They will finance an expensive McMansion project built from scratch on an empty lot, but I cannot under any circumstances get a loan to take an old existing house and bring it up to code. That leaves me with about US$70K of leverage out of my own equity to do so. Project would involve lifting the thing (it's basically a double wide trailer) and building a basement. Permits are not an issue because my state isn't communist.

Any of y'all done something like this? I can /diy/ the rest of the project but basically in this economy how much foundation, framing, excavation can I get for $50-70K?

I have considered digging out sections and underpinning to add a basement to house, but I would also be willing to live in a shithole for years to get it done.

i have not, but the construction shows i watch have almost always hired a special team. have you tried lifting something smaller so you can practice, ike a tree?
there was a pbs nova about lifting a light house might give you an idea of what is going to happen. mike Holmes did one but his was over kill, grand designs has one as well, this old house did it they lifted move set down come back when you are ready, i think that is safer, they took some h or i beam and made the house into a train/roller coaster. no special hydraulic lifter just cribbing multiple bottle jacks and spare rollercoaster wrap around wheels.
Britain has lots of teams that do exactly what you are looking for without lifting, is there a maximum number of steps you are willing to go to get to the basement because if you go far enough down just tunnel like a mineshaft. colin furze has a diy tunnel series.

>>2911019 (OP)
>I cannot under any circumstances get a loan to take an old existing house and bring it up to code
that's interesting and definitely explains a lot about the current state of things. get the thing on a frame that can handle transit and put it on the property somewhere out of the way. maybe set up a post & pier system to keep it off the ground. live there while you dig out the basement and prep the area for a crew to pour the concrete foundation. then all you gotta do is drop the thing on the basement foundation and you're good to go. just my 2 cents.

>>2911019 (OP)
You are getting into a nightmare and need to stop. Sell your house and buy something else. The bank won't loan you money because it is a bad idea.

>>2911230
>I cannot under any circumstances get a loan to take an old existing house and bring it up to code
>that's interesting and definitely explains a lot about the current state of things
Because remodels are a nightmare and if you run out of money before you finish you have reduced the value of your property and the bank might not get their money back even if they foreclose. You never know what you are getting into until you open the walls up. You might need new electric, you might need new plumbing, you might need all new framing, you might have structural issues. Mold. Rot. Termites. Uninsurable electric (no insurance, no loan). New construction you know what is going to be done and about how much it will cost. Remodeling is throwing a dart at a spinning roulette wheel. OP is also trying to dig a basement under a double wide. Which is fucking retarded.

>>2911019 (OP)
Why isn't the sheetwood installed?
What sort of retard build something like that without crossbracing?

>>2911280
*builds

>>2911019 (OP)
>I cannot under any circumstances get a loan to take an old existing house and bring it up to code.
>would involve lifting the thing (it's basically a double wide trailer) and building a basement.
>basically a double wide trailer

The reason you can't get a loan for this is because the bank doesn't want to be stuck with a collapsing trailer suspended over a pit when the project falls apart from someone trying to do it themselves. Loans for improvement are definitely a thing, but the lender needs to believe that they can recoup most of their money via foreclosure if they need to.

If it is in fact a trailer home, you ought to not bother. They're not well built or made from good materials, often have major rot issues, and have little value after a while. If it's on a decent plot of land you'd be better off living in the trailer now while building a real house next to it. If you're dead set on doing this, something like what >>2911123 or >>2911230 said should work. Either move it and dig/pour a real foundation or use jacks and cribbing to suspend it while you carefully work under it in sections to build a foundation similar to how people convert crawl spaces into real basements.

So is it like perfect or halfway fucked right now?

Like, what are ya saving? Is it worth it?
Does it need to be raised cuz its in a floodplain?

>>2911019 (OP)
>They will finance an expensive McMansion project built from scratch on an empty lot
Do that. It's easier, safer and cheaper

>>2911822
I wonder how ugly you can make a mcmansion before the bank starts to get iffy.

>>2911019 (OP)
>an old existing house
>a double wide trailer
mobile homes are different than "fixed" property

is 50k a lot for a foundation/basement?

>>2911940
>50k
>my brother spent 7K on a concrete slab for a pickle ball court.

I’m currently building a house
(Paying someone to do it)
The price for excavation of a 53’x53’x9’
Block walls, concrete floor, with a 2000sqft single story vaulted 14ft ceilings 3 bedroom 5 bathroom zip system, and shingle roof. Which will be a weather tight shell Is $185,000. And I’ll prob need that again to finish it. I’m doing a cash build. I’m a truck driver.
Pics so far.
Note I already paid for the sewage system a couple years ago. Which is a 3 chamber concrete pit feeding back into a leech field.

>>2912450
I find it remarkable that houses sit on top of these hollow, brittle cinderblocks. You'd expect poured, 2 foot thick concrete walls to retain the earth on the outside, but nope. Just these dinky little things can retain earth and water...

>>2912458
gravity goes down, not sideways. please do not reproduce

>>2912458
Ya that really makes me think!
Since ur uninformed. The ground was backfilled 75 years ago from strip mine activity. It drains faster than a spaghetti strainer. After the get dug the hole it poured for 3 days straight. Zero water in the hole.

Pic is what the house will look like when finished. But will prob side it a bit different.
Feel free to post ur cash build home with no mortgages

>>2912458

>>2912513
I grew up with rain water constantly filling up the basement floor.

>>2912516
I wasn't trying to offend you

>>2911326
>Does it need to be raised cuz its in a floodplain?
Don't know about OP's situation, but I know that I'd like to raise my house about the height of a cinderblock course or two so that I can get better pitch away from it. Also, putting more distance between the wood and the ground can drastically decrease the chances of termites. Otherwise, he may just be after having a basement for storage space/keeping his victims tied up in and raising it up just means that much less material needs to be excavated.

I'm stuck deciding what to do in that realm too. In my town you can buy ~50-60 year old houses for low $300k. However, there's a builder (local, not one of the mega builder scams like DR Horton etc) who has a city lot, all permits filled and approved, and a builder house plan ready to go. For $349k for the whole package he'll do a 1500 square foot house on an ICF foundation, three car garage, 2br/ba. It almost seems like a good deal.

If I'm going to pay that much for just a fucking house that's 60 years old I keep thinking why not just throw another $20k onto the burning pit and get a brand new one?

>>2912653
You can’t

>>2912918
Nice cuck basement windows. Hopefully your lard ass won't have to suffocate down there in an emergency, cus you ain't getting out.

>>2913184
Uh I mean it has to exit points. Thankyou. Here is an update!

Bankers are lazy and stupid. Their alleged job is to be judges and appraisers of investments to know where they should put money to avoid malinvestment, yet they just know to give mortgages and car loans. Something like business loans are just over their heads unless you offer a ton of collateral. Since they use an algorithm to decide credit risk they should get all fired and automated

>>2912450
>>2912516
>>2912518
>>2912918
>>2915777
I'm jealous. Don't think I'll ever be able to achieve that in my shithole. Prices are just too damn high. Enjoy your home!

>>2912918
hey i asked chatgpt how many cinderblocks it thought was in the pic, it said around 1750. how close was it.

>>2912870
Make friends with an inspector or decent handyman. The builders in my city are hallmarked by the same shit.

>>2911846
I wonder how nice you can make a mcmasion before the bank starts to get iffy

>>2911280
weather happens when you least expect it, and certainly not on your schedule

>>2915777
serious question what is the logic of only using cinder blocks for the basement? like why no continue with the exterior walls? you already have the equipment and labor to do cinder walls, so no excuse for not doing everything else.
you can still do the internal structure and walls with wood

>>2915777
Are they gunna plumb that before running all the zip board?

>>2920012
you can get a lot of wall done really fast with wood and sheathing as opposed to anything resembling bricks.
The only way you could possibly get true load bearing brick exteriors comparable to wood in the US is if a robot arm does it. And apparently US building codes vary enough that it's a stupid idea, according to one company that chose to build in the Netherlands for that exact reason

>>2920148
what? the load bearing walls of the basement are already cinder blocks, how does that make sense?
you see them often in europe, my uncle did an unlicensed house with cinder blocks, no problem and he is a drunktard, why would you need a robotic arm? you dont need precision using cinder blocks like at all, the mortars distributes the load

>>2920150
labor

>>2920154
you guys cheapen out in the oposite parts of my country.
my country is obsessed with bricks, concrete cinder blocks and everything needs to be sturdy as fuck, in a retarded way

>>2912450
>able to excavate normally
jelly, I don't have pictures of my site but it's in the Rocky Mountains and it's just all giant stone, you have to use a jackhammer attachment to break it up before moving, takes forever.

>>2912458
those blocks are supposed to be filled with rebar and grout.

OP returning to the thread 3 months later.

>>2911304
I did say it is "basically" a double wide, but I said that to give an idea of dimensions. It's an old strong building but it was obviously moved to the site and is sitting on cinder block pilings. That means it can be lifted relatively easily. Construction guy I know says a lift will cost 10K, banker said 30K, so I have no idea.
>>2911326
Solid structure, gutted to studs due to being occupied by weed dealers high on their own supply.
>>2912672
No termites here.

>>2911019 (OP)

What's the back story on this? Where is the sheathing? Where is the rim board for the joists?

>>2911256
Absolutely this.
Banks aren't stupid with their money and pouring that much cash into a rotting trailer in Hickstown McMethville is a great way to never see that money again.

>>2911019 (OP)
What is the forcing function if you don't do this? Why even bother? Your house is older than the code and probably grandfathered.

Also not that crazy of a thing, house gets lifted via jacks and put on blocks while foundation/basement repair is done. Also a lot of work could be done before/after lifting the house. Also you're only lifting it a few inches at most.

Also banks suck and you don't need them.

>>2911019 (OP)
Just have your wife hold the trailer up while you duck under and build the basement real quick.

>>2911019 (OP)
If you do not yet own this mistake, stop wanting it because it's a bad idea. Needing a basement is not a feature, it reflects insufficient land for proper single storey construction.

You will be unable to understand why multi-storey homes are bad forever homes, but stairs guarantee falls sooner or later. If you have stairs, you have restrictions to movement of objects and furniture and people, especially as they age and mobility declines. That's why so many old people don't use the top of their prized homes...any more.

You have time to study so study until you have no questions. That's how I do it because it works and is proven over decades of my own and many other lives, and when you do it all the time you learn how to learn ever more efficiently. I chose properties for EASY modification and enhancement, not masochistic crusades whose result would be anti-functional and limiting for the rest of my days. That's why they remain easy to maintain single-handed.

What good is a home for a self-sufficient DIYer without ample space for ground-level garages and the workshop that changes the rest of their life by slashing overhead?

Spend on LAND first, not structures. Start small then add or modify as you go. Cities are limiting therefore bad. Property zoned agricultural, preferably at least five acres in the US (see relevant local zoning) is generally good but research its and nearby GIS and plat maps.

>>2911256
This, but amateurs buy before they think because they imagine feelings wise.

Given a lot and a home, the smart (never do anything with property not coldly pragmatic) play IF one already fucked up and owns the mess is fix the home and strengthen it before faffing about with basement dreams. Why do people even want to live in such a restricted area where you think you need a basement? They're more limiting than empowering, unless you design for easy ground entrance or have a shop elsewhere.

I did not buy such a property because I know better.

>>2921941
You can do the lift etc yourself if you buy and rent the mix of equipment, but how desperate is the need to lift it vs. paying it off (unless you own free and clear)?

The steel beams used for lifting can be permanently attached and the whole base structure done in steel if desired. I used beams to form my shop foundation perimeter which worked superbly. My container shops likewise are welded to their foundation.

Steel beams for your purpose can be bought as surplus steel from demo outfits and even building movers who liquidate. You can sell them later but I don't.

Liquidation auctions are amazing if you have a way to drag the buys home. A dual-axle car trailer works well. I bring a portable cutting torch to shorten beams to fit as I just weld them back together. (Learn to weld and not from hobbyists.)