I recently relocated from Portland, Oregon to Phoenix, Arizona for my work. I’ve bought a house here (in what is perhaps the most depressed housing marking in North America right now) and have embarked upon a project to renovate it.
The house is a 1950 model that was built by the family from whom I bought it in April 2009. One owner? GREAT! Same owner for 60 years … perhaps not so much. While the home is very well maintained and clearly shows that the couple that built the place loved it for all the years they were here, it is most assuredly a 1950 compact floor plan. It’s very “mazey” and feels, frankly, like a dark little rabbit warren.
One other side effect of the same family living here for 60 years – handyman specials. All over the house, the work of a home handyman is evident. Romex wire run outside the building in the open air to lighting fixtures which are connected by nothing but wire nuts (no box or anything). Outdoor storage cabinets tossed together out of a few sheets of plywood. A patio enclosed by what appears to be windows and doors that were finds from the dump or some other salvage – nothing wrong with that, of course, but not when the stuff is falling apart.
So, since the place needs some significant TLC, I’ve taken the step of hiring a local Architect to work with me through the design phase and to produce a complete set of construction drawings.
I currently plan to do most of the work myself, calling in pros when necessary (major plumbing, electrical, concrete, roof framing, etc.) … we’ll see how that goes.
