window work and rearranging the kitchen cabinets.  Then floors and sheetrock as soon as we pass inspections.  Check out the video and let me know what you think.

When Bees Attack!

Ok, thats probably misleading but “After Putting It Off for So Long, You Now Have a Bee Problem” didn’t sound nearly as good.  As soon as the weather warmed up, the bees started swarming.  We’ve noticed them for a couple years now but it really seemed like the sheer number of bees was much more than usual.  So we finally did something about it and called in a local bee farmer to remove the bees.  The honeycomb must be removed too or they will come right back. 

After suiting up, he had to cut into the soffit and fascia to expose the honeycomb, which he then removed by hand.  The honeycomb is brought back to his farm to feed his bees.  Once he removed all the comb, he pulled out his homemade shop vac and sucked up all the bees.   The shop vac is set at just the right amount of suction so as to not harm the bees.  He also brings the bees back to his farm to add to his colonies.

All in all, it’s a pretty interesting procedure and my kids definitely enjoyed watching it.  Now we have to properly seal everything back up in an effort to keep any new bees from setting up shop again.

327 N. McNeil – Rough Plumbing & HVAC

The renovation project at 327 N. McNeil in Memphis continued this week with some of the rough plumbing and HVAC going in.  We finished the framing for the new master bathroom and half bathroom downstairs and got most of the plumbing run for it.  We also framed out the new upstairs front bathroom and the plumbing was begun in the upstairs rear bathroom.  For the HVAC, we decided to go with electric for the second story to avoid having to run a gas line to the attic.  The new furnace and ductwork was completed for the second story and all the supply and return vents have been cut in on both floors.

I am going to get the electrician started this coming week and we are building a new, better entrance to the basement.  Once that is complete, we will finish up the HVAC work in the basement that will serve the first floor.  The forecast shows a couple of perfect weather days ahead of us so we are going to dig and replace the old lead pipe water supply line from the street to the house.  Towards the end of the week, we should be able to call in a rough plumbing inspection and finally get running water!

327 N. McNeil – Demolition & Framing

Week 1 is in the books on our latest project and the objective was to get everything ready for the plumber.  After pulling our building permit, we started by removing the old boiler, radiators and various heating and plumbing pipes.  We removed the two floor furnaces and repaired the subfloor.  We finished tearing out the bathrooms, which the previous owner had already started doing. 

We also made some layout changes which should be completed tomorrow.  We are redesigning the downstairs bathroom so that it will be a true master bathroom and we will be able to fit a separate half bath in this space too.  I definitely feel this will add a tremendous amount of value and convenience for our future buyer.  We have also redesigned one of the upstairs bathrooms, closed off two unneccessary doors, and enlarged one bedroom closet.  On the exterior, we added a gate on the left side of the house and trimmed the trees away from the house on the left side as well.

Lastly, we added attic pull down stairs in the upstairs hallway.  One of the great features of American Foursquare style houses is the huge, open attic.  However, with this house, it was not being used.  The only access was a small scuttle hole in one of the bedroom closets that only a small person could fit through.  We are going to floor the attic space which will give the future buyer a ton of storage space, something this house lacked previously.

I’m looking forward to getting the plumbing and HVAC crews going this week.  Should be fun.

327 N. McNeil Getting Started

We just picked up another property today and we are fired up to start the renovations.  Built in 1919, this house is about three times as old as I am but I’m going to give it a new lease on life.  Just about everything needs to be done of course and once we make a few layout changes, there will be five bedrooms and 3.5 bathrooms.  The address is 327 N. McNeil St. and it sits in the Evergreen Historic District of Memphis.  Renovations should take 6-8 weeks so check back often for updates.  Take a look at the video and let me know if you want to see the property.  I got a feeling we will have a lot of interest in this house.