Mike's Blog

Just Look At Us NOW!

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 18:01:33 -0500

We've come a long way, baby! And, yes, we still have a way to go.

Here is the master vanity now with it's new marble, new sinks and new faucets.

Here you can see the before. We still need to paint the master bath.

Here is the livingroom before.

And after.

New carpet and new paint. Now the ceiling is the same color as the walls. Doesn't the fireplace look great? The before photo doesn't show how dirty the carpet was. The before paint color is very similar to what we ended up using. The freshly painted molding really brightens things up amazingly when you see it in person.

Our momentum has slowed with preparation for Anne & Joe to move in. Father's Day celebrations and our business getting busy has kept us from getting too much more accomplished. But we will get there! And the house looks beautiful!

I AM Proud to be an American!!!!

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 21:54:54 -0500

I guess we opened a can of worms! We could not have imagined such a simple suggestion would cause such a BIG STINK!

We are advising a lovely client how to prepare her home for sale in Santee. She is a widow in her 70's; a dear. Among many other things we suggested she do to increase the value of her home before she moved out of state, was to remove the flag pole that was center stage in her small front yard. Because this client knows us personally, she took absolutely no offense, as we explained that flag poles tend to age a property, and in order to update it for today's buyer, it would probably sell better without a flag pole. Her daughter agreed that if that is what we believed to be the case, they would remove the flag pole, and they did.

They removed it on Memorial Day.

Let me just tell you that our client's family traveled out from Texas to get this house packed up and updated and they were doing so at a pace that was simply amazing! They were not even aware it was Memorial Day when they began to remove that pole. The elderly neighbor next door came unglued. He was so angry he could not contain himself, letting our client's veteren-son-in-law know exactly what he thought about him in no uncertain terms. And then the neighbor gave my husband a call!

Mike tried to explain as best he could that the decision had nothing whatsoever to do with a lack of patriotism or love for the good old U.S.A. It was simply a matter of looking out for our client's best interest and doing everything we could possibly think of to get that selling price up as high as we could in this very difficult buyer's market! He got so angry with Mike he couldn't speak. Before he hung up, he did inform us that the entire cul-de-sac is "p$%*ed off" at us. Mike said he looked around the cul-de-sac and saw three homes with flag poles in the center of their yards, including the angry man's house.

After we get the outside repainted, we thought we would purchase a flag that hangs off the side of the house from a pole, but then I got to wondering if that would be another faux paux: The house will be vacant and there will be no one there to take it down each night!

The bright side is that we take the fall for removing the flag pole. If new buyers were to have moved in and decided to remove that pole ... well, I wonder if a pox would have been upon their home!!!

~Debbie

Coming Out of the Gloom Closet: Housing Affordability Best in Four Years!!*

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Wed, 28 May 2008 14:19:36 -0500

Some brave financial analysts are coming out of the gloom closet. The chief economist for the Cleveland-based bank National City Corp (NCC, Fortune 500), Richard DeKaser, said that "housing valuations are almost back to long-term norms." 'Valuation' is defined as the difference between what a home should cost and its actual price. He said that current affordability is *"the best in the past four years." Three hundred and thirty housing markets were surveyed and showed price declines and improved affordability during the last three months of 2007.

DeKaser did caution that home prices could fall even further. Remember. this is nationwide, so price declines and hitting bottom will differ widely. As in all market fluctuations, more desirable areas will bottom out before the less desirable areas. In our San Diego market, it is even possible to see the bottom of the lower-priced market hit before the luxury market, which took longer to respond to leveling off. Agents are currently scrambling to field the multiple offers on the attractively priced and better-maintained short-sale and bank-owned properties. It is anybody's guess how long it will take to inch up to properly priced non-foreclosed homes in higher price ranges.

DeKaser points out that the biggest gains in affordability occurred in our own state of California (as well as Michigan and Florida). These areas have also been some of the hardest hit by foreclosures. The best bargains currently, according to the survey, are in Louisiana and Texas, where homes are undervalued by approximately 30%!

If you or anyone you know would like to look for investment property in these areas, we can connect you with a REALTOR you can trust and who would know that area inside and out.!

San Diego County April Sales Highest in Eight Months!

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Mon, 19 May 2008 21:54:13 -0500

Really? What happened? While we were all reading and listening to the bad news, someone has been buying homes! Dataquick reported that Southern California homes sales in April are at the highest levels since August of 2007. The bulk of the sales have mainly been in homes under $500,000 as those looking for great deals took advantage of the price slump and foreclosures. Thirty-seven percent of the homes sold last month were foreclosures.

In San Diego County, Chula Vista is among the highest areas of sales activity in Southern California. We have been searching for property for a client around the $350,000 range in Chula Vista, and we are finding multiple offers being made on multiple properties of interest to our buyers. It is not only Chula Vista where we are experiencing the phenomenon of multiple offers, we are also encountering it in other areas of the county in properties under $400K. It very much feels like San Diego has decided to buy while the bargains are hot.

"Quite a few more buyers stepped off the sidelines last month to snap up homes at substantial discounts relative to the market's short-lived peak," said Marshall Prentice, DataQuick president. "It's no surprise, given the magnitude of the price declines in inland areas and the fact sales have been so amazingly low for so long. We continue to look for evidence of a sales bounce in the mid-priced and higher-end markets along the coast. If the higher conforming loan limits are making a difference in those areas it's certainly not a large one, at least not as of the end of April."

According to DataQuick, indicators of market distress continue to move in different directions. Foreclosure activity is at record levels, and, understandably financing with adjustable-rate mortgages is way down. However, down payment sizes and flipping rates are stable, and, interestingly, non-owner occupied buying activity is increasing.

All we know is that we are happy to see our first-time buyer clients finally being able to shop for a HOME!

San Diegans: CONSIDER YOURSELF WARNED!

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Wed, 14 May 2008 21:30:27 -0500

Who Knew? Getting the FLU in the Merry Month of May!? I certainly didn't expect this. I was completely blindsided with it this morning. Not that anyone is ever really ready to get the flu, but some inkling that it's going around town would have been nice. I would have washed my hands more often.

So you won't be caught unaware, I'll let you know what to expect if the dreaded virus finds you. You'll wake up with a bit of a headache, and all of your muscles will ache like you did too much stretching at Pilates' class (at least that is what I thought). In a couple of hours, you will begin to feel like you have been run over by a truck. Every joint in your body will be screaming at you. You have no choice but to lie down after taking as many pain relievers as you deem safe. The headache! You won't know what hurts worse: your head or your bones. Did I mention the chills? That's what will clue you in that this is serious business and you cannot (and should not) go about your normal day. It can be 80 degrees outside and you will be shivering and feel the need to burrow under a blanket.

After several hours of shivering and moaning, and probably too many pain relievers for your liver to handle, your fever will break. The best part is that your head will no longer feel that it is ready to burst. You'll begin to perspire and will need to grab a glass of ice water. Apparently this means the fever has "broke." I do hope that that is a good thing and that it won't glue itself back together and strike again once all those pain relievers wear off.

Then, you will pray. You will pray that this is the "24-hour flu" and not some tortuous Asian variety that we read about during flu season that keeps its victims in bed for a week. By the way, when exactly does flu season end? For all of your sakes, I hope it ends with me. Debbie

Green, Green Grass of Home

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Tue, 13 May 2008 21:35:15 -0500

Day 27

Don't you just love sod? WOW. Instant (well, not for the guys laying it!) beauty!

The inside is still lagging. I remember when we were building our home, the framing went up slam bam and you thought, "We're almost done!" Then the interior, the finishing touches, began. And man, oh man, it seemed to take FOREVER! Well, flips, I am learning, are the same way. The outside paint being done by a sub-contractor, the landscape being done by a sub-contractor, even the back fence being done by a sub-contractor. And here we are still painting interior doors and trim! Didn't I say, "Have Patience" a few posts back? I have to even tell it to myself again: HAVE PATIENCE! And learn from this: Interior paint left to the subs is a GOOD IDEA! We are busy (even if escrow closings are slow, we are working our tail ends off), and we don't have time to spend entire days painting. There is enough pick-up work, sweeping, clean-up and arranging of subs to keep all of us busy enough without adding all of THAT TRIM PAINT! Oh, sorry. I think I sounded a bit frustrated there for a minute. Here. Let's look at some more wonderful photos to calm me down.

That's better. OK. What else is in the works? Setting up bathtub refinishing, getting new mailbox keys made (the USPS charges $30 for that!), picking and order carpet, deciding if sink should be centered with the cabinetry or with the window (poor planning on contractor's part), and, did I mention we are painting the TRIM? ~Debbie

Happy Days ARE Here Again!

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Sun, 11 May 2008 14:56:59 -0500

Bloomberg.com posted the news that Consumer Confidence fell to a 5-year low and home prices as measured by the S&P/C-S Index experienced their greatest decline since at least 2001. San Diego experienced a year-over-year decline of 19.2% Will they drop further? Some say yes; some say maybe; some say no.

So, is anyone out there buying or are they all waiting for more declines in prices? Well, SOMEBODY is buying because we have put in countless offers for buyers and EVERY SINGLE ONE has been joined by multiple offers! This holds true for bank-owned and for short sales. (Most sellers who are not selling short or facing foreclosure are still priced out of the market and are holding out hoping for that one buyer to fall in love and buy their home rather than go through the hassle of buying foreclosures and short sales.)

If you are a buyer who is looking for a long-term investment, waiting for the bottom is risky. Once we KNOW we've hit "bottom," the prices will already have begun to rise. Better to shop now while inventory is up and there are less buyers hitting the market. Good luck!

Have Patience! Please!

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Sat, 10 May 2008 16:54:54 -0500

Mike came home the other evening all discouraged from the flip. He said he feels we're aren't making headway as fast as we should be. Well, he has ALWAYS hated to paint. And he has always hated to paint TRIM especially! And guess what is left to paint? Yup. Doors and miles and miles of trim! At this point, all four of us are beginning to question the bright idea to save money by doing all of the interior painting ourselves! I mean, I go over there in an evening and paint ONE side of ONE door (it is laying across saw horses and has to dry before being flipped over) and ONE door jamb! That is so S L O W! (But I AM good!) Well, the decision has been made and we just gotta plod on. Here is Anne touching up the livingroom. Looks good, huh? And here is another shot of where "the box" used to be.

Other things ARE being completed, however. Our nephew has started the bathroom tile. Here he is doing the demo.

The new back fence is now finished. Here are the workers (two more nephews) setting the posts.

The granite for the kitchen is purchased and the date of installation is lined up. We bought the new sink and faucet. And the front landscape is all done but the sod, and it looks so good!

Anne & Joe's dog, Rufus, is the project mascot. It tuckers him out, as you can see.

Well, back to painting trim ...

~Debbie

Gotta Go Granite

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Wed, 07 May 2008 17:24:52 -0500

Day 21

Yup. Picked it out today down at Florentine Countertops off Moreno Blvd in San Diego. The color is cool - most granite is. It has a black background with flecks of brown and green. Nature is amazing, isn't it? The black will pull in the black-framed garden window, the green will be a nice surprise with the wall paint, and the brown flecks will look awesome with the dark-stained oak cabinetry. Hmm... Wonder what color tile we should use for the backsplash. I'm thinking picking up the floor tile color - a neutral tan. This kitchen is going to be GORGEOUS!

So, I'll save my quartz idea for the NEXT flip. That is, if we are successful with this one. So far, fingers crossed, we are very close to budget! by Debbie

Granite or Quartz?

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Tue, 06 May 2008 23:42:53 -0500

Day 20

Time to choose kitchen countertops. Granite seems the obvious choice. I kind of like quartz. It looks as good as granite and, according to the salesman, is easier to care for. Since granite is so common anymore, especially here in San Diego, I think "quartz counters" might give our listing an edge because of the newness of it. Only problem, though it is less per sq ft than granite, it has to have a custom edge, which is charged by the linear foot. At Home Depot, the quartz estimate actually came out higher than granite in the "B" price range. We have one more estimate to obtain before we make a decision. ~Debbie

GOING GREEN!

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Thu, 01 May 2008 22:55:21 -0500

DAY 15

Finally got some photos uploaded of the exterior paint. I'm so disappointed. The photos really don't show how GOOD it looks! The change is subtle, I admit. Guess we didn't want the house to stand out like a sore thumb anyway. But the shade is very nice, and once the landscaping is in, will look even nicer. Here are the before and afters. The original color was gray and white (with gold stucco on the chimney! clash!).

before after

The paint is going on in the inside, as well. Mike came home and said he felt it was too dark. I drove over to check it out and was pleasantly surprised. Not too dark. Hard to tell anything from these photos, but this is what I saw. The new color is on the right. Pretty neutral, huh?

Spent some time shopping tile for the master shower, too. Can't beat the prices at Lowe's for neutral tile. And we really like it, too. We'll see what our partners think.

Here's what the fireplace looks like with the top of the brick boxed in with drywall. I think it will bring the house into a more "today" look. Most buyers are not into used brick (though I personally like it!).

now before

All the demo is now complete: The dead sod and trees in the front yard, the guest vanity, and the back fence. Gone. The big dumpster was picked up today, too.

We're still enjoying this journey! Everyone's getting pretty physically tired, though. Mike, Joe and Anne work all day and then over to the house most evenings to get things done. (I've got the "interior decorator" job. Pretty cush!)

by Debbie

A Son-In-Law's Gotta Do What a Son-In-Law's Gotta Do!

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 14:01:15 -0500

My husband, Mike, is a great guy. Granted, I am prejudiced slightly. Though he has our fix and flip uppermost in his mind, he took the entire Saturday and half the day today (Sunday) to help my parents. My father and mother built their beautiful home in Descanso (mountains of San Diego County) with their own two hands over 30 years ago on 8 acres of tranquil, oak-covered property. My mother found photos of their property at the San Diego Historical Society showing it as a former resort, complete with rustic cabins and swimming pool as far back as the 1800's. Only a huge stone fireplace that was once a part of the lodge exists. My parents used that as the backdrop for their famous yearly 4th of July picnics, where the highlight of the day was digging the cooked beef up from the pit. You've never tasted anything so good.

Mom & Dad, now in their 70's, are ready to move closer to town now and scale down. Keeping the property weeded and trees trimmed has been getting harder and harder every year! It's time to sell, and that means getting the property looking its best. Saturday we got a crew together consisting of our daughter Anne and her husband, Joe, my sister and her husband, and Mike and I. Joe also picked up a couple of hourly workers on his way up. Those guys really attacked the weeds with the weedeaters and earned their money and lunch!

My dad is incredible. He has more energy than I could ever dream of having! There is something to be said about the work ethic of the older generation. He is certainly an inspiration to all who know him. Here he is with Mike after felling a 100-year-old oak that had died. Mike is on the chain saw. And that is my dad in the cherry picker with Joe, sawing off a chunk at a time.

Our daughter and son-in-law were certainly troopers, as well. Here's Anne cleaning up the tree debris. Joe worked the cherry picker controls and lowered those huge trunk pieces down with rope, one by one. His finger almost went along for the ride! My sister's husband, our newest family member (he didn't realize what he was getting into when he joined this crazy clan!) did his part, despite being a librarian by trade. At least we kept you out of the surf this weekend, Randy (after the shark attack on Friday)! You certainly earned your son-in-law stripes today!

Mike is back there today for Tree Number Three. I'd better check and see if I have Epsom Salts. He might need them before he takes his buyers out this afternoon.

by Debbie

A Whole Lot of Progress Going On

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 23:18:46 -0500

Day 10

The exterior paint turned out perfect. Wednesday I had to make a decision. I wasn't sure about the shade I had picked out. You've seen houses that you know the people were trying for something and yet missed it by a mile! What were they thinking, you say! Mistakes cost money, and though we don't mind giving these subcontractors the business, we do want to make a profit. Mike sent me to decide. After looking at the large sample prepared by the paint store, I didn't think it was green enough. I called Mike and said that he better come over. Of course, he loves it. You know, sometimes first impressions are deceiving. I had had a color in my head that I wanted and the sample didn't look like that color. But the more Mike and the painter walked around the house with it holding it up here and there - in the sunlight, in the shade, the more I was thinking, "Hey, I think I do like it!" Par for the course, Mike was now questioning his first impression. A tie breaker was again needed, so Leah was called over. Bless her sweet heart, she dropped by again (with both of our most handsome of handsome grandsons, one of whom was just diagnosed with pinkeye so had to miss a day from kindergarten!). You can probably guess which way Leah went ... with me, of course! Go for it, Ed (Ed Finch Painters of El Cajon, California). And like I said, it turned out perfect.

While all of this was going on, Joshua (4) was playing in the backyard, pretending to be a cat named "Mrow." His older brother, Trent (6) had him locked in a "kitty yard." Obviously they haven't yet realized that cats in real life would never stay behind a picket fence!

Ed the Painter also refinished the 1980's oak cabinetry. It was still in good shape. The stain color was just not what buyers want today and it was worn off in places. Ed did a great job, as you can see from the after photo. Unfortunately, the before photo is a bit dark and doesn't show the level of improvement the refinishing actually made.

before after

I picked up some samples of marble for the master bath. I have seen marble being used once again and it adds an element of luxury. In some new model homes, entire bathroom floors are a lovely rich polished marble, while the shower surround and countertops are tiled in a matt neutral tile. Since we are keeping the flooring, which is a 14" matt, neutral, travertine-looking tile, my idea is to use 12" polished marble tile in a rich brown on the countertops to add interest and "pop." I would then use that same polished marble as a border in the bathtub surround that we would tile in a complementary color as the flooring (6" tile). If I use that dark of a color on the countertop, I think I might paint the walls the color of the trim throughout the house - an off-white shade. The trick here is to stay fairly safe and neutral without being boring. I want the home to stand out from other homes in that price range, but not scare anyone off. No decisions are made yet.

master bath vanity and shower before

my two marble samples with our paint choices

Monday, Monday ...

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 23:56:38 -0500

DAY 6

Anne and Joe are back from the River and Mike met them over at the house at around 6 pm. Our mini-roll-off (30 yd dumpster) was delivered this a.m. and the first order of the evening was to load it up with all of the debris that has been accumulating over the last five days. By the time I got over there with tamales for dinner, Joe was busy pulling out the carpet in the master bedroom. Anne continues to tape off molding and windows for paint day.

I had decided on paint colors - both interior and exterior. I had called my daughter, Leah, to run my choices by her since she has done several flips, and she was agreeable. Mike was afraid the green I chose for the exterior was too "minty." I showed the paint chip to Anne & Joe and they both liked it and felt it would be very nice with the black roof and black window frames. We'll go with an off-white trim and finish it all off with a black front door. Our color choice will fit in nicely with the other homes in the neighborhood, which are in cottage-type shades of yellow, gray and beige, and yet we'll have a personality all our own.

For the interior, gotta go with the neutral brownish tan that is so popular right now. I chose a Martha Stewart color from Lowe's. On the same card is a nice green for the kitchen and bath and an off-white shade for the molding. Can't wait to see all of this on the walls! Interestingly, over lunch I paged through the March Better Homes & Garden magazine, and lo and behold, green is the up and coming "in" shade! How's that for confirmation?!

I warned everyone to be careful with the original vertical blinds on both of the sliding-glass doors after all. Originally I wanted to trash them, but after searching the internet for alternatives and getting prices, I decided they had better stay. They are in good shape; just need a cleaning. The rest of the windows will get faux wood blinds, which are quite affordable off the shelf at Home Depot - and they'll even cut them to fit for you!

~ Debbie

Mike's "Day Off"

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 19:42:58 -0500

I had great plans for us today! I thought we would go see a movie, come home and do a little work in the garden and have a nice dinner. After church, I said we needed to run into Home Depot to pick up some wood stakes for my garden. Mike says, "Why don't we just go to Lowe's instead and while we're in there, you can check their prices on bathroom vanities against Home Depot's." OK. Sounds innocent enough. The morning was still young. Fine. Check some prices and we're outa there!

Guess what we found? A CLOSE OUT on a 48" vanity. Couldn't beat it. However, I had failed to measure to see if that would fit (only getting prices, after all!). It was the last one (of course). We purchase the wood stakes for my garden and head to the house to measure the space. Exact fit. Now it's lunchtime and we might as well eat at home since we have to switch vehicles to go back and get the vanity we put on hold.

After lunch we are back at Lowe's to buy our vanity. Mike says we might as well pick out the top. MORE decision making (it's supposed to be our DAY OFF!). Tan tile, off-white vanity, and white shower tile ... I say gotta go with a white top. Easy. Never easy with Mike. "Are you sure?" Let's look around. After what feels like hours later, we head out to the car with our close-out vanity and the white cultured marble top! I have to say out in the parking lot no one would imagine we were "professional" at this. Try fitting a 48" boxed vanity and 49" boxed counter top into an Infiniti FX. By the hair of our chinny chin chins it fit! OH! And while we are in line purchasing the vanity, Mike tells me to go pick out the paint for Monday's project! Really? While you're in LINE? I grab a few paint samples, write down prices and meet him out at the car where he is struggling to load our purchases. We drive BACK over to the house and unload. It is now 4:30 pm and I'm tired and hungry for dinner!

And Mike says, "That WAS day off, honey!" Humph!

Bye, Bye Box!

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 19:22:28 -0500

DAY 4

Yesterday was a tough one for Mike. He needed to get The Box out before the drywall guys came. He said that closet was built like a fortress! Our son-in-law, Luke, came to save the day with his Saws-All. Being a contractor, and much younger!, he has the equipment and the muscle and Mike said that closet was history in 10 minutes. He'd been struggling for hours on it! Thank you, Luke! Mike sure came home dragging last night!

I took my notebook to Home Depot and checked prices on bathroom vanities, tile and blinds. It has been three years since we built our house, so I need to look at everything all over again! I also picked up some paint samples. Time to choose exterior and interior colors!

This morning, I met our nephew, Cameron, at the house to discuss tile - the backsplash in kitchen and tub surrounds. We also have to patch the floor where The Box was removed. Luckily there is extra tile in the garage. Cams said it will be difficult to blend the new grout with the old. Keep our fingers crossed. We are sure blessed to have so many wonderful contacts in the construction business. Cameron did the tile in our current home and did an excellent job.

Cesar, the drywall contractor, and his two helpers were busy patching repairs, boxing out the fireplace, and texturing the newly scraped ceilings.

by Debbie

Keep the Old Tile, or Spend $3,000 on Wood?

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 18:58:11 -0500

DAY 2

We use a wonderful carpet and tile cleaning company, J&P's Carpet Cleaning. Stan the Carpet Man to me. Stan came and cleaned our carpet back in the day when we were first-time buyers of a mobilehome up on Guatay. His son runs the business with him now and they are just the best. Mike and I met Stan and Jay over at the house today to see how that floor grout would clean up. It probably has never been cleaned and covers approximately 900 sq ft, so this is an important experiment. We need to decide today whether or not we keep the tile or demo the flooring and put in that wood. After viewing the clean patches, Mike and I were split once again - he said tear it out and I said to leave it in! Leah was our tie breaker. She lives just 5 minutes away so she drove over to render her opinion. She sided with me, so the tile is now permanantly staying. It cost $600 to clean all the grout. Done deal.

Another subject of contention (what isn't when dealing with home improvement, right?): Whether to demo "the box" or leave it. The Box is an entry closet that sits oddly smack dab in the middle of the entry/livingroom/diningroom.

Most people who see this Box say, take it out! Anne and I were afraid of two things: make the kitchen look like a box in the corner, and (2) removing vital storage in a 4-bedroom house. Today we found out that one of Leah's friends has the same floor plan and they had removed their Box. Anne and I ran over to take a quick peek. Our decision? REMOVE THAT BOX! It looked awesome without. Another decision down.

The brick fireplace was also discussed today. Leah's friends fireplace is exactly the same, and Anne and I thought it looked beautiful. I had considered lightening it with a paint wash (paint thinned way down with water). I also found a photo online that showed a fireplace like ours that was boxed in above the mantle to cut down on the amount of brick.

We decided to box in above the mantle to update the look.

Today Joe continued to scrape the ceilings and Mike removed the kitchen counter tile. Anne worked taping off the windows to prepare for the painting. My job was to bring dinner from La Posta. Whew!

Pre-demo kitchen

Anatomy of a Flip

Mike Wilmers & Co: Mike & Debbie Wilmers & Leah Woolsey (RE/MAX Heritage Homes) — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 18:36:46 -0500

Day 1

Closed escrow today on our first endeavor at a flip. We're excited! All through escrow, Mike was working getting estimates and preparing a working budget. Our goal: six weeks and $25,000. Let's see... that is 42 days.

Our daughter, Anne, and her husband, Joe, are investing in this with us. We will be renting out their current condominium so they can devote their time to this investment. The plan is to have them move into this house at the end of May and the tenants into the condo on June 1. By that time, we will have the home nearly ready for sale. We'll sell this house for a profit (the plan anyway) and buy another and start all over again.

Today Joe scraped the popcorn ceilings. I did the most important job of pruning back, feeding and watering two of the many rose bushes! Mike met with two different landscapers to get bids. The above picture doesn't show just how far gone the yard is, but the bones are great. The bids were more than we originally thought. Knowing the importance of curb appeal, we have a huge decision ahead of us: Do we keep the tile that is currently in the home or tear it out and put in some wood flooring we can get at a bargain price? Back and forth we went on this all evening. No decision made as yet, other than, we gotta have that landscaping done!

Here is a photo of the flooring. The grout originally was light, according to the tile that was under the fridge. We'll see.