Catskills - Sullivan County - Ulster County Real Estate -- Catskill Farms Journal

Old School Real estate blog in the Catskills. Journeys, trial, tribulations, observations and projects of Catskill Farms Founder Chuck Petersheim. Since 2002, Catskill Farms has designed, built, and sold over 250 homes in the Hills, investing over $100m and introducing thousands to the areas we serve. Farms, Barns, Moderns, Cottages and Minis - a design portfolio which has something for everyone.

Thursday, November 22, 2007

Making Bella Drive


Big toys on a slippery path on a rainy, foggy morning.


Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Chapin Estate Toilet Issue

RJ Electric/Plumbing/Heating and All Around Home Improvement and his pimped out ride.

Here is RJ Jr. trying to get my basement toilet to work. Since it is below ground and toilets work with gravity, this system required a pump - well, the pump wasn't working that well, and RJ Sr. tried to convince me I had bought a 'two-flush' toilet, meaning it wasn't his work that was deficient, but actually the toilet style I chose. Talk about thinking I just fell off the turnip truck.


Wednesday, November 21, 2007

The Weather!!*&??#!!@

It's late November, and too be honest we had a great run of 12 months of weather. Last winter was a breeze, pretty dry most of the year, and a great fall. But now, everyday is overcast, cloudy, rainy - Construction is like movie-making - dependent on a LOT of factors - labor, weather, schedule, lots of people and temperments, lots of dinero. It's a constant battle against impending and imploding chaos. Cold and wet - the ground is soft, everything gets muddle, trucks get stuck, dozers and excavators can push around dirt, house framers sit at home waiting out the rain. In all, in multiples more difficult than dry weather. And the real problem is now that it's November, it won't dry out until the spring - there is no purpose waiting for a sunny day and stiff breeze. It complicates things for us because we have a lot of dirt to move and push on our new project. If we don't get it done (especially septics) before the ground freezes, then I can't sell the house when I am finished in February - have to wait until May when the ground unfreezes and the mud dries up - since this is unacceptable both to my clients and my pocketbook (I would be paying interest on finished houses - big bucks). Friday we are trying to power through it and 'er done.

Monday, November 19, 2007

Chapin Estate

Saturday early evening in November - our living room at Chapin Estate, Lot 45 after closing 2 deals fireside.


Crazy kitten lounging in front of her first home. A 'friend' dropped this kitten off at our home when Ruby was only 3 weeks old - she had been found in a 'have a heart trap' in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.



Charles Petersheim, Catskill Farms (Catskill Home Builder)
At Farmhouse 35
A Tour of 28 Dawson Lane
Location
Rock & Roll
The Transaction
The Process
Under the Hood
Big Barn
Columbia County Home
Catskill Farms History
New Homes in the Olivebridge Area
Mid Century Ranch Series
Chuck waxes poetic...
Catskill Farms Barn Series
Catskill Farms Cottage Series
Catskill Farms Farmhouse Series
Interviews at the Farm ft. Gary
Interviews at the Farm ft. Amanda
Biceps & Building
Catskill Farms Greatest Hits
Construction Photos
Planned It
Black 'n White
Home Accents at Catskill Farms, Part 2
Home Accents at Catskill Farms, Part 1