Rehab project good for Terre Haute and ISU

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Too bad that they weren't around when the old TH Train Depot parallel to LQ on N 7th St was demolished...that was a neat building, and could've been quite an historic accent piece to the Debs Museum, given Debs' historic ties to the ARU.
 
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From where I am standing, they are nuts! Renovating a house that is that far gone is typically not a great idea-the costs are all to often to great, not to mention the structural concerns. It is going to be difficult to find comps that support the price in that area of town. With ISU buying up all the houses that they can get their hands on-when available, guarantee that ISU would have bought the land if the house had been torn down! Not to mention that they are looking over 2 fraternity houses-meaning that living there comes with outside concerns.

Great that they did it, I think they are crazy. The rent multiplier has to be pretty high for them to make any money, certainly going to take a great deal of time for them to make back their investment. And if they plan to refi this house to move onto the next with capital in hand by cashing out any equity??, they are going to struggle to do so because they are not going to find any comps anywhere close to that value at all!

What will most likely happen is that they will end up selling it to a fraterity who will move in or they will have to hold onto it for the next 20 years or more to get back their investment. In TH, you have to buy as low as possible - which they did. Then you have to renovate very efficiently and cheaply (they didn't) and then you have to make sure that you put as many people as possible into the house when renting it so as to cover your investment quickly (making it into 3 apartments means they only have 3 renters where they could have had 6 or 8 if made into a duplex).

Again, great they did it, not something I would have touched with a 10 foot pole!
 
BankShot said:
Too bad that they weren't around when the old TH Train Depot parallel to LQ on N 7th St was demolished...that was a neat building, and could've been quite an historic accent piece to the Debs Museum, given Debs' historic ties to the ARU.
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TH train depot is a different ballgame-that would be a commercial/retail location with different zoning which would have allowed for different options for the owner.
 
Sack certainly has a different perspective on this situation. Could there be an alternative use for the property that increases its worth?
 

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Sycamore Proud said:
I'm curious Bank. Do you know when the Train Depot was demoed? You are right--that would have been a great rehab project.
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Not sure...digging thru the archives to find out. Here's some pics you'll enjoy...that was a cool architectural masterpiece. Given the prominence of the RR to TH's growth & heyday, it behooves me that such a facility would be "mowed down." Almost borders on "cultural negligence!":verysad:

http://visions.indstate.edu/cdm/sea...lroad/field/all/mode/any/conn/and/cosuppress/

1986...
http://brisray.com/th/tpcards71.htm

Are the "Big Four" Wabash River bridges still around? Louisville & Clarksville obtained million $$$ grants to convert their RR bridge crossing the Ohio R. into a walkway. Sure would've been neat if TH would've done the same...
 
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BankShot said:
Are the "Big Four" Wabash River bridges still around? Louisville & Clarksville obtained million $$$ grants to convert their RR bridge crossing the Ohio R. into a walkway. Sure would've been neat if TH would've done the same...
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I know that the Riverscape people are trying to get funding to turn one of the old railways across the river into a walking bridge..
 
Sackalot said:
From where I am standing, they are nuts! Renovating a house that is that far gone is typically not a great idea-the costs are all to often to great, not to mention the structural concerns. It is going to be difficult to find comps that support the price in that area of town. With ISU buying up all the houses that they can get their hands on-when available, guarantee that ISU would have bought the land if the house had been torn down! Not to mention that they are looking over 2 fraternity houses-meaning that living there comes with outside concerns.

Great that they did it, I think they are crazy. The rent multiplier has to be pretty high for them to make any money, certainly going to take a great deal of time for them to make back their investment. And if they plan to refi this house to move onto the next with capital in hand by cashing out any equity??, they are going to struggle to do so because they are not going to find any comps anywhere close to that value at all!

What will most likely happen is that they will end up selling it to a fraterity who will move in or they will have to hold onto it for the next 20 years or more to get back their investment. In TH, you have to buy as low as possible - which they did. Then you have to renovate very efficiently and cheaply (they didn't) and then you have to make sure that you put as many people as possible into the house when renting it so as to cover your investment quickly (making it into 3 apartments means they only have 3 renters where they could have had 6 or 8 if made into a duplex).

Again, great they did it, not something I would have touched with a 10 foot pole!
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What makes you think they didn't do it for cheap? Because the article says they did it for 90k - you certainly shouldn't believe everything you read.

I wouldn't have touched it with a 10 foot pole either. That said - they don't have 90k worth of material in that building. They are a contractor so in essence the labor was free (it's a business expense) so go ahead and classify it however you want to classify it. They are not getting material, carpet, paint, drywall, insulation, electrical from Menards (although I love the place myself) they are paying half what you and I would pay for a project. My dad has worked in construction his entire life (still does), I have a fairly good idea how these things go down - especially in this town. I'd be surprised if he has half of 90k in that place. So go ahead and cut your cute math in half, not sounding so bad now is it?

From a personal standpoint, I two am glad they did it. Also from a personal standpoint, I two would not have considered doing something like this. At the same time I don't have the resources available to me that they have. But don't think for a min. that this is just a couple rich people from Terre Haute who decided to put 90k into a house and then an article in the Tribune Star. Look, this guy didn't make his money being a complete idiot. I have a hard time believing he would invest in something he couldn't either A. do for next to nothing or B. think he could make money doing.

Just my thoughts.
 
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SycamoreStateofMind said:
What makes you think they didn't do it for cheap? Because the article says they did it for 90k - you certainly shouldn't believe everything you read.

I wouldn't have touched it with a 10 foot pole either. That said - they don't have 90k worth of material in that building. They are a contractor so in essence the labor was free (it's a business expense) so go ahead and classify it however you want to classify it. They are not getting material, carpet, paint, drywall, insulation, electrical from Menards (although I love the place myself) they are paying half what you and I would pay for a project. My dad has worked in construction his entire life (still does), I have a fairly good idea how these things go down - especially in this town. I'd be surprised if he has half of 90k in that place. So go ahead and cut your cute math in half, not sounding so bad now is it?

From a personal standpoint, I two am glad they did it. Also from a personal standpoint, I two would not have considered doing something like this. At the same time I don't have the resources available to me that they have. But don't think for a min. that this is just a couple rich people from Terre Haute who decided to put 90k into a house and then an article in the Tribune Star. Look, this guy didn't make his money being a complete idiot. I have a hard time believing he would invest in something he couldn't either A. do for next to nothing or B. think he could make money doing.

Just my thoughts.
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Good for them. From the Trib-Star description, I don't see it becoming a frat house -- far too small. I could see renting to grad/PhD candidates but undergrads?! More risk than I'd want to run.

Also interesting to hear the slant about location, especially the point of "...Not to mention that they are looking over 2 fraternity houses-meaning that living there comes with outside concerns..."

Sheesh! I keep being told and reading how frats are SUCH A GREAT THING!! Now, I'm supposed to 'believe' that they make bad neighbors?!?! Make up your mind! :bigsmile:
 

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4Q_iu said:
Good for them. From the Trib-Star description, I don't see it becoming a frat house -- far too small. I could see renting to grad/PhD candidates but undergrads?! More risk than I'd want to run.

Also interesting to hear the slant about location, especially the point of "...Not to mention that they are looking over 2 fraternity houses-meaning that living there comes with outside concerns..."

Sheesh! I keep being told and reading how frats are SUCH A GREAT THING!! Now, I'm supposed to 'believe' that they make bad neighbors?!?! Make up your mind! :bigsmile:
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Well played - either they are a great asset and the people in them make great students or they don't...

It's a rental property, it pays for it self. Granted its a tough businesses venture - but when you run a restoration company it's not as difficult as "Average Joe" deciding he wan'ts to restore and rent to college students. It's not like that at all - rent the house, pay us absorbanent amounts of money because you will have multiple people living in the house and tear it up. Then we will go in and fix the house for dirt cheap.
 
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