DIY house flippers

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kwired

kwired

Electron manager
Location
NE Nebraska
Occupation
EC
My mother in law bought a new house a few years ago from one of the locals that likes to flip houses.

I finally got around to fixing a problem last weekend I have known about for a while, have fixed a few others, who knows what else will someday be discovered.



This is how it was found in a attic crawlspace.

Note the thin yellow wire that doesn't land in the handybox splice box - if you find you are one conductor short in your three way switches just run yellow THHN/THWN that matches the 12-2 NM cable to get the extra conductor. Thing was if this guy knew how to wire a three way switch he already had more conductors then needed in the switch boxes - or at least one of them:



If you can't fit all the cables into the switch box it is apparently acceptable to just junction them in the hollow wall space behind the switch:roll:

More understandable thing uncovered was a receptacle she said she couldn't use - found it was a back wire connection - but the good pressure plate terminals not the stab ins - but he must have completely forgot to tighten one of the terminals as it took several turns before it was tight and worked after that.

From the past - there is a hydromassage tub - no access to the pump at all. my guess is no GFCI, for now there is a GFCI in the basement below that I added into the supply cable - at least the tub has GFCI protection. But am dreading the day when that pump fails and I am the one that is supposed to try to fix it.

This is just a rant about his electrical work, if this were a general construction, plumbing or HVAC forum there is plenty to talk about in those areas as well.:(
 
A building done by a "flipper" should have that noted on the real estate disclosure at time of sale as a defect.
 
kwired said:
My mother in law bought a new house a few years ago from one of the locals that likes to flip houses.

This is just a rant about his electrical work, if this were a general construction, plumbing or HVAC forum there is plenty to talk about in those areas as well.:(
Click to expand...

no pre sale inspection before the house was purchased? bummer.

in general, the whole *.flipper thing sucks. flipper shows
are as much in touch with what really happens, as any other
reality tv show.

for ever flipper with some ethics, there are 208 armed with
a youtube video, and a chit and shineola attitude, and that is sad.

i know a real estate agent who flips houses, and makes pretty good
money at it, it seems. lotta shinola, and a project manager from the
home desperate parking lot. living the dream, as they say. :happysad:

for everyone who buys his houses.... the youtube video there would
be "welcome to my nightmare".
 
kwired said:
This is how it was found in a attic crawlspace.
Click to expand...

People who dont know electrical work always seem to like to use the smallest box they can find!

Note the thin yellow wire that doesn't land in the handybox splice box - if you find you are one conductor short in your three way switches just run yellow THHN/THWN that matches the 12-2 NM cable to get the extra conductor.
Click to expand...

Well that is a nice little attention to detail that he used yellow thhn :angel:
 
electrofelon said:
People who dont know electrical work always seem to like to use the smallest box they can find!



Well that is a nice little attention to detail that he used yellow thhn :angel:
Click to expand...

Everyone who thinks he went out and purpose-bought the single conductor to match, raise your hands...

Nope, I didn't think so either. :D
 
kwired said:
My mother in law bought a new house a few years ago from one of the locals that likes to flip houses.

Note the thin yellow wire that doesn't land in the handybox splice box - if you find you are one conductor short in your three way switches just run yellow THHN/THWN that matches the 12-2 NM cable to get the extra conductor. Thing was if this guy knew how to wire a three way switch he already had more conductors then needed in the switch boxes - or at least one of them:
Click to expand...

Other than the fact the handy box is way to small for so many conductors and the extra yellow conductor just what else is wrong with this picture.

Splices outside the box and no box cover are obvious .

I don't see where he grounded the metal box. Grounds not tied togather. I have no idea if these are seperate circuits.

Useing EMT connectors for Romex.. Not a single staple used.


Are there any arc fault breakers in the panel, this is probably a house that could use a few just for luck.

I must admit that you do see this sort of thing all the time and most people just don't care until something goes wrong. Then they wonder why you charge to fix it wright.

Also I'm not sure which I hate most, house flippers or mother- in-laws.
 
Maybe it's just an excuse to practice your crime reporting methodology. Don't give it any thought except to time yourself how fast you can file a signed written complaint with the enforcement agency. Crime does pay if the criminal escapes the specified penalties.

Can you take matters into your own hands? If the law offers protection, seek protection under the law. (Francis Bacon)

Strange how the same shoe does not fit on the other foot. One of my friend's gf was a flipper and he got me in one of their one ring circuses. They started by telling me how they got this great gc/carpenter, who happened to have a regular payroll job with the school system, and he had substantially underbid the job, came in at $22,000 for what immediately to my eye was a $75,000 job.

They were taking pride (or schadenfreude) in telling me how he was getting both sued for damages and arrested for the non money violations (he tried to bail). Looked like only the demo was started.

I tried to tell them to lay off on the sheriff because it would cost him his school maintenance job. His only crime at that point being stupidity in bidding the 75,000 job for 20,000. Their reply was they had not seen it that way ...
 
__dan said:
I tried to tell them to lay off on the sheriff because it would cost him his school maintenance job. His only crime at that point being stupidity in bidding the 75,000 job for 20,000.
Click to expand...


I don't know if his only crime is that of being stupid. Did he sign a contract to do the work for a fixed price?
 
__dan said:
Maybe it's just an excuse to practice your crime reporting methodology. Don't give it any thought except to time yourself how fast you can file a signed written complaint with the enforcement agency. Crime does pay if the criminal escapes the specified penalties.

Can you take matters into your own hands? If the law offers protection, seek protection under the law. (Francis Bacon)

Strange how the same shoe does not fit on the other foot. One of my friend's gf was a flipper and he got me in one of their one ring circuses. They started by telling me how they got this great gc/carpenter, who happened to have a regular payroll job with the school system, and he had substantially underbid the job, came in at $22,000 for what immediately to my eye was a $75,000 job.

They were taking pride (or schadenfreude) in telling me how he was getting both sued for damages and arrested for the non money violations (he tried to bail). Looked like only the demo was started.

I tried to tell them to lay off on the sheriff because it would cost him his school maintenance job. His only crime at that point being stupidity in bidding the 75,000 job for 20,000. Their reply was they had not seen it that way ...
Click to expand...

Well the flipper is an idiot. The whole idea is to get in and get out. You start slinging law suits around and you might be sitting on that property for a long time.

I'm sure the flipper was using an AIA contract...NOT. Despite his stupidity, the maintenance guy might have grounds for counter suing for an unconscionable contract; one who's terms are so onerous that enforcement would be an egregious miscarriage of justice. I'm guessing that it wouldn't take Clarence Darrow to convince the gentlemen of the jury if any reasonable person could see that $22,000 was way too low.

How exactly does the sheriff get involved? Matters of contract law usually clog the civil courts, not the criminal courts.
 
norcal said:
A building done by a "flipper" should have that noted on the real estate disclosure at time of sale as a defect.
Click to expand...

:D Around here, it's pretty common for the seller to have the permit history ready to show and it's not uncommon for buyers to ask for it. OTOH there will always be people that want to buy a cheap house and won't bother to see how long the previous owner had it, what they did to it, or even whether it's next to the airport or the railroad tracks.
 
growler said:
I don't know if his only crime is that of being stupid. Did he sign a contract to do the work for a fixed price?
Click to expand...

As I recall he was charged with fraud, at least they thought it was fraud, probably when they found out he could not deliver on 50,000 worth of work for the 22,000. I'm sure there was something on letterhead, but the difference between what the page said and what the house really needed was, well maybe $50,000. Maybe they through they could patch and paint, but as soon as they opened it up, found they would gut and refit. I don't know, I did not ask how things turned out.

She was a crook.

At the end of the job she would not pay me. I called the BO and told him to pull my permit off the job but it was too late for that. I called my friend and said you got me in that, you pay or have her settle.

So I get an appointment to get paid, she is there with a few methadone clinic guys just hanging around. I did not care, they were small methadone clinic guys.

Literally true story, I stood in one place in the center of the house saying nothing and she spends the next 25 minutes ignoring me and going from one corner of the house to the other making phone calls.

Finally she stops in front of me, the little fat midget beetch, and I'm still standing there saying nothing. She scribbles out the little check and then I see her fingers fumble and the check is dropping to the floor. I was so stressed out I just stood there saying nothing and I'm watching the check do cartwheels in slow motion as it travels to the floor.

So it's sitting on the floor and then she speaks, saying "there's your check". I did not want the money, I just wanted to draw full back and drive the fist forward. I could have been standing right next to the luckless carpenter on judgement day.
 
__dan said:
She was a crook.

So I get an appointment to get paid, she is there with a few methadone clinic guys just hanging around. I did not care, they were small methadone clinic guys.

Literally true story, I stood in one place in the center of the house saying nothing and she spends the next 25 minutes ignoring me and going from one corner of the house to the other making phone calls.

Finally she stops in front of me, the little fat midget beetch, and I'm still standing there saying nothing. She scribbles out the little check and then I see her fingers fumble and the check is dropping to the floor. I was so stressed out I just stood there saying nothing and I'm watching the check do cartwheels in slow motion as it travels to the floor.

So it's sitting on the floor and then she speaks, saying "there's your check". I did not want the money, I just wanted to draw full back and drive the fist forward. I could have been standing right next to the luckless carpenter on judgement day.
Click to expand...


All I can say is that people like that should never stand at the top of the stairs if I'm behind them. It is possible they could have an accident.

I once had a general contractor that was a lot like that. I found out he was not paying his crews or other sub contractors and that his real problem was drugs. So I go to the homeowner and explain the situation to him and have him hold out my money and the money for the tile guy from the final payment to the GC.
 
At least they used boxes and wirenuts.
I gave an estimate on a old house once with wires just twisted and taped together.
The bid was really high......
 
1st suck customer diy house flippers 2nd homeowners playing general contractor 3rd attorneys that want to remodel their house themselves

Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk
 
First.. don't think they got close to max box fill! :p
Second... I heard this story from 2 witnesses, my Dad chased a GC down the street with a hammer in hand trying to get a draw.
 
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