Pictures of Restored Springfield Homes

ben says · July 08, 2012, 10:21:00 AM

Does anyone have any before and after pictures (or just after) of the interior of original Springfield homes that they wouldn't mind posting here?

Also, does anyone have any personal experience with SRG builders? I'd like to see more of their work but can't find much online. If you have pictures, please post.

iloveionia · July 08, 2012, 02:04:20 PM

I have several.
(will post more later)
Here (of course) is one of my favorites:

ben says · July 08, 2012, 02:39:03 PM

Great pics. Please post as many as you can.

Also, do you know how much it cost to buy that home? How much it cost to renovate it?

sheclown · July 08, 2012, 04:57:21 PM

It costs about a 100k to renovate a gutted Springfield house. This is a wild and variable figure, but it is a good starting point. This means reasonable tile work and kitchen cabinetry, light fixtures, and etc.

In the height of the housing boom, renovating a house got up to $200k to $250k mostly due to material choices and major changes in floor plans. When we started out restoring homes in Springfield ten years ago, it was at the 100k mark. Then it got crazy with luxury renovations: fancy tile and master bathrooms and everything granite. Now it is back to quality and economy and reasonable and modest homeowner expectations.

Building materials also got crazy for awhile. When we built the two new houses on Liberty, we experienced it painfully. In the course of a year drywall almost tripled, wood flooring doubled, plywood almost tripled, granite was outrageous and forget about getting any kitchen cabinetry without blowing a good chunk of your budget.

Now is a great time to either build or renovate. Labor is dirt cheap (arg), materials are at pre-boom prices, and homeowners expectations are much more reasonable.

If the house is not gutted, you can save even more. Even if the plaster walls have cracks. DO NOT DO NOT DO NOT gut. For the love of all things old DO NOT DO NOT DO NOT gut.

iloveionia · July 08, 2012, 06:30:01 PM

I did buy this house as you see it in the "before" pics.
Gutted, condemned, no systems.
Unfortunately much of the house is brand new. (Kind of a funny statement. LOL)

ben says · July 08, 2012, 06:42:24 PM

Quote from: iloveionia on July 08, 2012, 06:30:01 PM
I did buy this house as you see it in the "before" pics.
Gutted, condemned, no systems.
Unfortunately much of the house is brand new. (Kind of a funny statement. LOL)

Beautiful. Love the door frames.

Debbie Thompson · July 09, 2012, 01:23:09 PM

Agree, sheclown. After we removed the 100-year-old wallpaper from the walls and ceilings of our house, we found the lath and plaster walls had lots of hairline cracks. We skimcoated them, and they were ready for paint. No need to gut a house. Even if you have to re-wire and re-plumb, it can be done without gutting it.

Timkin · July 09, 2012, 11:37:42 PM

This House is amazing !!! Very nice job.

mtraininjax · July 10, 2012, 06:46:39 AM

QuoteEven if you have to re-wire and re-plumb, it can be done without gutting it.

As an investor with 7 properties, and growing, yes, you can rewire and replumb without going into the walls, but if there is mold, or rot, it makes sense to remove the problems and fix, if possible. Nothing worse than having mold or mildew and not addressing. The new Green Sheetrock is mold resistant, and lighter than cement board, so the materials companies are giving us more options too when it comes to fixing problems in walls.

sheclown · July 10, 2012, 07:37:40 AM

@mtraininjax: we open up walls for electric and plumbing no problem -- we just don't gut the house. Often the kitchen and the bathrooms need to be opened up.

Mold is rarely an issue in a Springfield house (unless it has been altered and insulated).

The main problem with gutting is that the trim gets destroyed or lost in the process.

Furthermore, drywall is not the same thickness as the paster and lathe. Trim never fits right after the plaster is removed as anyone in an old house will tell you. Windows, doors, outta whack.

Additionally, if you drywall, then you the lose R value of plaster and wood lathe (which is typically R 9) and would need to insulate to compensate, but can't really without causing problems in an historic house.

Insulation changes the airflow of the balloon framing and you lose the natural insulating qualities of the old houses. Additionally, insulating old houses which were never intended to have insulation, causes the mold.

John P · July 10, 2012, 08:41:56 AM

This is a before and after of an apartment in Springfield
http://myspringfield.org/preservation/before-and-after-the-powell-apartments

avs · July 10, 2012, 08:51:43 AM

$100K is a good estimate for renovating the average Springfield home. Sheclown is right, mold is rarely a problem in Springfield homes, except when people alter the homes and they don't breathe the way they were meant to anymore, this goes for calking siding too.

@Ben says: I have lots of interior shots of SRG homes that I have had listed over the years, but I am not sure how to post pictures on Metro. I am happy to email them to you if you want.

duvaldude08 · July 10, 2012, 11:28:04 AM

Quote from: avs on July 10, 2012, 08:51:43 AM
$100K is a good estimate for renovating the average Springfield home. Sheclown is right, mold is rarely a problem in Springfield homes, except when people alter the homes and they don't breathe the way they were meant to anymore, this goes for calking siding too.

@Ben says: I have lots of interior shots of SRG homes that I have had listed over the years, but I am not sure how to post pictures on Metro. I am happy to email them to you if you want.

Hi Amanda! Welcome Back

Bill Hoff · July 13, 2012, 11:58:21 AM

If anyone wants to see more before & afters, I know several people in the neighborhood who documented their own renovations and would be happy to let you see their albums. Just message me.