Extreme home makeover?????

[bigdee]

Extreme home makeover in a week......has anyone ever followed up on how these houses have held up? I know it is all for show but really, would you want to own a house that was built in less than a week? My concern, among other things would be the foundation. I know that with modular homes (built in less than week) they require that the foundation cure for at least a week before they set the house and even with that there are still settling issues.

 

[12vMan]

Re: Extreme home makeover?????

I've actually been involved with the cabinetry in one of the makeovers. Our front line cabinet builder, KraftMaid Cabinetry, supplies all of the cabinets for the series and has done so from the very beginning, so I had the opportunity to be a part of the crew a couple of years ago.

You would have to be there to see the all of the work and scheduling that goes into one of these projects. There is weeks of preparation before hand and then there are 100's of builders and installers working on these projects 24 hours a day to get them complete. Once complete there may be some punch list items, but overall the jobs are very well done.

The concrete mixes used are special, fast-curing blends. Depending on where the location is, different suppliers use theirs. HERE and HERE are a couple of examples. I would definitely buy one.

 

[JB]

Re: Extreme home makeover?????

Very good info, 12vMan. Thanks.

 

[bigdee]

Re: Extreme home makeover?????

I've actually been involved with the cabinetry in one of the makeovers. Our front line cabinet builder, KraftMaid Cabinetry, supplies all of the cabinets for the series and has done so from the very beginning, so I had the opportunity to be a part of the crew a couple of years ago.

You would have to be there to see the all of the work and scheduling that goes into one of these projects. There is weeks of preparation before hand and then there are 100's of builders and installers working on these projects 24 hours a day to get them complete. Once complete there may be some punch list items, but overall the jobs are very well done.

The concrete mixes used are special, fast-curing blends. Depending on where the location is, different suppliers use theirs. HERE and HERE are a couple of examples. I would definitely buy one.

That's interesting....I can see how Kraft maid would be a plus since they are factory built. I can't imagine that many people and contractors working without getting in each others way. How much of the house is pre-built off site? Modular builders do this every day but they use assembly line techniques and alot of their the work is repetitious and precut and they don't have to worry about the weather. My hat goes off to the contractor who co-ordinates all of this!

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Extreme home makeover?????

I would definitely buy one.

And you'd probably get the chance since few of the recipients can afford the taxes on their new homes.

 

[TilliamWe]

Re: Extreme home makeover?????

The house they built in Pekin, IL for Jacob Greis still looks great. I drive by it every Friday while working. The family did say that they had to change a couple of minor things right away, since they were impractical. Otherwise, they love the house and are extremely greatful for it. And they knew they could afford the taxes, since ABC paid off their previous mortgage and the new taxes are a little less then their old mortgage, which they could afford.
It certainly is the nicest house in the neighborhood!

 

[12vMan]

Re: Extreme home makeover?????

That's interesting....I can see how Kraft maid would be a plus since they are factory built. I can't imagine that many people and contractors working without getting in each others way. How much of the house is pre-built off site? Modular builders do this every day but they use assembly line techniques and alot of their the work is repetitious and precut and they don't have to worry about the weather. My hat goes off to the contractor who co-ordinates all of this!

KraftMaid, being the largest cabinet maker in the world, can pull it off alright, but there are still obstacles obviously when you have that many people and trades on the job site at once. Believe me I deal with this all the time when I work with developers for large projects Things get broken and scratched and need to be replaced or repaired and touched-up. KraftMaid had the ability to get additional parts there right away if needed.

The house I worked on wasn't a total frame-up site built, new construction home. It was just a remodel utilizing most of the original framing and foundation. The framing goes real quick on site. The frames are built right there and tilted up and trussed, then sheeted and/or wrapped, and stuccoed or whatever the case may be on the outside of the structure.

The weather definitely can be an issue. That factor probably comes into play when they schedule which house they'll be working on depending on the area of the country and time of year.

 

[jasoutside]

Re: Extreme home makeover?????

The part that I scratch my head over is the implications of having a gigantic humongo castle like structure surrounded by, well, the existing homes.

You know, one of these is not like the other sorta thing.

 

[southkogs]

Re: Extreme home makeover?????

The part that I scratch my head over is the implications of having a gigantic humongo castle like structure surrounded by, well, the existing homes.

You know, one of these is not like the other sorta thing.

Me too - I've always been curious about resale on these homes after they're done. Especially considering the housing market in many of the cities they do the work in, the comps in the area and the amount of money they put in on top of the purchase price. Anyone know how these things fair years down the road in resale?

 

[TilliamWe]

Re: Extreme home makeover?????

Me too - I've always been curious about resale on these homes after they're done. Especially considering the housing market in many of the cities they do the work in, the comps in the area and the amount of money they put in on top of the purchase price. Anyone know how these things fair years down the road in resale?

I can tell you that the Greis home in Pekin, IL would almost be un-sellable. It is surrounded by small houses that probably would sell for $70,000 (maybe). They are clean and the neighborhood isn't bad, but the fire station is directly across the street! The Greis house is at least 3 times bigger than the other houses on the block. If it were in a fancier neighborhood, it would be a $500,000 house. But noone is going to pay that to live across from a fire station and a bunch of $70,000 houses. But again, the Greis family knew all that going in, and they have no intentions of trying to sell it. They needed the house so that their adopted child, Jacob, who has brittle bone disease, could get around "on his own" as much as possible. And considering he's only 11 or 12 years old now (the house was built about 3 years ago, I think), they have a LONG time before he's able to live on his own, if he ever will be able to.

 

[jasoutside]

Re: Extreme home makeover?????

Well that, but on the other side of the coin....

If I was looking to buy one of the "normal" houses on the block, might the "giant" be a bit of an eye sore, so to speak???

I dunno, to me it would.

 

[TilliamWe]

Re: Extreme home makeover?????

Well that, but on the other side of the coin....

If I was looking to buy one of the "normal" houses on the block, might the "giant" be a bit of an eye sore so to speak???

I dunno, to me it would.

In the case of this house, and this house only, EM:HE did a great job blending it into the block. It's only 1/2 a story higher than the others, similiar width, (not on the property lines), with a same looking street profile. The only way you realize its size, is as you drive by you notice that it takes up almost the entire depth of the lot! So it's a deep house, that's a little taller then the rest. And it's brand new, and looks brand new, when the other look like they were built in the 60s.

 

[12vMan]

Re: Extreme home makeover?????

Yea, you would think that the design would coincide with the neighborhood, but it's also TV where dramatization is king and they do need to make their statement!

 

[mphy98]

Re: Extreme home makeover?????

I was involved in one of the builds in Wisconsin. A friend of mine was chosen as the contractor. We did have a lot of fun during the build but.... the after mentality of the recipients of this one home was unbelievable. The developed an entitlement mentality. I will leave it at that. The construction was very good and the highest quality materials used. Money was no object. I personally thought it was over the top for the area but to Hollywood not so much.

 

[chriscraft254]

Re: Extreme home makeover?????

What pisses me off is when I need a inspector to arrive to go forward on one of my projects, I have to wait and be put on there schedule. They stand at the ready for this program. Its all about how much money you have and how much money your bringing to the community.

The fast pace is no problem material wise. And the only difference between the impossible and the possible is time,money, and man power!

 

[12vMan]

Re: Extreme home makeover?????

The fast pace is no problem material wise. And the only difference between the impossible and the possible is time,money, and man power!

Time, money and manpower sums it up right there with a dash of the possibility of 'your 15 minutes'