Applied for the sewer permit

After several months of going back and forth with the city, we've finally submitted our plans.  Time to wait and see.

Hiring a consultant to help run point on the Sewer options

Since a septic system is no longer an option, we will be pursuing sewers.  Only problem is that our street isn't currently serviced by sewers.  Looks like our best option is going to be running a line about a quarter mile away to a street nearby that does have a city sewer line.  With the amount of coordination and design this is going to require, we've decided to hire a consultant engineer who specializes in this kind of thing.

Can't install a septic system . . .

So in an unfortunate turn of events, we've discovered that installing a new septic system will be quite a challenge on this lot.  The Department of Health will not allow us to use the old system because of the unknown condition, and there is very little "virgin" soil on the lot that isn't covered with driveway or trees, so now we have to figure out a new plan.

Tearing down the old house

Closing on the lot and a little more history on the old house.

Today we closed on the Lot. It's official! We got to meet the previous owners during the closing and got a little more of the story of the property.

The house was initially built in the 1950s.  In the mid-90s the owner/contractor who we bought it from added a major addition, converting the old garage and porch into a new kitchen and living room, and adding a three car garage.

Landscape plan for the original 1950's house discovered in the basement.

In 2006 the owners were apparently awakened by popping noises coming from the garage.  They got out of the house, but the contractor hurt himself pretty badly retrieving the dogs from the basement, so he hasn't been in any shape to remodel the place.  It has sat vacant in its current condition since then.

The burned out kitchen.

The back side of the vinyl siding wall on the left.

 They seemed pretty excited about selling it to a young couple who's ambitious to build a project for themselves. 

Time for us to decide what can be reused and what needs to go!

The Old House

We stumbled across a real estate listing for a home that had been damaged in a fire, gutted, and sitting vacant for a couple of years. It didn't initially seem very interesting, but once we drove by and saw the lot, the location, and all the mature trees, we knew this was the place. After working with the bank to figure out what our options were, we put in an offer and bought the place.

Here's the old house. You can see the old concrete pad where the garage used to be. The vinyl siding on the left side of the house is where they covered up the the gaping hole in the house that used to lead  to the garage that was destroyed by the fire.

 Found these drawings in the basement that show layout after the mid-90s remodel.

The Idea Behind the Project

This is where the story starts. . . Having a handy father who preferred to "do the work himself" rather than hiring things out, I have grown up working with my dad on his side jobs to build several houses around Indianapolis, with the most ambitious project being the house we built and lived in during my High School years. I was raised on the notion that building a new home gets you exactly what you want, and if done well, can earn you a lot of equity.

Born and raised in Indianapolis, and now working here, I've had plenty of time to think about the type of project I'd like to tackle. Each year my vision for the perfect place to build evolved and got more specific. The problem with getting more specific basically translated to getting further from my means and harder to find.

In April of 2008 I was lucky enough to marry Michele, the girl of my dreams, and her work ethic combined with her encouragement and support for all my house-building daydreaming was just the catalyst I needed to shift into full bore property hunting for a place to build our dream house.