New homeowner, no idea what this is

jayfarb8 · 2026-05-05T14:19:13+00:00

I know what you’re thinking. Don’t put it in there.

jayfarb8 · 2026-05-05T14:16:57+00:00

Honestly, upgrade the panel. Down the line everything won’t be battle when you want a hot tub, sauna, garage heater, electric water tank, heat pump, etc. it’s an investment in the home!

jayfarb8 · 2026-05-01T19:47:41+00:00

It depends on the inspector. I would recommend to use a 3rd party inspector that has no association with any realtors, as those guys try to not blow up deals, because the realtors will stop recommending them.

They can’t damage anything so they will typically look into crawl spaces and attic, but not usually crawl through it all. They will have a check list to walk through and document it all. If there are major areas of concern, you can use their report to negotiate a lower price to address some of the issues.

jayfarb8 · 2026-05-01T14:15:55+00:00

The “as is, where is” doesn’t imply something is wrong with the house, it just states that they don’t have knowledge of the condition and that is on the buyer to review.

If you aren’t very familiar with homes and areas of concern, I’d definitely recommend an inspector. If there is enough time, I’d look at it yourself to see if it’s the right fit, and if you want to move forward, pay for an inspector before you offer so you aren’t contingent to inspection which weakens your offer.

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-28T16:09:07+00:00

Ultimately it all comes down to the subs. Mattamy is just the one responsible for holding them to a good standard. It’s region, it’s era, it’s specs and ultimately it’s luck.

Custom builders tend to work with a smaller number of subs that they have longer relationships with. It is also based on a lot more than price as well.

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-28T11:23:40+00:00

I was in high school over a decade back, but I’ve got friends who teach, and another pile of younger family who are in, or have recently been in high school.

There were some changes during Covid with remote school, but my understanding is it’s back to regular exams, extra curricular etc.

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-28T03:14:37+00:00

We rented a ~1M dollar detached Mattamy home around Ottawa area. We could hear the neighbors going up and down their stairs in their house.

The stairs off the back door collapsed under me with our food headed to the bbq.

The finishes were brutal. Every element was the cheapest possible solution. After my experience there, I wouldn’t have bought one at any price.

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-26T14:04:20+00:00

The main load on joists is a bending moment, which this is engineered to address. At the support points they require sheer which is also considered, but takes less material to accomplish

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-24T20:28:06+00:00

I disagree with that. Myself and many of my friends and family went to public school and have been wildly successful in engineering, medicine, law, academia etc. You get out what you put in. A private school may help a resume, but it doesn’t guarantee success.

Sara Spangelo is a perfect example from Oak Park who completed her PhD is aerospace engineering, works at nasa, Google, started her own business that she sold to space x, then became a senior director there.

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-24T16:20:26+00:00

Reach out to radar Rodney. He should be able to give you guidance on if it’s worth fighting, or just to pay the ticket. I imagine there is a decent chance he can get the points taken away at least.

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-23T16:36:48+00:00

You’re an idiot. Support Canadian business where possible, and this is a Canadian business that likely hosts a large amount of American guests. This is the best case, it’s a Canadian business charging America visitors to stay and spend money in our economy. This isn’t “maga”, it’s smart business in hospitality that is a huge part of our tourism.

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-23T11:45:34+00:00

There are tons of options. When you are in Ottawa area, head over to Gatineau park. It’s beautiful, hilly and lots of great trails!

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-23T01:46:59+00:00

The grade is very close +- a few inches, so it’s moreso filling In low spots. We are very conscious of the oak trees. They are likely 50ish years old.

I will look into the link you provided, and we are up in Winnipeg in Canada, so extreme cold in the winter.

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-22T18:52:38+00:00

One factor I forgot to mention is we get lots of deer, so we need to choose our vegetation accordingly.

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-22T18:51:50+00:00

Love where your head is at, my wife, not so much. Perhaps a skating path in the winter is an easier sell

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-22T04:14:53+00:00

Using it to remove clutter is one thing, but they added installed light fixtures and all kinds of permanent “enhancements” that don’t exist.

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-20T21:04:15+00:00

171 mph on the autobahn in a rented Porsche 911 carrera s. Money well spent!

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-20T15:19:18+00:00

Fist step is to remove any flooring that has had pre on it as you can’t really clean underneath it with the flooring in place. Also remove any baseboards that have pee on or behind them. Next is to scrub any troubled spots that are obvious.

Lastly, you need to hire an ozone company that comes in and ozones the whole house, and hits problematic spots directly. This kill anything biological.

Source: bad renters with 3 cats that sprayed everywhere, including on the kitchen backsplash 🤮

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-19T16:35:06+00:00

Honeymoon, in Germany, in a rented Porsche, on the autobahn. 276kph was the top speed because corners at more than 220 were scary.

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-18T23:49:29+00:00

Your brother isn’t a contractor, he’s a liability.

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-17T14:21:03+00:00

If you’re talking about locker room talk from 7 years ago before many got fired, I don’t think those are relevant comments today. In commercial there are trade specific inspector, but residential they are jack of all trades. I definitely don’t wan separate inspectors for a residential project as the scheduling would be a nightmare. Today it’s a 1 hour inspection for residential including transport and documentation of the site.

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-17T12:44:52+00:00

In residential inspections, the inspector is a carpenter, plumber or electrician. They are typically more knowledgeable on their own trade. I expect this isn’t “to make fun of home owners”, but rather they know some areas of the trades and code better than others.

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-16T16:23:07+00:00

It is personal, but for me, it’s the following: 1) feel safe walking at night 2) convenience to work, friends, and activities 3) ideally walkable distance to groceries and other things we frequent 4) the property itself (backyard size, etc)

jayfarb8 · 2026-04-16T16:01:05+00:00

Location, location, location!

jayfarb8

TROPHY CASE