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Complete Home Rehab in 10 Days
Ever consider taking a house and restoring it to an aesthetically pleasing dwelling that has reclaimed it’s functional utility? In effect, it is the anti-aging medication for bricks and mortar.
First of it, you need to already have or soon acquire the proper house; i.e. one that is in essence ripe for rehab. Be selective and sure of the house’s potential to allow for a profit after all the hard work is done.
In the proverbial nutshell, it helps if you choose a house from the start that has sound systems in:
- Electrical
- Plumbing
- Heating / Cooling
These systems are expensive to correct in relation to the value they return to you upon resale. Most often, people cannot see the inner workings of these systems and they take them for granted.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS
How about what is behind those walls? Things that bite you here aren’t usually seen until you get bit. One particular painful bite is finding out that your wiring is not grounded or that the circuits are not properly protected. You’re looking for three-pronged outlets and modern plastic-encased wiring made of copper, not aluminum. You want circuit breakers, not fuses. In summary, what you really need here is a licensed electrician to do this more in-depth and professionally licensed review of the system.
More than one Joe Homeowner rehab has gone up in flames because of a lack of respect for electricity. Licensed electricians bring you up to code and protect your investment. Find a good one and make it a point to shower him or her with praise, attention and money well spent.
They will give you free estimates, so use them as a preliminary inspector with you. If you decide to buy the house, use them to do the work that needs to be done.
PLUMBING
However, plumbers are a breed apart. You would think they use gold for soldering your pipes with the prices they charge. (My grandfather was a plumber and I was on the truck with him at nine years old.) A plumber may or may not give you a free estimate. With a little digging, it can be done. Just give them the work if indeed you do buy the house.
With plumbers, the only time you’re going to need one is if you are doing major system work or the once every ten year hot water heater job. Also the occasional clogged main sewer line to the street.
In today’s P.V.C. plastic plumbing kits world, you can hire just about any good all-around handyman to get the job done. If you have to tear through a wall to get at plumbing, building code inspector-man will say, “Get a licensed plumber.”
Continue on to: Part II: Complete Home Rehab
About the Author: Dan Auito
Magic Bullets in Real Estate
Dan Auito has been with the U.S. Coast Guard for the last 20 years most of that time in aviation. During that time he has acquired two real estate licenses an appraisers certification, founded a non-profit drug prevention corporation, headed a real estate consulting group and has recently written his first full scale real estate book.
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