Vagabond Metalworks Settles Down?

SO.

When I moved into the space I'm in now, I joked that I wasn't going to move again till I bought a place and that move would be the last one, and it was a joke because I would never be able to buy a place so I would just be in this building forever and ever.

AND THEN.

ABout a month ago I found a 4000 square foot, victorian brick mill building five miles from my favorite east-coast museum, it's for sale, and I can afford it.

But.

I can only -barely- afford it, and the downpayment eats up nearly the entire little nest egg that was my only security in the middle of this income-less wasteland of a pandemic.

AND ALSO;

I know that times are just as hard for everyone else, but I'm asking for help, anyway. This seems like a wild time to buy a building, but it's also the moment in which everything is changing, and I might as well make those changes work for me.

--THANK YOU GIFTS AT THE END--

Here's the whole story; There's this lovely building in Adams, just south of North Adams, MA.  The current owner has been extraordinarily generous in working with me on funding. The inspection went well. The building is a rock solid little dream, with big open floors and giant beams and a foot thick of brick on the exterior walls. Everything looks good and like I can move forward with this.

There would be room for me to set up a permanent photo station, which would make updating the website (a bigger concern now than it was this time last year, shall we say) infinitely easier. Into the future there would be room, and it is already zoned for, opening an area in the front as a retail/gallery space. Between these two things, I hope to pivot away from shows, though to be upfront that will take time. Also into the future I hope to be able to open up some of that space to other artists; this will require fixing up the downstairs, adding ventilation, etc, and will also take time. In the right away, immediate future, the space will allow my work to expand, my website to update regularly, and will allow me and my business to grow some equity, and maybe roots. Owning the space in which I am creating will open up possibilities that I haven't bothered to think about for the past... decade, because I assumed this would never be possible.

But I could really use some help. Just renting a moving truck is going to be about 800 dollars, plus gas and we all know that there are other costs that go into moving; it's just an expensive activity (moving a metalshop is EXTRA fun!). The closing fees, which, I admit, I forgot to take into account when setting up my budget for this whole endeavor, are over 2k (inspection, recording fees, the attorney that mass requires be present at closing, title search, etc). And then there's work on the building; a lot of it can be put off and done over time, but I'll need to do some ductwork before winter to get the heat to the places I actually need it, the back door needs to be replaced pronto (it is... not secure) and I need to add a big shop sink (there's already a hot water heater, which is exciting! but just the tiniest little porcelain pedestal sink). I've set the goal at 5k; I have no idea how realistic that is, but here's the breakdown:

the first 2k I get will go directly to closing expenses. Those have to get paid before anything else.

The next 1.5k will go towards physical moving expenses. If this gets overfunded, I would truly, desperately, like to rent a small truck first and take an initial load of easy stuff up, in order to create a staging ground in my current place for packing. As many of y'all know, I currently share a relatively small space with another human, who teaches classes out of said space, and I am trying not to disrupt her business too much while this all goes down. If there's not enough money, I'll just be renting the biggest truck I can and trying to get everything packed and into it in record time.

The next 1k goes towards immediate building expenses. It's mostly small stuff, but it adds up; I'll need a weedwacker or something to control that backyard plot with. I'll need a ladder tall enough to get to the roof.  I'll need a sink and the pipes to get to and from it. I'll need a back door. I'll need to tile under where my forge goes; neither linoleum nor wood floor works for that. I already checked out the habitat for humanity store in town, and it looks like I can get most of that stuff used, which I plan to do wherever possible. If there's enough money here, I will eventually be buying the shop a washing machine (the hookup is already there, and that sure would be convenient) and a fridge (because cold juice makes working better).

And the last 500 in that initial ask goes towards the really fun stuff like re-registering my car, switching my insurance, prepaying a quarter's worth of property taxes, and other fun stuff like that.

Any amount over will go directly into things that will improve the building but that I will otherwise have to put off for a bit; things like building out interior spaces upstairs, adding ventilation downstairs, figuring out what flooring is under that ugly linoleum, painting the exterior trim, etc. I have grand plans for this place, and with help they will happen sooner.

If you can donate to help with this move, I will be eternally grateful. I also have a patreon ( www.patreon.com/kest ) if you are up for a longterm donation; those help a great deal with insecurity into the future. If you're local (to either end) and willing to help out with time, muscles, a capacity to draw out plumbing diagrams, a pile of moving boxes I can grab, a moving truck you're not using, or anything else that you think sounds applicable, please do reach out.

AND NOW GIFTS

I am working on little thank you gifts for donations; my plan is to send everyone who donates 30 or more a little handstamped "challenge coin" which I am happy to drill out if you want it to be a pendant. My initial effort at a stamp is visible on my patreon (you don't have to donate to see it). I may work out a second stamp, but whatever one I go with will only be available during fundraising for this move, so it will be something special. If you donate over 250, I am making a limited run of tiny baba yaga houses that will all be the same design and which I will forever remember as the houses that let my business buy a home.

AND TIMELINE

We're hoping to close on the building by the end of the month, which is, yes, really quite soon. I will be setting the run of this fundraiser longer than that, though, because the actual move will happen after closing, and then the work on the building will happen yet later. Realistically, a large portion of the money I bring in for the next year or so will be going towards this building, but it will be so worthwhile.

AND ONE LAST THING

because the world is just so uncertain right now, I cannot help but feel, down in my toes, that -something- is going to happen. If terrible events occur and I somehow do not get this building, all donations will be refunded. I'm not gonna keep your money unless this works.

#SmallBusinessRelief