My new shop

[Carpenter84]

I have been talking about the potential of a new shop space. It's going to be a long road. I figure since I'm finally actually starting, I'll document it.

This space is the backside of one of the barns (an airplane hanger, actually) on a friend's property.
The gentleman who used to reside in this space used it as a recycling business....

It's gonna be a long road...

(The picture shows us dragging that van out. )

It's FULL of garbage. But a hint... This is the farmhouse Ivr mentioned from time to time. The whole property looks like this....

Once clean, I'll close the front side in. Frame all the walls and ceiling and insulate, and board. Electrical will be run, lighting. I may do concrete pads/repairs as needed as some areas are okay, some are not. Others I literally cannot see.
I've gotten the $5000-$6000 green light from the Warden because building a new shed/shop in the backyard would cost more. And she wants the basement finished and my woodshop is down there and has to go somewhere. So, it will all come here.

Thretal shop will go where the floor is the least damaged. The woodshop will go where the floor is the worst as I will build a platform (wood shop has the least weight), then bench/welding/tools/etc area will likely be in the lower area in the back. But nothing had been decided. It's all dependant on how bad the concrete pad is in each area.

[ddickey]

How far away from your house is this?

[Carpenter84]

10 mins.

I know... I'd muuuuch rather my shop at my home, but it's just not feasible. We need to finish the basement so the kiddo has somewhere to play, and I've completely outgrown my one car garage shop.

[ddickey]

I've outgrown mine to but I have 400sqft. Housing around here is crazy high and land is even worse. Talking $50,000 for 1/2 acre if you're lucky.

[Carpenter84]

Lol. 50k for a 1/2 acre?

I could easily spend $350,000 for a 100'x120' lot. IF there were any... There's three custom House builders that have been snatching up every plot of land available, even the crap ones.

My father in-law just sold his rental property in the outskirts. The house is a total tear down, totally worthless. $450,000 for 1/4 acre.

I posted a photo of my house this morning. With the yard and gardens done up. 2004 build, 1625 sq/f lot is 80'x120", biggest lot on the street due to the corner. I'd sell tomorrow for $515,000. Housing is out of control here... property taxes are $4700 a year.

[ddickey]

Huh? My Goodness. Collapse is coming.

[Carpenter84]

If our interest rates go up half a percent, there will be so many people that lose their houses. Our interest rates are very low. So the prices are nuts... I think we're 2.9 or 3.1% I can't remember. It just went down actually. But the house prices are sooooooo high that buying your first home now is nearly impossible... What first time buyer can put together a $75,000 downpayment??

There was a housing explosion about 5 years ago where prices went up $100,000-150,000. We slipped right in under the rug. Bought in 2012 for 298,000

[PJB]

Lol. 50k for a 1/2 acre?

I could easily spend $350,000 for a 100'x120' lot. IF there were any... There's three custom House builders that have been snatching up every plot of land available, even the crap ones.

My father in-law just sold his rental property in the outskirts. The house is a total tear down, totally worthless. $450,000 for 1/4 acre.

I posted a photo of my house this morning. With the yard and gardens done up. 2004 build, 1625 sq/f lot is 80'x120", biggest lot on the street due to the corner. I'd sell tomorrow for $515,000. Housing is out of control here... property taxes are $4700 a year.

$450k for a 1/4 acre sounds like a case of location location location.   There’s always a supply and demand factor.    Is this in or near a large metro?  But at least your property taxes are low.   Here you would pay $14k on 500k valuation.   This is why people are packing up leaving IL as soon as they are able to.
Which reminds me I have to go and pay 1st installment by 6/1
Wanna trade

[Carpenter84]

Lol. 50k for a 1/2 acre?

I could easily spend $350,000 for a 100'x120' lot. IF there were any... There's three custom House builders that have been snatching up every plot of land available, even the crap ones.

My father in-law just sold his rental property in the outskirts. The house is a total tear down, totally worthless. $450,000 for 1/4 acre.

I posted a photo of my house this morning. With the yard and gardens done up. 2004 build, 1625 sq/f lot is 80'x120", biggest lot on the street due to the corner. I'd sell tomorrow for $515,000. Housing is out of control here... property taxes are $4700 a year.

$450k for a 1/4 acre sounds like a case of location location location.   There’s always a supply and demand factor.    Is this in or near a large metro?  But at least your property taxes are low.   Here you would pay $14k on 500k valuation.   This is why people are packing up leaving IL as soon as they are able to.
Which reminds me I have to go and pay 1st installment by 6/1
Wanna trade

What’s your lot size? That is a lot in taxes, but the cost of housing does offset that, I suppose. When I bought my taxes were 3600 a year, which was pretty standard for the area. It’s gone up a lot....
I am almost an hour outside of Toronto. But the real estate boomed because so many people who lived in Toronto moved east because it was cheaper. But the real estate agents and foreign buyers started driving the prices up. Our houses are hugely inflated. There’s absolutely no way my house should be $515,000.

The inflation in the GTA has gone nuts. And of course, the incomes have not kept up with the cost of living, at all...
my wife and I do well (not rich, but my hobbies are expensive and the boy is spoiled), she makes a lot more money than I. but she was very sick when the boy was born and couldn’t work for over a year. We managed on my income. If we bought now and went through the same, there’s no question I would have lost my house, or would be in huge debt to a family member (her parents)...

[PJB]

Its like 1/3 acre.   
Will be cool to see what the Barn looks like after you get it cleaned  up.   

[Carpenter84]

I haven't posted here in forever. It's been a slow process. I don't have tonnes of time to spend here. But I'm working that out. It doesn't look much different. In fact, it looks worse. Lol. I tore down some walls, tore down a broken concrete supporting wall and I just laid a block foundation to build a new supporting wall on to support the one side of the barn above.
It'd a disaster area right now. But as soon as this wall is built its all gonna get a big clean up again. I have a couple more structural things to fix before I can close the front in. I'm still hoping to have it closed in by winter. There's a 30,000 BTU oil drip heater here I can use to warm up while I build my actual shop.
There's a sunken lean-to that has to go, that's Jonathan's job. Then I need to lift the corner of the cement pad and shove some earth under it then make a berm to keep it from sinking again. Too much surrounding low ground. Once that corner is lifted and somewhat level, I can close in the front.

[woodchucker]

what are you going to put where the leanto is?
Always find leanto's valuable to have, good for vehicles, or just a holding area.
but that's my opinion.

[Carpenter84]

I agree. But...

The barn was originally just a square building. 30 years ago someone built two air hangers into the barn. One is my north facing shop, and the other is east facing. There is a 3' elevation difference in the two hangers due to the topical layout of the land. My shop floor is 3' higher than the other hanger. The lean-to is the same level as the east hanger. Which happens to also be lower than the surrounding land (about a 50' radius). The lean-to fills with water every spring. Which erodes my shop. Which explains why the north east corner sunk so much.

If the lean-to was the same height as my shop, A: I wouldn't have nearly the structure problems I have, B: the floor wouldn't have sunk, C: I'd be using the lean-to to store my boat. Lol.

[Carpenter84]

And there we have it... A wall!

I jacked the big beam up as much as I was comfortable (i wasn't...) Only managed to lift one inch. But I was using a farm jack.. those are serious pucker inducing pieces of equipment....
That wall is holding a serious amount of weight. But it'd a huge step forward.

[woodchucker]

great, what's next?