Finally, final inspection today.

12 years ago

As a lot of you know, we started off two years ago to simply paint the house. The painters found a failed important corner post. To replace the post and satisfy building codes, we needed to destroy and reconstruct the front porch including its foundation - its under the main roof of the house. A decision we made to have a contractor blow in insulation wrecked the exterior kitchen walls and a good portion of the cabinets due to mold. Because of other bad construction techniques and we ended up reframing about 30 feet of the exterior - partly in the kitchen. From the insulation, we had significant plaster damage in the entire house. Life happens when you least expect it - this mess started about three months after my father died.

As I look in my book-o-permits, we have had about 20 different permits for the original project, the kitchen expansion, mechanicals, changes and addons. One sub died, one quit, one committed suicide, two we "fired". We learned many new skills and did things we never contemplated - my favorite was renting a demolition hammer on Christmas eve (because we got an extra day for free) to remove a tile floor in the kitchen.

We thought we were spending $3k to paint, then $12k for the porch, then $15k for the porch and insulation, then more each issue or disaster but its been a total of nearly 50k for the porch, the kitchen, and repairing and repainting the rest of the house. There are other costs too - one broken foot, one dislocated hand, an infinite number of strained backs, a couple of lost clients and the resulting loss of income.

Today, hopefully, we will pass occupancy for the whole shebang and it will be over.

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Comments (32)

breezygirl
12 years ago
Wow! Good luck with the inspection. I bet I'll hear the big sigh of relief all the way across the country to my coast. :)

I've done the "rental on an odd item too over a holiday because you get an extra day for free" also. Working over a holiday sucks.
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oldhouse1
12 years ago
Wow, after all that I hope all goes well today and you can begin to enjoy your home again. Fingers crossed!
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Thanks, everyone! I'm still shaking my head today about what wasn't inspected, but we did have regular and more thorough inspections along the way while building. I'm glad to know others experienced lackadaisical finals also. Congratulations to you, Amanda. You're geting so close to being done. DH was very happy that I didn't stop the inspector to come in and look at our new panel. I'll remember those words if something ever goes wrong. :) Caliente--I'm jealous of your ready supply of Meyer lemons! I made some delicious Meyer lemon curd last weekend, but I have to pay a decent price for my citrus up here in the north. I posted the margarita recipes in a KAW thread. Linked below. Here is a link that might be useful: KAW Margarita Edition
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Ugh, don't even get me started on the agent... Remember, he's not MY agent, he's the seller's agent. I don't know about the US (I'm in Australia) but over here, the final inspection is meant to be done on a vacant property. When I got there, the owners were in the process of moving (had the moving truck there and everything). I told him it was a total waste of my time - if they weren't ready for the inspection, it shouldn't have been organised yet. So I have to go back again tomorrow for the official one. (Sorry for the tone, I'm just really annoyed about this whole thing. It takes me over an hour to drive out there, and when I got there, the agent wasn't even there). Do you have your own agent? As for final walk throughs, they are done differently depending on where you live. In some states you should be out in others closing happens a day or so before the sellers leave. I've posted our story about how our buyer ended up changing their mind all of the time on things that were found on the inspection. One minute they were fine with estimates, then they wanted it fixed then wanted cash. The Friday before we moved my agent called after business close (national holiday) saying once again buyers changed their mind. When our movers came Tuesday I had no clue if we were even closing. Our mover was done 30 minutes after their final walk through but the house was cleaned out enough that they could see everything. I did my best to get everything scheduled but we had no real closing date until a week before closing, plus trying to close on our new house the same day, my head was spinning. My "gouge" happened with a stack of plastic containers IIRC. They slipped out of my hands, then fell against something that was near the wall. Since our room was painted a taupe, it looked worst then what it was. Can you bring a camera tomorrow to take pictures of the damage? Maybe you should get an inspector out to make sure the peeling paint isn't anything serious or ask for money to be held in escrow in case it is serious. How have you been as a buyer? Were there things wrong on inspection and did you ask them to get fixed? Do you think the sellers damaged the walls for spite?
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gldnfan, I'm curious what you say about switching out the lights...now that they are required to be pin lights, how does one "switch them out"...are there other lights that use pins? Or do you mean they have the electricians come back and change the fittings? Our understanding is that with the new law it's not easy to switch...I have the same green countertop and yellowish glow on my "cream" cabinets when the lights are on...I suppose as KD's and GC's get more familiar with this people will be advised about the combination prior to choosing it! Oh well, I find I'm starting to get used to it already so maybe eventually I won't even think about it. Gary, my understanding is that the current requirement is that you must have 50% fluorescent, i.e. if you put in one pendant as in our case which is rated for 3 100 watt bulbs, you must have at least 300 watts of fluorescent...the result being that we have LOTS of fluorescent lights. Congratulations, gldnfan...sounds like ahead of me in terms of getting moved back in. Amela, I will let you know about the insets. I love the look and because my kitchen was reconfigured, I think I gained some space to help make up for any lost due to the insets. But I haven't really been able to start moving much back in as I've had a sick DS at home all week as well as a sick DH so not much energy around here. I think it's a sign that it was really time for the remodel to be done! I'll let you know what I think as I go along about the space. The insets do look really good in my house, though, as it was built in 1931.
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In my experience, final inspections from the building department are sort of a non-event. The real inspections are the ones that were done while work was in progress and before walls and ceilings got closed up. The final inspection is usually just a check for any glaring problems (unlikely), to ensure that things like smoke detectors are in place and operating, and that energy conservation requirements are fulfilled. When it comes to your punch list, it's always a good idea to hold back some amount of your final payment until the items on your list are satified, but it's probably unreasonable to withhold the entire final payment. If you have a good working relationship with your GC, there's probably no reason to think that he'll skip out leaving you unhappy at the very end of the process. I've always found that the best way to deal with the punch list and any withheld payment is to simply discuss it with the contractor and find a number that you both find agreeable. Depending on the scope of the project, and unless there are a number of very large items on your punch list, $2,000 to $3,000 is probably in the ballpark -- but you'll probably have some sense on what you think is a fair number. Your contractor most likely will want to get things wrapped up quickly, too -- just so he can close his books on your project. Hope this helps. James
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beaglesdoitbetter1
12 years ago
Talk about project scope creep :)

At least there's light at the end of the tunnel now! Here's hoping you pass and can get into the house and start enjoying all the fruits of your labor.
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User
12 years ago
Fingers crossed here. I don't know how you have maintained your sanity through this. It is just one day at a time and knowing that you will get through this.

May you have many hours of calm and joy associated with this remodel. c
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enduring
12 years ago
Good luck to you all. It is hard to believe that so much happened during your initial innocent idea of "lets Paint". You must be ready for this stage of your life to be over.
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Mercymygft
12 years ago
Oh my... hope everything goes well with the inspection!
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wizardnm
12 years ago
holding my breath....
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function_first
12 years ago
Ugh, two years. So sorry you had to endure that. Here's wishing you two years of sheer joy as you cavort in your new space to make up for the past two years -- starting today!
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rhome410
12 years ago
YAY....20 permits, yikes. We're waiting on one and it's such a pain.

Inspection anticipation isn't fun either, but hoping and praying it breezes right through.

Pictures, pictures? :-)
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blfenton
12 years ago
Good Luck with final inspection. After all you've been through I hope it's an easy walk through.
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plllog
12 years ago
Phew! The day has arrived. Hope all goes well.

At least you got a fantastic kitchen out of it. :)
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lisa_a
12 years ago
OMG, bmore, I had no idea about the hassles you have gone through. This is a well-deserved closure to a long, headache-filled ordeal. You deserve kudos for making it through and coming out the other side with a lovely kitchen.

And what rhome wrote, "Pictures, pictures? :-)"
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bmorepanic
Original Author
12 years ago
PASSED!

Dude came, took a long time, wrote on forms forever. I was getting mentally ready for a list of what we did wrong, then we got the sticker instead!!!!

Pictures await the return of a straying relative - mine never turn out right.
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wizardnm
12 years ago
Great news!!!!!!!!!!
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gsciencechick
12 years ago
Yay!!
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lisa_a
12 years ago
Doing my happy dance for you, bmore!!!
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lascatx
12 years ago
So glad to hear it.

Since you seem to be an accomplished miracle worker now, would you send some rain to Texas? ;-)
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eandhl
12 years ago
Finally time to enjoy! I am very happy for you.
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zeebee
12 years ago
Congrats! We had a similar saga with our home reno (estimated 6 months by architect - after numerous problems, firings, we closed the last permit 22 months after we started). I know well that feeling of relief.

Enjoy!
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remodelfla
12 years ago
Whoppeeeeeee bmore! Big reason to celebrate!
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breezygirl
12 years ago
Congratulations!!!!!! What on earth will you do with your free time now?
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User
12 years ago
YES !!! So glad for you . You certainly deserve it after all you have been through. PIctures awaited with great excitement. c
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yellowdog2
12 years ago
Congratulations and best wishes for all good things!
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rhome410
12 years ago
Hugs and joining Lisa in that happy dance! SUCH a relief to pass inspections...Especially a final. And didn't we naively think we were done with the tension of 'finals' years ago when we graduated?

We don't care if the pics are good, just plentiful. :-D
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Daicey
12 years ago
Congrats! Can't wait to see it!!
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jmcgowan
12 years ago
That is terrific news!! So happy for you. Enjoy your new space.
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blfenton
12 years ago
WOW. ((( ))). :-)
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dianalo
12 years ago
Fabulous! I bet your house came out better than most because all of your blood, sweat and tears that went into it. You have the added satisfaction of having risen to the challenge!

You give me hope ;)
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flwrs_n_co
12 years ago
Congratulations! It's time to either party or relax--your choice. Can't wait to see the pics! Wishing you many years of happiness in your "new" home. :)
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bmorepanic
Original Author
12 years ago
Thanks, everyone. It is a big relief. For a large part of the time, the front door looked like this...

What will I do with my free time? Few hundred bulbs in and some #$%#@$ bamboo out. Move a baby deodar cedar. Shoot more squirrels with my power ranger squirt gun. Finish the decorating. Only 12 more window panels to sew!

Party -or- Relax? Which one has more margaritas?

If I could make it rain in Texas, I surely would. It hurts my heart to think of y'all plus your neighboring states, plus georgia and the drought. I will wish for you a nice, mild, slow moving, tropical storm.

And best wishes to all those who have suffered the loss of family or their home. You are stronger than you know.
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Buehl
12 years ago
Congratulations! It must be a great relief knowing it's almost all behind you. Time for enjoying what all the stress and strain and work have resulted in - a new kitchen to have fun in!
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rhome410
12 years ago
Partying indicates you have to invite people, which sounds like work and like you'll have to share... So I'd say relaxing could mean more margaritas for you!!

Now that we've seen the 'before'.... Nag, nag, nag.
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Finally, final inspection today.

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Finally, final inspection today.

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