Cleaning up an abandoned property, inside and out.

I figured this topic needed its own thread in what I think is the right room.

Wife and I were hired to clean up an abandoned property for a friend. Franky, the pay isn't enough but it's a friend and he can't afford to pay more. We will just have to come through.

Before pics.






We've had some good progress, as we brush hogged both fields, opened up the driveway, and got the outside trash picked up (that alone was 1000 pounds). We've been mowing it (and showing the flag) each month. The front field can't be mowed as it stays too wet and I've gotten the 60 inch zero turn stuck there once.











We've now started cleaning out the inside.





After finding out N95 masks were not enough and with some helpful advice from a couple of members here, this is what we now wear when we go inside.



Things were moving right along....not "great" as the work is rather trying and we drive 33 miles just to get there but it was moving along. However, now, we have to fix a roof!

My friend simply can't afford to hire a pro so it looks like we'll have to come through yet again.

If you zoom in and look closely, you can see the hole in this pic. The bricked house, about 3 feet up from the center window, there is a hole in the roof.

I think what we'll do is tear down the interior ceiling (room is now empty from Friday's 1000 pound load) and see where we stand. Hired for removal and now we have to do a repair!



Edit: brush hog pics got left out and I've wanted to put those in for some time now. Rented a Billy Goat from an equipment rental and got it all done in 7 hours, only stopping to refuel.

 

And they say there is No Work around - Extra Nice friends you are!!

 

I appreciate that, thank you. Friends are hard-to-come by these days, so I try my best to hold onto the ones God saw fit to let me have!

We didn't put a bid in on this, he and his mother asked for help, and they made the best offer they could. I'm hoping once the property is sold he can pay a bit more but if not, we will go on like nothing happened.

 

Looks like a section 8 house

 

No that's the next-door neighborhood. This exact one.



Basically the previous renter stopped paying rent for the usual "hard luck-I'll get a job and pay you back" story which the owner (very kind but rather naive lady) fell for. The man then proceeded to trash the place which seems to be a thing once they find out they can stay for free. Deadbeats seldom pay for trash collection so bags of garbage went literally into the yard. We removed all we could find as some were grown over by the turf. Some was "stored" literally in the kitchen.

I was hired the summer of 2021 by the same lady to mow and keep up the property and was able to mow once but the renter convinced her he could "do it cheaper." She fired me and hired him. He proceeded to collect a monthly check and of course, never mowed once. The lady simply never checked as the house is some 45 miles from hers. The son was too ill then to check for her.

At some point he moved out (2022 to 2024?) and handed the keys to his friends which all seem to be drug addicts. The house was occupied for some time by heroin users and I suspect meth addicts simply as those are so common in the area. The son picked up some needles and apparently, got all of those as we haven't seen any.

We started this job in 2024 and while working to clear the driveway (all that growth just across the wooden bridge) there were at least two squatters in the house. We didn't know this but had no plans to enter the house that day anyway.

The squatters were discovered the next day when the son showed up with an equally man's man (more on this in a moment) and they found a board with nails across the entrance to the driveway. Upon reaching the house they found a blanket up over a window that wasn't there when the son and I inspected the house a month before. The two entered, found a couple asleep in the rear bedroom and gave them the choice of an immediate exit or a permanent stay. They chose the former. Whatever he said they believed and apparently, told their friends.

Finally, this summer, the son and I were able to change one of the locks and jam the other door. No more squatting attempts but someone is scouting the property. Twice in a row now I have found a half-empty Sprite sugar free bottle beside the house. We never leave any trash so someone is walking around and they only half like Sprite.

We stay in Condition Orange whenever there. I try to stay in Condition Yellow most of the time but I up it a bit while visiting Crackheadia.

I have seen at least one person next door (yard with all the trash) tweaking. People smoke something in the metal storage shed in the pic above. Pot smoke is a norm and open sewage runs out beside one of those trailers.

My fear is a native will have a delusion that "we are throwing out his stuff" and hop the fence with a knife and try to do what was done to that Ukrainian girl on the Charlotte Light Rail a couple of months ago. Users can't hold onto a gun, that gets sold for drug money, but they all seem to have large knives.

Not sure how this pic got "attached" but since it is....before the first mow this past summer the son had gone down and had some sort of serious verbal exchange with a trespasser. He then became ill so he could no longer go down and provide security for us as we worked.....so....this is the wife with my "tactical" shotgun. Former Arizona Dept. of Corrections riot gun. She shoots it pretty well actually.

 

Just got back about 2 hours ago. We went down to tear out the ceiling of the room with the roof leak but I got to thinking......"pretty old house, I bet there is asbestos in some of this." So we stopped after I ripped the one board down that was hanging almost to the floor.

We then set to filling up the trailer. We got everything else except for the two couches. Even if we wanted to, those would not have fit onto the trailer.

Craziest part of the day was when I took a chainsaw to a set of bunk beds. I didn't feel like trying to take those apart so I cut those apart.

Wife took a pic of the load....maybe she'll feel up to downloading that later.

*Edit: she felt like it.

Tomorrow we go back: got a guy willing to get up onto the roof and patch that hole. I plan to get pics of that.

If he works out I've already told him I'll hire him for more roofing jobs. He's down. I could definitely use a good roof man.





*Edit: that load tipped the landfill scale at 1,020 pounds.

 

The place looks much better after you two got to cleaning. Sucks about all the drama though.

That roof looks like a 6/12 pitch that then slopes to a loooooong 3-12? It would be very difficult (if not impossible) to ever have a leak free roof with just a basic comp roofing material on it.

 

Thanks man. It gives me a good feeling when we have such obvious impact on a property.

I do have a regret though: I'm very "mission focused" when I get to a jobsite to allow "before pics" to be taken. I get there, I work, I don't stop till it's nearly dark. We'll be sure to get some good after pics of all the rooms though and I'll try to take the time for more pics as work continues. There are three more floors to go!

The guy I have lined up for tomorrow, he's done some sort of construction work and seems to understand roofs pretty well. I'll let him decide how to do the repair so I'm bringing (hopefully) everything he'll need to either patch it with aluminum sheet or do a more comprehensive repair. The owner has agreed to pay. We are even taking him out to a nice restaurant on the way home.

 

Mission accomplished! Yesterday (Sunday) we skipped church and loaded up the truck. I went over and picked up the aforementioned man up and he rode down with me. Turned out we didn't need the wife but she went down in the Rav 4. Glad she was on hand for pics.

The man got onto the roof (didn't need the ladders after all, one can almost "step up" onto it in the back. No wonder the owner wouldn't allow a tarp.....any crackhead could in fact get up there to tear it off).

There was no "hole." What there was though was an exposed gap of 3 inches across the entire roof. An entire row of shingles and the underlayment had blown off exposing that gap. It must have looked like a 20 foot waterfall inside that room during a thunderstorm. (I'll edit with pics later if I can get those from the man).

Anyway, we had to do a run back to Lowe's for shingles but ended up being able to get it down with just two packs. I returned the rest and some other items we ended up not using. The man was able to tar around some bathroom vents that might have also had leaks.

After the returns, I took the three of us out to eat at a local diner. Then I took him home.

I think he's a good guy and since he's interested, I'll use him in the future. I've been hoping to come across a good roof and tree guy plus general handyman. I might have found him.

While waiting I filled a whole trash bag with trash caught in the fence plus what appears to have been an old wooden gate nearly completely buried in the yard. I hung up two more "NO TRESPASSING" signs on the fence. Hopefully the wind doesn't rip those down. Pretty windy down there.

 

Sorry, couldn't resist On a serious note, y'all are some fantastic friends! I'd have done the same; I think even the good Lord understands the importance of stepping up for your friends. Y'all did good (and a lot of) work!

 

Thanks man. We don't like skipping but you gotta do what you gotta do.

 

Oh, trust me, I'm right there with you. Deacon, 'safety' team, AV team, etc., so I really do not like skipping...but sometimes life gets in the way.

 

I missed last Sunday too. Wife went but I was getting tools together. Did an emergency plumbing repair for the same guy at his (living in) house. If I was a licensed plumber, holy moly, I could make some dough! Working at night, on a Sunday, very bad neighborhood, going under a house..........and I'd still be less than everyone else.

Got that one done with only two visits to the hardware store!

 

I hear you on the plumbing thing - or really, any trade. 30 years ago people frowned on plumbers and other tradesmen. Now...well...people might look down upon them, but I'm sure tradesmen often wipe those tears with the dollars they're raking in.

Friend of mine has a son who's in his mid-20's. He does travel welding and *EASILY* clears something like $150K/year. I hear girls looked down upon him - right up until they realized just HOW much someone in his position can make.

 

Looks more like an excavator and dump truck job IMO. Gonna take too long to see any significant ROI after so many repairs and future issues with it. Good luck!

 

I agree and I've said as much. However, you can't do that. Go back and look at the second picture...the one with the small wooden bridge....

You'd literally have to build you own bridge across that creek to get the heavy equipment in. Ditto if you tried to get in via the neighbors yard. Still have a small wooden bridge to cross.

I think the hardest part is over as the squatters seem to have only been on the one floor of the one structure. Challenges remain though.....biggest is now the approach of winter.

 

Well, now you know what your next project is.

 

LOL.

I've decided to leave the couches be for now and focus on clearing out the vines behind that white structure. Some trash and metal back there have to go (we'll scrap all the metal so I am leaving it down there for now) in order to have easy access.

I want to mow there this week if not too wet.

Get that second story of the white structure cleaned out. Some toys, a lot of clothes (heaps!), two mattresses, couch. I don't think they "lived" in that area, just dumped stuff there. Haven't seen any actual garbage and no roof leaks (major plus).

I will have to change at least the deadbolt though. Hopefully that goes easily.

 

I owned rental property for 28 years, I've always said a dog won't lie in their shit, but humans will. As a sub-species they are not very smart!

 

A couple of maxims I have developed since being a landlord.

1). Poor people are poor for a reason.
2). Never underestimate the stupidity of a renter.

I have a rental that I have mostly operated as a vacation property. I've learned enough I'm actually planning a book at some point!

Craziest experience so far: guy rented my condo, refused to have the normal friendly conversation I normally have, signed a rental agreement he later admitted he didn't read, then drove to the wrong state.

 

I’ve been looking/studying into building a townhouse or condo next year as a rental. This does not give me happy feelings

 

I'll PM you with some more info. It's not all bad, just things to understand and look out for.

 

Got back down to Crackheadia today. Went alone as the wife is currently 12 time zones away. No trailer, just the Tundra.

It rained today so I felt safe driving her as I figure all the salt got washed off the roads.

Roof repair seems to be holding. No apparent entry has been made into the house. I didn't go inside as I forgot to bring a mask and I just got over the flu / step throat / something and I didn't want to risk inhaling those mold spores. I picked up about 50 pounds of trash from the outside but it was old trash, nobody looks to have been snooping around.

I had a good look at remaining brush and trees we have to take out. I've decided to get all of that BEFORE the leaves come back in. Some trees are growing close to the water (creek) so I'll have to get some waders. We plan to buy a dump trailer and if we do, we'll tow a wood chipper behind the old truck. If we get a dump trailer and dump truck (my desired plan) we'll chip into both.

I have to get that place ready for the owner as I have two houses of my own to renovate and get rented out. We are losing too much income not getting those houses done and rented.

 

More good news!

I was going to check to see what else was available first, possibly pay for it myself, compensation be damned, but then the client just agreed to it. Local rental place only has one size wood chipper, a 12 inch. A 12 incher would definitely chip most everything we have left to cut and it might do it all but the local rental place wants $500 per day to use it.

Out of the blue, during the discussion, the client just offered to rent that. HECK YA!

The abilty to use such a large chipper is a game changer. Now I just need a dump trailer! Our business grows.....

 

Last House on the Left!!!

 

I had to look that one up....a little tempted to try and see the movie but not tempted enough as I have a serious problem watching a woman be abused. Really I have a hard time watching anyone be abused but especially women.

I agree with you though, if that is the suggestion you are making, this property we are cleaning up would make a good site for a real horror story.

 

Nice of you to take this on. Sounds to me like a couple big bonfires would solve some logistical challenges and save dump fees. Good luck and stay safe!

 

Just playin around the original was a long time ago I think in the early 70s if I remember correctly and I think there has been one for sure maybe two remakes. Mom and dad get even on some real scumbags!!! for what they did to their daughter. Not a movie for the weak of heart.

from the picture it looks like a big ole house out in the middle of nowhere!! Would be a great house for Halloween!!

I definitely would be burning up a bunch of everything I could get to the burn pile. Get it hot enough and things will burn.
Be safe!!!

 

If there was a water source we'd definitely consider burning off the brush. Water long ago turned off to the house and I expect, all easy-to-reach pipes are ripped out. They ripped a good many of the wires out of the basement so I assume the crackheads did the same with the pipes.

***
If the parents "do the needfull" maybe I can enjoy the movie.

I used to hate going to this place. Used to park up the road and pull a magnet-nail picker upper down the full length of the driveway but never picked up any nails. I guess that one time (boards with nails in them) was it so I don't do that anymore, just pull right in and turn around. I was on "high alert" with all the crackheads but since we (and especially the client) have conveyed just how unwanted they are, they've left us alone at least since mid-summer.

I've actually come to enjoy going there. Oh, I lose money for sure, 70 mile round-trip and the client can't afford to pay us what it's worth to mow but we go. I just set aside a day for it. We have the grass where we want it, easy-to-mow, except for the front field since it can get too wet to mow. We've picked up about all the trash from the yards, making mowing less of a risk. I'm really eager to get the rest of the growth off the one house and rest of the brush cut down / wood chipped. Keep making detailed plans in my head just how to maneuver the equipment when we cut down all the trees and brush along the creek. I'll probably miss the place when it finally gets sold.

 

Update. Headed there tomorrow and I'll try to get the wife to get some pics and get those uploaded.

Last Wednesday we went down and while clearing the 2nd house I thought I heard a phone buzz, like it got a text. One man clearance = bad news so I noped out. Called police and waited for them to clear things. Someone had been in there (eating) but were not there then.

We got most of the vines off the 2nd structure and hope to get the rest soon. Time is short tomorrow so if I can put a deadbolt in, better securing the 2nd house, I'll be very happy. Not afraid to back out again and call police.

Wish us luck!

(I have a strong line on what looks to be a good dump truck. We actually land a good one and the wood chip phase will be done in three days I expect. ) Wish us double luck!