After a trip to your nearby hardware store to pick up the supplies needed to fix a leaky pipe or patch that hole in the roof, you’ll be forced to lament your sad financial state over a can of Natty light, rather than your favorite microbrew. And when it comes to bigger renovation projects — installing hardwood floors, putting in a new kitchen — you can forget chicken and steak, because dinner will revolve around beans and rice (and not the organic kind, either).
Unless you know about the ReStore.
This shop teems with low-cost building supplies — everything from lumber to lighting fixtures and toilets to trim. For do-it-yourselfers on a budget, this store is a must-see. And if you’re able to tailor your home improvement projects to what you can find in the store (the merchandise changes every week), you can significantly cut your home repair budget.
“For people who are able to design and build their own place, this place is an absolute gold mine,” says Andrew Smith, manager of the ReStore.
Good for your wallet & the planet
Run by Habitat for Humanity of Greater Portland, the ReStore has a 3-fold mission: Divert building materials from landfills, sell low-cost supplies to local people and raise money to build more Habitat homes. The prices are 50-80 percent below the retail price, with brand new items generally selling for half off. Keeping the prices super-low is the fact that all the store’s stock is donated.
Some materials arrive (still in the box) from home stores, like Home Depot and Lowe’s, and other items are donated by homeowners, builders and interior designers. People taking advantage of the bargains run the gamut from penny-pinching first-time homebuyers to Lexus-driving retirees.
“A lot of the customers are do-it-yourselfers,” Smith says. “Some are contractors and landlords and art project folks.”
The Portland store, which opened last August, is on track to sell more than $200,000 worth of materials in its first year. Which is quite an accomplishment for a store hidden away on a backstreet that doesn’t advertise very much.
Steve Bolton, executive director of Habitat for Humanity of Greater Portland, says the store’s success comes from homeowners who want to save money and builders who want to reduce costs.
“Instead of having it smashed and throwing it in the dumpster, contractors send it Habitat’s way and get a tax deduction,” Bolton says.
Deconstruction is in the details
Builders and architects often call in the Habitat crew to strip out useful architectural elements from homes slated to be remodeled or torn down. Smith says the key to such deconstruction is a gentle touch and leaving the sledge hammer at home.
“I like to explain it as pants before shoes,” Smith says. “You need to remove the trim before you remove the window.”
At a recent project, Smith and his crew of volunteers dismantled a whole house. This included taking down the roof trusses and sheathing.
“(The contractor) saved 2 days of labor and he got the tax deduction on the value of the materials,” Smith says.
And those trusses had already been sold before Smith could unload them at the shop.
Act fast for the good stuff
During the early part of the week, Smith organizes new supplies that have been donated and heads out to job sites to pick up materials. This means when the store re-opens on Thursday mornings there’s a whole crop of new building materials on display.
“The folks that know about us come in on Thursday mornings,” Bolton says.
And you should too, if you want to snag the best deals before they’re gone (and avoid that beans and rice dinner routine).
A look at ReStore bargains ...
$2 — Brand new staircase spindles
$2 — Per square foot cost of brand new finished hardwood flooring
$8-$50 — Brand new closet organizers
$20 — Brand new newel post
$90 — 1920s cast iron farmer’s sink
$100 — Chandelier from the Black Point Inn
$100 — Wooden fireplace mantle
$850 — M.R. Brewer custom hardwood cabinets, white, estimated original cost $18,000
$2,600 — Brand new 14-foot long custom wood window, original price $13,000
When asked about the most unusual items donated so far, Smith reels off a few:
“I’ve had well pumps, garage door openers and an 1850s wood parlor stove.”