To be clear and upfront, I’m still taking my Pre-Requisites here for my NHIE. I am still a sub-contractor in residential remodeling. That being said, what’s your breaking point?
I ask only because I hit mine the other day. I’ve been trying to let it go, but I do believe I’m morally stuck…
Long story short, we walked into the persons house to help with some major repairs. As soon as we walked in, our new guy ran out the front door dry heaving and trying not to throw up. The stench of decay, ammonia (from the cat urine), dog manure, and spoiled/rotten foods plagued the air. It was HORRID. However, I remained respectful, courteous, and professional. We finished our walk through, and in a few days came back to begin our work.
There will always be a “worse” situation. Normally, I don’t care how bad a place is. But I care for sake of anothers life. The owners had moved out, but most of their property was still in the home as they were still working on getting it all out. Over the course of the two weeks we were there. We never once seen the animals fed, watered, or let out. So we started doing it ourselves. The dogs were so hungry they were eating their own feces as they went… Naturally this made me LIVID. I went to the guy who’s over seeing the work, a buddy of mine. Explained everything, and how the smell of decay is getting so bad that it’s making our heads throb at this point. He agrees and calls us outside to stop working. The stench was from a python being forgotten in a 75lbs tank, and it began to rot.The tile we had to rip up was so saturated in animal urine that both levels of sub-floor beneath it was complete rotted through and extremely orange/yellow. There’s so much urine upstairs that it rusted some kind of nut and bolt to the floor. When you walk, it sounds like velcro. The garage they just threw all their garbage in, and dumped the used litter into a big pile in the middle. Leaving the garage door cracked for neighborhood cats to use it too. There’s so much more, but you get the point. The owners are 100% of sound body and mind. They just don’t care.
Typically I work it all. I don’t care how gross the home, crawl, attic, shed, garage, nor anything else is. If you’re paying me to get a job done, I’ll get that job done. But all of that topped off with the decay in a house that has no ventilation or power. I officially found my “NOPE” house. We won’t be back until its deep cleaned and they’re moved out.
What’s your horror stories? The worse of the worse. Tell me your grittiest, dirtiest, “Not doing it” house. Even if it’s before your Inspection days.
