rbarz

Lowes and Home Depot carry the smaller gauge version.

Short answers: Sue old appraiser? No Sue HCAD appraiser? No Refund for taxes? Yes Long Answer: You can sue anyone you want for pretty much anything, but the real question is if you can recover anything. The problem is that there are NO standard methods for computing square footage, thus it is nearly impossible to show negligence. HCAD likes to add everything into the square footage including porches, roof overhangs, and certainly work shops and enclosed spaces regardless if they are air conditioned or not. Rencently, Banks and their appraisers have become very safe (stingy) and are not counting anything extra in their appraisals. You could have a space in your home that looks perfect, flows from one area to the next, is totally finished just like any other room, but does not have an air conditioning vent in it and the bank will not count it as square footage and will list it on the appraisal as a porch. Also in a declining market most banks have a standard deduction they place on all appraisal values. I have seen 10% to 15% reductions, which is pretty steep for Houston, but the differences in your appraisals is only 8% at a time when the values have fallen since March 2008! The other way you could sue is under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA), but your probably going to have to show that your appraiser knowingly and/or willingly tried to screw you, but with only 8% difference in a declining market it is prima facie in the appraiser's favor. Plus, the bathroom that was left off of the $327k appraisal is going to add value to the home further reducing the difference in value. There is no way you can sue the Harris County Appraisal District and win. You would probably have to petition the county just to get permission to sue. You can get a refund for the taxes paid. If your house was valued by HCAD at $350k then that could be as much as $665.

Those prices are attainable especially if you act as the GC. I don't think you can get Lowes or Home Depot cabinets for that price, especially not installed. Lowes and Home Depot are rather expensive. You will have to get wholesale cabinets most likely sourced from Mexico. You should also remember the old remodeler's rule about the budget: "Double the Price and Twice as Long"

No, 1.5 or so. I was only responding to say that there is still building and selling going on in certain areas. I have no idea what the market is around the "Munster's" new home.

you come up with a price? I'd like it...

Three spec homes in my neighborhood sold in the last 5 months...

What in the hell is that crazy thing they are putting in its place?

I am fairly certain any home owner would have enough money to fight this one! You don't need an attorney... All you would need is a copy of your deed restrictions. It is usually the other way around--the homeowner breaks the restrictions and the powerless HOA does not have the money to sue. (Usually HOA's are powerless because they do not have a fine allocation system set up or a foreclosure process) To answer your question: They have NO power to change anything in the deed restrictions unless it specifically says they do. If I was in your position, I would never consider tearing down a fence to re-construct something that the committee thought would look better. My Deed Restrictions have an Architectural Review Committee that was abolished in the late 70s, but they still like to tell builders and remodelers what they can and can not do. It doesn't mean that anyone has to listen although most do since no one seems to notice the provision abolishing the committee. I actually enjoy reading deed restrictions--although I'm not sure why--so if you would like to PM me your neighborhood or email the actual restrictions, I wouldn't mind taking a look... Cheers

Budget?

Gulf & Basco solid mahogany 1/2 or 3/4 lite for $700

I would certainly follow and be interested in any of the updates...

I have been thinking about it... I think you should ignore your neighbor and figure a plan based on what you want. All you need for a permit to remodel is a drawing and it can pretty much be on a napkin. But if you really want to be safe, make a copy of your survey, draw the plan you want and take it to the Permit office, if they are OK with the idea, they will issue the permit and charge $35 to $75 depending on how much you estimate the project to cost. The worst they could say is no, and then you could pursue all those other options, like requesting variances... Cheers

I watched firemen pound on newly installed windows for 3 or 4 min with axes before they could break them... They are not easy to get through. If I was going to do anything, I would prefer the roll down metal screens, that way you can have security and hurricane protection.

Do you have your survey? It should have a set back line on it. When the builder built your house he probably got a variance to move the setback line. If the move was for the entire property then I would guess that you have a fighting chance that you can add on your room at the 1 foot line. I certainly would not go forward with some rigged plan because a neighbor said your set back is 3 feet.

I finally have an update... The title policy has no strict language limiting their liability to a certain value and the Texas Board of Insurance clearly states fraud is covered by the policy. The title company's higher-ups decided that their liability was going to be determined by an appraisal of the property valued at the time of loss. The appraisal came back at more than what I was requesting from the title company (which was the HUD price and fees, plus renovation costs) and the title company paid it! Even though it took way to long to get this done, I no longer hate Fidelity Now I can focus on the other house I was scammed on... Lawyer's Title sucks

As long as some sort of direction is online too, I would say DIY. There is probably at least an exploded view diagram... Also you could visit a scratch n' dent for some deeply discounted replacements... maybe the one you wanted for the remodel is within your budget at 50% off.

5050 Woodway has a large fee because it is all bills paid, including Electricity. The fee is something like $0.65 per SF. The buildings averaging $0.40 a SF do not include electricity

I sure wish Intexure and Strasser Ragni's websites worked. Intexure's site hasn't worked correctly for months... You can't view the photos of the projects. Intexure http://www.intexure.com/ Strasser Ragni http://www.strasserragni.com/

Threading pipe is really easy, and certain Home Depot/Lowes have the machine permanently setup... I just wish I could remember which ones?

There is no key at the property to enter the house and the showing instructions ask that no one try to enter the house since it is a "lot only" sale. Else, I would meet you over there to take a look.

Cost plus is more common.

Since when does polyvinyl cloride look better than wood? And $20 a linear foot only gets you the materials for Vinyl fencing, you then need to install it, so go ahead and tack on another $12 to $14 to that number. (Of course that beautiful redwood fence pictured above is probably $100/LF!)

It sold for $495k in May of '08 and there was really no "mod" left on the inside.

Is the area it is leaking from corroded?

I found it... It's by McIntyre/Robinowitz at 621 E. 8 1/2 St. Although I don't know what their website address is... google didn't turn up anything in the first 4 pages.