The room from hell!

I've been tearing insulation down and carpet off the walls/ceiling for parts of 2 days now. Once I saw that a good portion of the wood frame that this band installed was drilled directly into the facilities structure, I decided to stop and let the facility decide how to proceed. I am not taking responsibility for someone else's damage.

Has anybody encountered anything like this in their adventures?

There is one facility that must specialize in renting to garage bands. Usually when there is an auction there we hear a band practicing...what are the chances of that.

I've never seen one with rugs on the walls or even for sale at all. I have seen numerous lockers with carpet on the floor a couch/and or bed, tv setup, shelves with groceries on them, etc.  How a manager of a facility would let this go on I don't know, but if a fire had ever started from a hot plate there would have been hell to pay. Then they stop paying and up it goes for auction.

"Homeless" guys like this can apparently afford $100 or so a month for a place to stay (at least during the days) but staying overnight would be a problem unless they had some help from the property mgr looking the other way.

It's really impressive how they set it up, however, I'm not having fun with insulation and tearing down wood framing. If I didn't have to be careful, this would be fun with sledgehammers. But because I have to maintain the integrity of the structure, it's really a pain in the ass.

It's really impressive how they set it up, however, I'm not having fun with insulation and tearing down wood framing.

So the property mgr didn't come through with any help or responsibility for it?

So the property mgr didn't come through with any help or responsibility for it?

Nope, she said to go ahead and tear it down. Whatever repairs they have to do they will bill to the previous tenant. I don't get it.. If they're going to bill the previous tenant anyway, why not just have a pro come in, take it down nice and neat and stick these guys with the bill? Oh well.. Lots of tear down for me this weekend   

I've been tearing insulation down and carpet off the walls/ceiling for parts of 2 days now. Once I saw that a good portion of the wood frame that this band installed was drilled directly into the facilities structure, I decided to stop and let the facility decide how to proceed. I am not taking responsibility for someone else's damage.

Has anybody encountered anything like this in their adventures?

Whoa buddy! You never should have touched it in the first place. That was an either an approved or unapproved renovation to the storage facility and legally the facilities property. All you bought was the contents inside the unit, not what he/she glued/nailed to the walls & ceiling! If they are dicks they could request you complete the job or worse require you to pay for the repairs or return the unit to it's original condition.

I agree with you Cobia. I should have not touched it from the get go. I shouldn't have even bid on the unit. But I saw potential.. and it will make me money.. But now I'm stuck in this situation where if I want to be invited back, I have to do the dirty work. Biggest mistake this year, thus far, is buying this locker..

It's really impressive how they set it up, however, I'm not having fun with insulation and tearing down wood framing. If I didn't have to be careful, this would be fun with sledgehammers. But because I have to maintain the integrity of the structure, it's really a pain in the ass.

Are the materials of any value to you? If not, it's not your problem. It sounds like it was built in pretty well. In cases like this, it becomes part of the structure and it's the owners responsibility. I just talked to someone who brought up a similar issue. Here is the Q&A.

Hi Travis,

I won an auction yesterday that a contractor worked out of. Well, he had built an office in one of the back corners while renting. I asked the owner if I could take all the material, since it belonged to the tenant and his other units obviously didn’t have offices in them. He said no, because his next tenant in line wants the office space.

Here’s the question: Do I have a legal right to that, or does it belong to the facility now because it is built in and attached? Hopefully I will receive a reply from you before I finish cleaning it out tomorrow morning. Your help would be much appreciated!

By the way, I’m sure enjoying the website! Take care…

Bennie


My response:

Bennie,

I have a background in real estate law and the method of attachment in situations like this is very important. If it looks like it was built to be permanent, it’s part of the improvement and it’s legally his. If it’s portable or not permanently affixed, it could be considered personal property. He probably should have mentioned that it wasn’t included before the sale but if you took him to court it would be an uphill battle.

Hope this helps.

Travis

But I saw potential.. and it will make me money..

Yes, I think you said you might clear $100. At two days of work just tearing out the carpet/etc that doesn't amount to much.

I think the real value of this buy was that it will make you more cautious in the future in any regard.

Yes, I think you said you might clear $100. At two days of work just tearing out the carpet/etc that doesn't amount to much.

I think the real value of this buy was that it will make you more cautious in the future in any regard.

Totally agree! I thought the carpet may have just been tacked up, but when I pulled one piece back and saw that it was framed, I was kicking myself. Who spends that much time and effort into a temporary situation?

Whoa buddy! You never should have touched it in the first place.

I totally 100% agree with you. Anything attached is legally considered a structural item and not the responsibility of the auction buyer.

Turns out the back wall (20 ft.) was more structurally sound than the side walls. We've got it all down. Took me and one other guy 35 minutes to tear it all down. Now to get it to the dump! Got free ads up on Craigslist for all the materials. Got some hits, but it seems like people want perfect carpet for free.

One of the units I bought last saturday had a row of "shelving" they installed in the unit.  I gave it a tug with my hands and they didn't budge.  I said forget it and they still in the unit for the next person.  No way was I going to start tearing down stuff.

We should all learn from this and be very careful with "built in" stuff.

So today I finished up in the unit. Over the weekend I met a guy for all the insulation and much of the 2x4's. Today I went back to clean up the sofa, carpeting, and this stage which is 8'x8' and solid. I lifted it by myself onto it's side.. Big mistake.  My ribs immediately hurt. With a few aggressive shakes the stage snapped in half. I dragged the stage halves outside the unit and go to sit in the van.. Time for a break! After a few minutes of sitting in the AC a car pulls up behind this cargo van. All my doors were open and I was blocking the way.

I jumped out of the van and he immediately asks me what I'm doing with all this stuff. Told him that I was throwing it away. Turns out he's building an office and spray booth (for cars) into his storage unit and needs the materials. His unit was directly across from mine! He helps me move everything over, which took about 20 minutes and all I was left with was to sweep. He asked me if I wanted anything for it, and I was just so happy not to make a dump run and load that damn stage, I just let him have it all.

So, how much total time did you tie up cleaning out this unit?

Is the profit going to justify the work?