I recently purchased a large farm, with a 150 year-old farmhouse in the middle. It’s livable with some work, but is far from what we want. We bought it for the lot, but now need to determine how to make the house what we want.
The house has small rooms (for the most part), low ceilings (maybe 7′), a steep staircase to the upstairs bedrooms, and long narrow baths (2 were created side by side where a little room was before).
We are moving out there, so we can’t just knock it down and start over (plus, we couldn’t afford to knock down and build new). What we were thinking was a multi-stage process to convert and add on to the house.
So, I am looking for advice on how to get this plan created. I assume I need to find an architect, but don’t know where to start (short of the yellow pages). I also would like to find someone who has previous experience redeveloping farmhouses.
Any suggestions on where to look? Any other resources that might help?
Thanks much, Bob
Replies
Hi Bob,
Where are you located? Depending on your location, I might be able to help with your situation...
-Ryan
Your situation sounds like what Sphere has been battling with for the last year or so. Bought a nice piece of ground, and oh by the way, it also has a house on it. In Sphere's case, I give him a boatload of credit for undertaking the renovation (either that or he's crazy). If you want your 'livable with some work' farmhouse to look like a mansion, take a look at Sphere's 'before' pics.
You might post some pictures of the farmhouse with a description of what you are hoping to wind up with. Also your budget and time frame are important. There are some good experts on this forum (ha ha, I'm neither good nor an expert) who can give you a better idea of what your options are. I tend to lean more towards designers rather than architects. Both have their strong points, but since most of my headaches involve small renovations, the practical designer works better for me than a creative architect. But maybe your situation will call for an architect.
Did you have a home inspection done when you purchased the property? These can often point out critical problems which need prompt attention. With my small renovations, I often get stuck fixing the 'problems' before I can get around to improving.
jt8
CrAzY??? who me?
blubbbbbb..ummmm bwhaaaaaaa..
no, I am reasonably sane, last time they modified my electroshock treaaaaaments..
Hell, I'll have heat by first frost!!, And most of the holes closed up with a LOT of 2'' pink foam..life is good.
new mantra.." M U S T M A K E W I N D O W S"...repeat, as needed.
An Arcy would have been helpful, I have a friend in NC who I REALLY trust, and he would have gladly offered free advice, methods...but, ya know what? Why? This is NOT rocket surgery..make it a house that is Safe, Comfortable, and Pleasing to look at...been being done for centuries, by lesser men than I.
All I can say is start with a dream, then make it, reality.
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
Repairs, Remodeling, Restorations.
Bob, if you're gonna DIY, spend some time with Sphere's thread.
If you need drawings for a GC to work from, take a spin in the area and look for old farm houses that are recently spiffed up and, preferably, a little too large for what was original. Owners are generally very pleased with a compliment and will tell you who did it.
This is common in our area. You definitely want an archy with experience along those lines. Failing the above, ask to see examples of their work.
I'm just finishing up razing a pole barn for a new owner similar to you. GC brought me in. HO's fortunate to be involved with a GC who's been through the drill numerous times. Realtor recommended him.
Good luck.
PAHS Designer/Builder- Bury it!
What you may need is a smaller, separate house that goes have what you want. It can be smaller since you already have a "guest house." Since you have a lot of things in place, you don't need nearly as much house to get your "dream" spaces (even if you are living where some of those space will be).
A lot of it depends on the many many factors involved. Time, money, needs, experienced professionals, etc., all play a factor. What you want is another. Maybe what you need is a 1400 sf guest house next to the existing house, which can be renovated later to add any missing "dream" features.
Maybe the existing house has problems galore. Maybe that it's a gem in the rough. Old farm houses can be fun. Old growth, long timber frames, mortise & tenon joints mixed with mudsills on rubble root cellar foundations, notched 5x7 joists hacked in twain by plumbers; it's a thing.
It also depends upon what do you need right now. Like grounded circuits for the computer, the tv, and the refrigerator. Does the roof leak, the plumbing work, etc.
If you go with more than one building, it does have it's advantages--like not having to sleep & eat "at work."
Or they might be able to focus on an 'addition' to the old house. With some planning, you could pretty much live in the old section while the addition is being built, and then live in the addition while the old section is being renovated.
It really depends on the shape of the old house and what they hope to end up with. I'm looking forward to hearing back from the original poster (Bob?) and possibly seeing pics and what they hope to do.
jt8
Hi Bob
Congrats on your new purchase! You asked how to begin looking for an architect. You should contact the American Institute of Architects in your state. They will be able to give you a list of architects that work on residential projects and, most likely, will be able to give you a more specific list of architects that have done similar projects in the past. Here is the website for the AIA http://www.aia.org/
If you contact your local AIA chapter, they will also be able to give you printed information which will describe the processes and goals of your potential relationship with your architect. After you get your list, you could begin by visiting the website to narrow down the list. You will be able to learn a lot about each architect, how their firm is organized, and what some of their projects look like from their website. Call them, ask them for an interview, get referrals from previous clients (and call those clients!!!), etc. The better your research the more likely you are to find an Archy with which you will develop a great relationship.
After working for three years in a very small firm, I came to realize that the more your architect knows about you, your family, and your habits, the better your project will be. Be honest about your financial limits, how you live your life, what you want out of your life, etc. We may secretly find some of your quirks strange (don't we all have strange quirks?) but in the end such knowledge will make your project much stronger.
Good luck!
Jennifer
I hate to say this, but keep an open mind about starting from stratch. Fixing up an old place can be a wonderful labor of love, but in many cases it could be more efficient to build new. Much depends on the quality and age of the old place.
If you have the land, I like CapnMac's thought about building a new, small home to live in, and then start on the old house if you still want it. Before you start talking to architects and designers, have an experienced local contractor do a quick walk-through. He/she can tell you if the bones are worth saving or if you have a real money pit.
Al Mollitor, Sharon MA
You might consider living in a mobile home while you reno the old house. Call a couple of farmers/ranchers in the area, maybe real estate agents. I know of two places here where there is a single wide, maybe 10x40, that the landowners would give away if someone would just haul it off. And one is in very good condition, certainly good enough to live in for half a year.
Whenever you are asked if you can do a job, tell'em "Certainly, I can!" Then get busy and find out how to do it. T. Roosevelt
the landowners would give away if someone would just haul it off
LoL! More than a few of those around here, too!Occupational hazard of my occupation not being around (sorry Bubba)
Fixing up an old place can be a wonderful labor of love
I might just be a touch cynical, but the 'labor of love' loses some of its appeal when money is tight and its coming out of your own pocket. Get someone else to fund the venture, and I'm a lot more cheery about it (suuurrreee, lets tear that wall out too).
but in many cases it could be more efficient to build new
Amen! And just hope you aren't in one of those situations where even though in the long run it would be cheaper/easier to tear it down and rebuild... your financial situation is so tight that you're forced to deal with the extra hassle of renovating since it can be squeezed into a smaller budget easier than tearing down and instantly rebuilding.
During the rare occasions when I'm thinking anywhere near logical, I think that those old houses often have some nice wood, tough bones, and sometimes superior craftsmanship. All of which are hard to match nowadays. BUT, in the last 100 years, plumbing, electrical, waterproofing, and basements have come a LONG way! Give me a modern, insulated/sealed basement any day over one of those dank, low headroom, 100 year old ones. And knob and tube belongs in the museum, not my house. And when I flush the toilet, I want the water to run down the drain, not just sit there halfway down the pipe waiting to corrode its way through and leak all down the wall.
However since I'm rarely thinking logically...when I see an old house in need of TLC, I'm more inclined to think, "gosh, I could save that house!" I need someone to follow behind me to slap me and say, "snap out of it, you're hallucinating!" (oooh, big word, wonder if I spelled it right?)
But to make a short story long... I agree with ya Mojo.
jt8
I think that those old houses often have some nice wood, tough bones, and sometimes superior craftsmanship. All of which are hard to match nowadays. BUT, in the last 100 years, plumbing, electrical, waterproofing, and basements have come a LONG way!
There's a very apt mouthfull.
This house could be a gem in the bones--4x6 hardwood corner posts & main rafters, with old growth 3x4 studs filling in. Only to find the batroom was hacked in, there's five generations of electrical cable randomly spliced, and the pipes are all lead (or are threaded galvaized, corroded to 1/4" diameter).
Almost any structure can be "saved." The question of "at what cost?" usually interferes. The "very steep" stairs comment caught my eye right away. I'd be willing to bet that the stairs aren't very wide either, or have some headroom issues. The comments also suggested to me that the floor plan is probably very original to the house. Which means an isolated kitchen, small, and "landlocked" into a corner of the house.
"Kitchen renovation" is not something very cheap, ever. It involves every utility in the house, and the structure, too. That and the bathrooms can really determine if a house is "worth" saving. (if you are converting 8-12 rooms on two floors into 6-7, and the structure is sound, a gut level rehab works--as long as you don't have to live in it, or a tent beside it <g>.)Occupational hazard of my occupation not being around (sorry Bubba)
steep stairs..huh? you are funny.
My originals were a 10'' rise..a 10'' run, WINDER at 26'' wide..I just tore them out and am headscratching a new layout, I will still have winders, but the well opening is undecided ( have lots of room to the next joist, the well joist was just supported by the flooring above!) being a "saddlebag/dog trot " style, I COULD have 3 stairs if I choose..lol
I lived in a house in PA Circa 1709...exactly the same..wonder what happened to the wimmens when they were pregnant?
come to think of it, I better put some ply over the hole upstairs b4 I forget they ain't there no mo..and take a Brodie.
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
Repairs, Remodeling, Restorations.
steep stairs..huh? you are funny
No, just scaled a few (in both directions <g>). I also have more than a little bit of experience in hearing things like "steep stairs" as meaning, "we have many things we'd like to change (and have no idea if we can afford to)."
10 x 10? That's nothing, the fellow down the river from me has one of hte few houses that did not arrive on wheels. The first owner converted the attic into living space about 35 years ago. The stairs have a finished width of 23" and were made to fit the closet, they're about 12" rise and 8" tread, and there's about 68" of headroom at the top of the stairs (which then slopes down over the 24" deep landing).
The family has always lived there, they see no reason to change. If they ever movedl, another owner might not find it so "quaint." Such is life.Occupational hazard of my occupation not being around (sorry Bubba)
5' 8'' head room?
I forgot about that part..DO NOT wear a brimmed cap in my house..that blinder effect is suicide.
having been an exterminator, in shallow basements and the such..I know better. Scar tissue on the forehead is a dead giveaway..
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
Repairs, Remodeling, Restorations.
I have a sixth sense for ducking. People find it amusing when I'm walking across a room and all of a sudden DUCK for no good reason (misfire of the 6th sense).
And when I'm tired, the duck-sensor doesn't work very well. That is usually the BEST time to wack your head on something. Sure way to get a tool to fly across the room followed by a string of well chosen oaths.
If I were in charge of the world, there wouldn't be a space with anything less than an 8' ceiling.
jt8
yeah, bein tall can hurt..alot..lol
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
Repairs, Remodeling, Restorations.
So Bob, fill in your profile: location, # of dependents, pin # to your checking acct.<G> I've lived in so many old farmhouses, I built my new house just like one so I wouldn't get lost.
You may want to interview designers, and that's if you aren't comfortable coming up with a plan yourself. A structural engineer can also be very helpful, unless, of course, you're going for the even older farmhouse look.
And, as some have alluded to, there's times when a bulldozer can be your best friend.
Still, best of luck... Don't worry, we can fix that later!
Did the original poster ever come back to this posting? Dang it I want pictures!
jt8
Sounds like you need to talk to Stan. He should be done with that 180 degree stairway any day now.
jt8
Bob,
I'll state once again that I'm not a contractor. However, I did look at purchasing an older home before I bought property and built new. I live near Elgin Illinois and there were a lot of beautiful, large, old Victorians in the area, some even had tax advantages for restoration work as they were considered historic. However, much of what's been said about old houses was true, old electric, plumbing, and floor plans (steep narrow stairways, small kitchens, etc.). Never enough closet space, meaning that walls would have to be moved, etc. The straw that broke the Camels back was when I read that 'This Old House' stopped purchasing their project houses after the first one, which they lost a lot of money on. Given your circumstances, I'd look at either starting over, or using this as a guest house.
Demolition might be cheaper than you think, often times the local fire dept. will come and burn it down for you for training, then just bury the foundation.
Good Luck - Jack