How often do you visit your fix & flip project?

Question

Hi,

I'm about to engage in my first fix & flip project. I found a deal that I couldn't pass up. Will be closing in a couple of weeks and I'm already starting to get estimates.  But I'm also very busy with work and family responsibilities.

If a get a highly recommended general contractor with good references how often would I need to check on the progress of the rehab? Weekly, bi-weekly, daily? It is mostly cosmetic with some plumbing issues.

I know the better contractors are more expensive but my time is at a premium also.

Thanks

Account Closed · Answer

i'm a little more of a control freak and I'm also the GC..i try to visit every morning and every afternoon..i don't trust anyone to watch my investment for me

Aaron McGinnis · Answer

An even better idea... Pay yourself to be a laborer.

I'm really not kidding here. You want to know how your contractor works? Work for him. Get dirty and haul some lumber around. You'll learn more about the business in a month than you could learn in 10 years from watching all administrative-like.

Is this extreme? Yeah, maybe. On the other hand, if you had to hire yourself to do your job... would you really want someone managing contractors who has never worked a day in his life with a toolbelt on?

The contracting part of this business is a huge, giant cost and time driver. You MUST manage it efficiently or you ARE NOT going to be in the business for very long.

Account Closed · Answer

kevin, i agree with you...my business will be at a standstill until i can trust someone and also part with the money that i'd need to pay them..that being said...i just finished a rehab and put it on the market, i'm finishing up another in a few weeks, and starting another one in a week..at the same time, i'm completing a rehab of an apartment building, and as these apartments come available for rent, i'm the one that takes calls and shows the apartments to prospective tenants...at the same time, i still collect rent door to door from all my other tenants and handle maintenence requests...and i went to the driving range the other day as well  :)   point is, there's plenty of time in the day to do many things if you get your crap together and try to stay focused/organized...all the books say to build a business and hire out, but i don't think that's realistic unless you start with deep pockets...after a few years, sure, you can do that, and i look forward to doing that in a couple of years myself..but for now, i don't mind doing everything and saving that 40k i'd pay a fulltime employee  :)  i think i'll grow my business more by saving that 40k each year and getting to reinvest it, rather than paying someone

Aaron McGinnis · Answer

On your first flip, go often. Daily wouldn't be a bad idea, really.

As you gain more experience, you'll know when you need to be there.

For example, during rough construction I try to be present pretty often. During paint? Heck, I don't need to watch my painter roll walls. Trim? Yeah, I need to be there to make sure everything is the way I want it.

And I certainly don't need to watch my drywall guy mud... that's booorrriinnnggg. And also I can check it every other day or so to make sure he's getting the seams the way I want.

Don Hines · Answer

Until you get to know the contractor, check on your investment everyday/evening. Beleave me, the one you choose will be "your best buddy" until the end of the job. Then he will be focused on getting out of there and starting the next job. That is when you really need to be picky. Don't forget to do a walk through with a punch list before final payment. 
Don

Anson Young · Answer

This, got too close to getting royally @#($*'d at the beginning of the year, not watching a guy who did perfectly on 2 projects within the last 3-5 months.  If I WASNT watching him, I'd be out $15k or more...

I visit twice a week, minimum.

Sergiu Spinu · Answer

As Don Hines says "check on your investment everyday/evening. "

That's the best time because you can see the progres made by workers during the day.

Thanks

AC C · Answer

Thanks for the replies!

Ophelia Nicholson · Answer

I've never been one for manual labor being a woman and all but I visit the job site every day- my uncle does the morning run and I do the afternoon run. I go through the whole house to see what changed from the day before. So for example yesterday they were putting up doors throughout the house and I looked at the master bathroom and it struck me that a panel door was all wrong and it would hide the vanity or that you would have to close the bathroom door to wash your hands or just use the vanity so we changed the idea of how we wanted that to look or how the door would swing. I figured hey what if I switch to a interior french slab door instead.
Its a tiny thing and that probably means I'm extra picky about every single thing but to me it matters- so my answer would be visit as often as makes you happy or comfortable.

J Scott · Answer

The first few rehabs, i was there every day, most of the day.  I used those experiences to learn the business, learn how to budget, learn how to schedule, learn some of the details of doing the work.

Once I felt like I understood what was going on, I cut back to a couple times a week, and then just hired a full-time project manager to be my eyes and ears on every job.

I still go to each project once or twice during rehab, and then I do the final walk-through and punch-list before it's complete...

How often do you visit your fix & flip project?

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