There’s no denying affordability is tough right now. But that doesn’t mean you have to put your plans to buy a home on the back burner. I am going to share my experiences as a DIY'er just to give you some real life insight and also give you reasons why you should consider a fixer upper in Michigan.
I am living proof of just that.....
Similarly to many homebuyers out there, it's very annoying, the inventory is low, and there's still bidding wars when homes are priced well. So just last November I compromised on A LOT for my realistic skillset as a DIY'er (that's me indirectly saying I suck at DIY'ing stuff), but that didn't stop me. I said, "you know what, I am going to learn". I bought this house and as soon as I got the keys, I ripped the carpet out because it smelled like cat pee and I ripped off closet doors, drywall in some areas, the tile in the kitchen, the counter tops and just said to myself that I will figure it out (Trust me when I say I still am..).
Buying A Fixer Upper In Michigan
While this fixer upper needed a little TLC, it was worth considering based on these 3 points:
They usually have a lower price point (I offered well below asking price and won)
Less competition (Didn't have any)
Build equity faster (Of course this is situational, BUT more times than not yes.)
Let me take a step back and give you the whole story. I have been looking for a home for A LONG time. I was in the market, in the trenches just like most of the homebuyers I am helping. I looked at several homes, struck out on a few and ultimately landed on this one because nobody wanted to deal with the cat pee, because when i say it was radiating through the house, It was painted on the walls...like paint.
I ended up buying the home well under asking price, but in my mind I wanted to focus on one thing, Resale value. I made sure the home was in a great location, near amenities and in a spot where the outlook of the local economy was in the right direction, and the neighborhood supported better prices than what i got the home for. I also wanted to ensure this was a home I could live in personally for a couple years and not grow out of. I checked all those boxes with this find.
After securing the home, it was time to get to work, and my goodness was it a COMPLETE disaster (keep reading).
This picture above may be a little confusing, but shortly after I purchased the home and ripped out all the carpets, my brother and I were in the attic checking it out and he tripped and went RIGHT THROUGH THE CEILING. So what you see here is all the drywall removed from the hallway and black garbage bags keeping the insulation from the attic from falling all over the place. Keep in mind, this hallway ceiling is also the return for the furnace too, so it was important to button that up. Let's just say in the moment it wasn't that funny, but it sure is now.
I thought, no big deal, drywall isn't too outrageously expensive and then all I have to do is screw the drywall up and tape, and mud it. Easy enough right? No not really...
And just like any beginner I thought, "I'll just cake this stuff on and sand the excess off, easy enough." I loved that confidence at first until I was told professionals don't even sand that much, if at all. And after sanding until my arms were about ready to fall off I thought, I will use a lot less of this gray cake batter next time and NEVER sand this much again. A promise I will keep until I float to Heaven. For those reading, have you ever sanded a ridiculous amount of drywall mud off by hand? Drop your experiences in the comments below.
Alright, so we are done with this hallway. What I didn't realize after pulling out carpet that was against tile in the kitchen was how MASSIVE the gap is from tile to subfloor (pictured above). Granted, I plan to put in LVP (luxury vinyl plank) flooring, but that isn't going to close that gap completely. I asked several people for advice on this situation and they said I could either build up the sub floor, break up the tile, or put in a massive transition strip from tile in the kitchen to the living room. Well, what I forgot to mention is I planned to do LVP throughout the whole house (excluding bathrooms) to make the floor plan feel more seamless and open, so a transition from the same floor between rooms was not an option in my eyes. I wanted to do it right.
I broke up the tile AND built up the subfloor.
Pictured above is a 3.5 yard trailer full I rented from Baker Equipment Co. LLC, a good buddy named Erik who not only dropped the trailer off for me, BUT also took the full trailer away and emptied it. The trailer was full all the tile (of course it was done properly and had all the wire mesh under it. Pain in the butt to break up I tell ya), counter tops, drywall and miscellaneous stuff from my over confident demolition day.
Now that the tile was gone, I had to re-evaluate the floor.. (It gets worse)
Pictured above is a belt sander that I had to use to sand down some of the seams, and high spots on the subfloor after my brother and I walked around with a level to see how off they were. This home was built in the late 80's which really isn't too terribly bad when in reference to some of those early 1900's houses where you set a golf ball down and it quickly finds a direction of travel, but was I wrong...AGAIN. What I didn't know is, according to standard LVP installation guidelines, the allowed floor difference for LVP is typically 1/8 inch over a span of 4 feet; meaning any unevenness exceeding this should be leveled with a floor leveler before installation. I have been in so many homes that have done a terrible installation job with LVP, the corners popping up, there's low spots, high spots and it's just not how I wanted this to be.
So we used self-leveler to bring the floor up (it gets worse).
Above is a video of us using self-leveler. What you'd do is mix water with the 40 pound bag of powder and dump it out. We used a squeegee to push it around and ensure it was finding the low spots and by the end of it, it looked like a poured patio, but inside... What I didn't mention was we miscalculated the bags by a lot and I had to keep running up to Home Depot and buying more, and at roughly $38.99 a bag and needing about 17 bags for the whole house, you can do the math on that one.. By the end of it we actually had to buy a diamond blade for a grinder because there were little pieces of the concrete that dried and crusted causing it to be unlevel in some areas due to us moving it around when it was getting dry since it is a rapid setting product.
Alright, enough about the floors. There's MORE!
Pictured above is one of the bathrooms where I just one day ripped the vanity, toilet and walls around the shower out even though they were all very much functional and not horribly installed either... It was one of those split second decisions I haven't decided if I regret yet, but we will see later. On top of that, this bathroom had textured ceilings and I said to myself, "these have to go". I tried sanding, I tried scraping after letting warm water sit on it, eventually it got to the point where I was looking online and found most people just drywall over it.
Yay, more mudding and taping...
I was a lot more conscious about how much gray cake batter I used this time and honestly it turned out better. A nice little learning experience.
Buying A Fixer Upper In Michigan
Let's Recap This
When I got the keys to this house I ripped out the carpet, the tile, the counter tops, that whole bathroom, light fixtures, fans, AND will be repainting the whole house too.
The question you're probably asking yourself right now is, why is Andrew telling me all this?
That's a valid question, I went off on quite the tangent. My goal was to give you insight into my real life experience DIY'ing a project (as someone who is anything but a DIY'er), but I will say I am becoming a better one and the learning experience is so so so priceless.
I even started to get a little crafty with the house too and I thoroughly enjoy it. using tools I have never used before (getting better at) and testing my patience on a new level.
The moral of this story is, yes, a fixer upper will take time and money, but if you do it yourself you will learn a lot of valuable skills AND you'll save money when purchasing the home because most people these days want a move-in ready home, and honestly I did too, but now I wouldn't change this experience even if I could.
There's also a lot to know about getting a fixer upper before you jump in headfirst too and Keeping Current Matters dished it out perfectly (below is what they said):
As The Mortgage Reports notes:
“If you’re a house hunter who’s not afraid of sweat equity, buying a fixer-upper could be your ticket to homeownership. Doing so could lead to big savings, even in some of the nation’s largest and most popular housing markets. Plus, adding the right features could help your investment.”
Buying A Fixer Upper In Michigan
What To Know About Buying a Fixer-Upper
The possibilities that come with a fixer-upper are exciting, but there are a few things to think about first.
Do You Have a Gameplan?
Consider if you have the time, skills, or budget to tackle renovations. Be honest about what you can handle yourself, what you’ll need to hire out, and if a fixer-upper is truly a good fit for your lifestyle. Remember, you’ll likely be living in a construction zone at least for a little while.
Prioritize the Repairs and Upgrades:
Don’t stress yourself out thinking you’ve got to do all the work up front. Space out renovations over time in a way that makes sense for your budget and what’s most important to tackle first.
Location Matters:
You want the money you’re spending to fix up a house to be worth the investment. So, make sure the home is in an area with increasing home values and amenities locals love, like parks and restaurants.
Budget for Surprises (Thankfully I did):
Renovations rarely go as planned. So, be sure to set aside extra money to cover things like extended repair timelines, an increase in the cost of materials, or other unknowns that may come up.
Buying A Fixer Upper In Michigan
Bottom Line
Fixer uppers are DEFINITELY not for everyone, but take it from someone who doesn't have an ounce of experience doing any of this work that it is possible for you and I hope this article helped give you some confidence to see that a fixer upper may not be that far out of your wheel house. Will it take time? Yes. Will it be stressful at times, Definitely. Will you want to quit and sell the home as-is after tearing it apart? I can guarantee it, but remember your long term vision for making that house a home.
Here's a LINK to several products to help you (they definitely helped me)
If you’re thinking about moving to Michigan in 1 day or a million, feel free to reach out anytime, I also have a link to the Living in Michigan newsletter to give you insight on all things Michigan, so be sure to subscribe so you never miss out! Thanks for reading, until next time.
Cheers,
Andrew
Andrew McManamon is a Michigan REALTOR® with Signature Sotheby’s International Realty and provides real estate services to Buyers, Sellers and Investors throughout SE Michigan including Livingston County, Oakland County, Washtenaw County, Genesee County & beyond. Andrew has become one of the pillars of Michigan real estate. Prior to his real estate career Andrew was responsible for managing a senior living facility in Brighton, Michigan as a dining supervisor and an activities assistant. Andrew’s passion to help people is unlike any other, and he continues to strive to be the best resource he can be. Andrew graduated from Cleary University in Howell, Michigan with a double major in business and marketing, and currently resides in Brighton, Michigan.
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