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110' x 26' Forclosure

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CreteCoater

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Mar 4, 2010
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542
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Central PA
Just learned the bank accepted my offer on a former dealership / inspection station!

The roof is trashed but other than that it is definately restorable. I plan on using this space for my construction business shop and also a personal toy garage / mancave.

The upstairs has 2 offices and there is a 60' x 26' garage in the basement.the best part is some of the old tools and OEM mercury parts I have found. Not to mention the wall full of chiltons from the 50s!


I only plan on shoring up the roof to prevent total collapse over the winter for this year, but I will be sure to post pics of what we may find!
 
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CreteCoater

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Central PA
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CreteCoater

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Central PA
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Here's how she sits now inside. Once I sign the papers and do some more exploring ill post more. Thank God the scrappers haven't hit this place.
 
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JMURiz

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NoVA
Very cool space, tons of character. Best of luck on the refurbish, I'll be following this thread.
 
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Dickey

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Oct 28, 2011
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Location
Chapin, SC
That is a sweet setup. May I ask what the bank's original asking price was? I don't want to get into your business or anything but I would like a reference to some of the stuff I've been seeing for sale down here in my neck of the woods.
 
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CreteCoater

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Central PA
I heard rumors they originally wanted 30k. The bank told me they had 2 offers but both backed out and they were trying for 10k. I offered $3,000 cash and they accepted 3 weeks later :)

I think people were scared about the roof but being an all concrete structure the inside isn't really damaged yet. I'm sure a few more years of freeze/thaw would have changed that. I'm going to sister joists to the original beams after i jack them back in place. I plan on adding a beam between each existing one. I think I may have enough slope for a metal roof.

I first learned it was for sale this spring and was hoping if I could pull the trigger late fall they would want to unload it. Seems to have worked. Don't be afraid to make an offer if your looking at something. The most they could say is no.
 
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Az Scooter

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Dec 30, 2009
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1,500
3k is a steal. The land should be worth that. Very nice building for the price.
 
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CreteCoater

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Central PA
Of course being a floor and stucco guy I already have plans for that.....gonna be a ton of epoxy!

I love reading about the builds and tools here and am finally happy to be able to share one with you guys!
 
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rickairmedic

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May 31, 2005
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4,165
Location
louisville ,Ky
This one I will be watching . Heck for the $3000.00 initial purchase you could afford to have the roof redone and still be well ahead of what it would cost for the land and the building otherwise .

Rick
 
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slip knot

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Mar 22, 2010
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Texas gulf coast
Cool old place. Lots of potential. Love the old brick facades on those buildings, much nicer than CMU block or blown on stucco.
 
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CreteCoater

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Central PA
I tried searching the web for pics of it in its former glory. No luck yet but I did find this old matchbook on a closed eBay auction!

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sofob0909

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Jan 25, 2009
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this is awesome. Definately following. What site did you use to find the listing? How did you find commercial foreclosures and where can I find something similar?
 
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omr

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Jun 1, 2011
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sofob0909 said:
this is awesome. Definately following. What site did you use to find the listing? How did you find commercial foreclosures and where can I find something similar?
Click to expand...
for those prices im interested too ..lol
 
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packofqtips

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Nov 19, 2011
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193
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NH
damn man i can barely rent a single bay up here for that a month nevermind a one time payment to own it!!
 
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Omphaloskeptic

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Oct 11, 2008
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2,346
Location
Ultima Ratio, Wa.
Congratulations!

Something tells me that you are going to be spending a lot of time up on that roof this winter shoveling snow. lol For the $3k purchase price, you should be willing and able to spring for a dedicated rooftop snow blower. Instead of replacing the old roof, have you considered capping the walls with steel trusses and metal sheathing? It might be cost effective to have it engineered and installed rather than re-building the existing roof and substructure.
 
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CreteCoater

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542
Location
Central PA
sofob0909 said:
this is awesome. Definately following. What site did you use to find the listing? How did you find commercial foreclosures and where can I find something similar?
Click to expand...

My buddy is the one that told me about the property. I tried searching online for it but had to call the bank to get any info.
 
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CreteCoater

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Messages
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Central PA
Found out some more info today. The building was built in '52 and was a Ford, Mercury, Edsel dealer. I did some rummaging and found an Edsel record w/film roll and a 59 Edsel options book. There are quite a few different option books and some metal bound parts catalogs.

Can't wait to start tearing into it!

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*sorry bout the large images.....just noticed the resize option on tinypic :)
 
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Charles (in GA)

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Jan 11, 2006
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50 mi south of Atlanta
You can sell the collectables for enough to pay for the building. Its gonna cost to rebuild the roof, and be sure and play it safe, don't let it collapse on you!!!! but it won't be that expensive in the big scheme of things. Might consider eventually putting a pitched roof on top of it.

Edit: It takes a lot of chutzpah to be able to do this. Most people will admire what you are doing, and wish they could, but few would actually be able to carry it out. You have alot to do ahead of you, lots of planning, lots of work. The roof, probably bricking in some of the windows, replacing other windows, most likely a complete rewiring of the building, possibly a complete re-plumbing also. This building is large enough it will most likely require a working sprinkler system, which I bet it also doesn't have. Any pipes in it probably have frozen and split as the building most certainly hasn't been heated in several years or more. The sewer system is problematic and if there are lifts they are most likely old single post in-ground lifts that need to come out, as the possibility of leaking is great. New doors are most likely needed also.

The mere cleaning and sweeping up of the interior is a huge undertaking.

It sounds like the building is solid, if it has poured concrete first and second floors and brick walls (possibly several layers thick) then indeed the roof is the only big structural issue.

I admire what you are planning on doing, but really would not want to be in your shoes.

Charles
 
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