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I like that one article about the Toronto couple who bought a fixer upper and then hired a toothless contractor who rolled up on his bike one day and he took their money and hosed up their foundation and they just shrugged their shoulders they had squatter living in their house and they paid them to leave too
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 06:37 |
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# ? Jun 9, 2024 14:43 |
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"Finally, in May 2011, the permits came through. Julian consulted his spreadsheet of contractors and narrowed it down to three candidates. He went outside to mull over his choices. That’s when a man pulled up on his 10-speed bicycle and started chatting with Julian. His name was Robert. He was in his 50s, wore a short-sleeved plaid shirt, jean cut-offs, a rumpled hat and white running shoes. He was missing a few key teeth and didn’t like wearing socks or, as he later informed us, underwear. Robert didn’t own a car and spent his time collecting stray pieces of metal, wood and other junk he’d find on the street. Yet, despite his alarming appearance, he was charming and knowledgeable. He told Julian that he had a degree in structural engineering, and he proposed sensible ideas, like adding skylights to the attic and relocating the furnace to create space for a two-bedroom basement suite. Hey, he said, I could do it myself. Julian wasn’t so sure. Then Robert mentioned he was cheap—only $35 an hour. The next day, Julian checked Robert’s references, which were neither glowing nor damning. We hired him, figuring we could always replace him if things didn’t go well. Robert started the next day. The first step was to underpin the basement, which required digging it out from the inside. Julian biked over to check on the progress and discovered that our front porch was gone." https://torontolife.com/real-estate/parkdale-reno-hell/
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 06:40 |
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FCKGW posted:"Finally, in May 2011, the permits came through. Julian consulted his spreadsheet of contractors and narrowed it down to three candidates. He went outside to mull over his choices. That’s when a man pulled up on his 10-speed bicycle and started chatting with Julian. His name was Robert. He was in his 50s, wore a short-sleeved plaid shirt, jean cut-offs, a rumpled hat and white running shoes. He was missing a few key teeth and didn’t like wearing socks or, as he later informed us, underwear. Robert didn’t own a car and spent his time collecting stray pieces of metal, wood and other junk he’d find on the street. Yet, despite his alarming appearance, he was charming and knowledgeable. He told Julian that he had a degree in structural engineering, and he proposed sensible ideas, like adding skylights to the attic and relocating the furnace to create space for a two-bedroom basement suite. Hey, he said, I could do it myself. Julian wasn’t so sure. Then Robert mentioned he was cheap—only $35 an hour. The next day, Julian checked Robert’s references, which were neither glowing nor damning. We hired him, figuring we could always replace him if things didn’t go well. I can't read that and believe someone wrote it seriously.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 07:18 |
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 08:31 |
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No!
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 08:35 |
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 08:35 |
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FCKGW posted:"Finally, in May 2011, the permits came through. Julian consulted his spreadsheet of contractors and narrowed it down to three candidates. He went outside to mull over his choices. That’s when a man pulled up on his 10-speed bicycle and started chatting with Julian. His name was Robert. He was in his 50s, wore a short-sleeved plaid shirt, jean cut-offs, a rumpled hat and white running shoes. He was missing a few key teeth and didn’t like wearing socks or, as he later informed us, underwear. Robert didn’t own a car and spent his time collecting stray pieces of metal, wood and other junk he’d find on the street. Yet, despite his alarming appearance, he was charming and knowledgeable. He told Julian that he had a degree in structural engineering, and he proposed sensible ideas, like adding skylights to the attic and relocating the furnace to create space for a two-bedroom basement suite. Hey, he said, I could do it myself. Julian wasn’t so sure. Then Robert mentioned he was cheap—only $35 an hour. The next day, Julian checked Robert’s references, which were neither glowing nor damning. We hired him, figuring we could always replace him if things didn’t go well. I live in that neighbourhood and holy poo poo when that article came out
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 08:54 |
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It just keeps getting better. First, it was the bed, then I noticed the window on the right rear...
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 09:52 |
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cursed image
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 10:01 |
The "I like to watch" chair on the right facing the bed is a really vital piece of the story here.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 10:05 |
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therobit posted:I can't read that and believe someone wrote it seriously. I am a bleeding heart full of sympathy, but even I struggle to feel sorry for such utter morons. quote:Unfortunately, that dream was becoming increasingly unrealistic for a young family without a lot of money. Julian had just finished his PhD in education and was teaching part-time at Humber; I was an editor for the Food Network’s website and preparing to go on maternity leave. Still, we scoured the listings every day, searching for a fixer-upper that we could renovate ourselves to save money. We weren’t particularly handy, but we’d seen all the home reno shows, and it seemed like everyone in the city was doing it. How hard could it be?
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 10:05 |
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Liquid Communism posted:It just keeps getting better. First, it was the bed, then I noticed the window on the right rear... I thought it was a lamp. e: Although it would be a strange place for a big-rear end lamp as well. Javid posted:The "I like to watch" chair on the right facing the bed is a really vital piece of the story here. It's actually the "put on my socks while sitting down because I'm old and/or fat" chair. I have one, too. e: I'm the 18" LCD television set.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 10:24 |
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I'm the spotlight in the corner
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 10:38 |
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Jusupov posted:I'm the spotlight in the corner It's actually in a sensible spot because there's a chest of drawers underneath. Gotta find those socks in the dark. Everything sensible in that room is sock-related!
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 10:47 |
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Where others saw failure, you saw sock sense
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 11:45 |
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shortspecialbus posted:I mean I guess if I could basically get paid by clients with limitless funds to do a job well above my skillset after warning them of said skillset limitations, I'd probably do it too. Second project rings a bell, but not sure if it was for the same couple or a disaster. I think you might be conflating it with the Toronto crack-den couple brought up since who just had to go buy a house on a lake even when they were so in debt from remodeling their house in town. Like I genuinely feel the Olivebridge cottage couple got a raw deal with their house, took a calculated risk on letting their remodeller step up to full house builder, and successfully got a usable property out of it even if it cost a lot more than they planned. Toronto crack-den couple just made every possible bad choice only to get bailed out because consequences are for other people. Is it a sunken mattress or is that duvet cover hiding more carpet?
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 16:45 |
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Someone stubbed their toe one time too many.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 17:13 |
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Shoulda just cut the joists and lowered the bed.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 17:18 |
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Look if you've got a better way to prevent the monster under the bed from grabbing your ankles I'd like to hear it.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 17:23 |
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Hey, what era was the terrible explody one for StabLok panels?
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 17:23 |
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Phanatic posted:Shoulda just cut the joists and lowered the bed. Lower beds are harder to get in/out of
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 17:46 |
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Suspect Bucket posted:Hey, what era was the terrible explody one for StabLok panels? AFAIK all of them are considered dangerous, with no limit on age.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 17:52 |
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The headboard is actually an alcove with curtains and superfluous angles. I'm the tiny lamp with a larger lamp shining directly on it from above.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 17:57 |
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GotLag posted:Lower beds are harder to get in/out of
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 18:02 |
Nah, see how there's a curved transition from floor to bed-side? That's a quarterpipe for the cat.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 18:07 |
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spog posted:I am a bleeding heart full of sympathy, but even I struggle to feel sorry for such utter morons. Nearly unemployed or working extremely low wage jobs and buying a half million dollar house to renovate? That matches up with the home reno shows exactly.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 18:10 |
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wolrah posted:AFAIK all of them are considered dangerous, with no limit on age. In the apartment I really like. That's the most affordable. Of course.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 18:15 |
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Index your belongings with photos and get renter's insurance.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 18:16 |
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Queen Combat posted:Index your belongings with photos and get renter's insurance. and don't let the insurance company know there's a stab-lok. in fact, don't ever think about it again
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 18:22 |
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FogHelmut posted:
It's always amazingly frustrating to see rich people waltz through their terrible decisions intact.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 18:25 |
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AMISH FRIED PIES posted:and don't let the insurance company know there's a stab-lok. in fact, don't ever think about it again Queen Combat posted:Index your belongings with photos and get renter's insurance. All excellent ideas. It's otherwise a really good apartment.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 18:30 |
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i hope the owners of olivebridge cottage fall off a fuckin bridge because expensive designer airbnb listings for houses owned by manhattanites who never live in the fuckin things are why i can't afford a place to live around here
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 18:49 |
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there wolf posted:Is it a sunken mattress or is that duvet cover hiding more carpet? The mattress is actually on the floor, it's the rest of the room around it that is sunken.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 19:49 |
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Motronic posted:The mattress is actually on the floor, it's the rest of the room around it that is sunken.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 19:53 |
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Suspect Bucket posted:
highfive stablok buddy. It's getting replaced.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 20:06 |
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there wolf posted:Like I genuinely feel the Olivebridge cottage couple got a raw deal with their house, took a calculated risk on letting their remodeller step up to full house builder, and successfully got a usable property out of it even if it cost a lot more than they planned. Yeah, blogger dude was in way over his head but that house was loving and at that point he knew more about it than anyone. They should have brought in the pros earlier and relegated him to a consultant, but, without knowing how much he was charging, it was probably a misstep that cost them more in time than in money. Of course, they turned around and put the cottage up for lease, so the delay may have had real cost.
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# ? Nov 15, 2018 22:51 |
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Ashcans posted:It's always amazingly frustrating to see rich people waltz through their terrible decisions intact. quote:That house had been a flip job, hastily renovated by the previous owner, and we had bought impulsively, anxious to upsize from our 900-square-foot condo.
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# ? Nov 16, 2018 02:16 |
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Yeah, I wish I could be insulated from my poor decisions by money. Those two need to be dropped into the middle of a forest for a couple months to learn what having nothing feels like. Hell, taking away their mobile phones and forbidding them to visit Starbucks would probably devastate them.
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# ? Nov 16, 2018 04:04 |
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When copy/paste architecture goes too far:
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# ? Nov 16, 2018 13:52 |
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# ? Jun 9, 2024 14:43 |
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Megillah Gorilla posted:When copy/paste architecture goes too far: I have no idea how these things get built. This stuff has to pass through dozens of people before it gets to this point and no one says "Hey wait a minute?".
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# ? Nov 16, 2018 15:07 |