Interior Designer

Buying & Selling Real Estate
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Interior Designer

Daniel Lehman
Lockport, NY · Member since 2015 · 41 posts · 8 votes

My cousin/partner and I are in the process of looking for our first multifamily rental. We have agreed to have a primary focus on buy and holding multifamily rentals with a secondary focus on fix and flips. We have another cousin who is currently in school for interior design and we both agreed to utilize her as our ID.

I know we'd be able to use her on fix and flips but I'm wondering the best ways to go about using her as our ID for fix and flips and for our rentals if feasible; not just in the technical sense, but a legal one as well.

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Michael HaasBusiness Member
Real Estate Agent · Redmond, 🌧️ Seattle Investor-Agent | 🤑 Helped 400+ Clients Invest in Real Estate | 🏘️ Owns 23 WA Rentals & Airbnbs | 🏗️ Built 5 DADU's | 📈 You Can Do It Too · Member since 2016 · 724 posts · 3k+ votes
7y

Interior design would likely just handle your finish selections @Tonye Wokoma- if you’re doing a Reno-rehab and don’t know where to start you probably need a PM/GM.

I second Pinterest for the finishes- it’s really not complicated. Find some high end renovated or new construction apartments in your neighborhood- take a picture of all the finishes and steal your favorites (ideas that is- not the actual finishes from the apartment 😅)

If you have 1-3 rentals you gotta be scrappy as you build your portfolio, don’t throw away your money unnecessarily!

[email protected]408-439-7873
HouseHack Seattle | Michael Haas & Team572 Reviews
WebsiteView Page
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  • Micki M.
    Flipper/Rehabber · York, UK · Member since 2013 · 895 posts · 453 votes
    10y

    @Dorothy Ma might be able to give you some insight here.

    0Reply
  • Dorothy Ma
    Investor · Denver, CO · Member since 2015 · 138 posts · 73 votes
    10y

    @Daniel Lehman

    Typically for projects small like fix and flip renovations or rentals, interior designers are an additional expense i would steer away from.  There scope of work required in these projects for interior design is limited, and I would say most investors do part of it themselves.  In the professional world, when an architect uses an interior designer on a restuarant project, for example, the job of the interior designer is to prepare interior drawings to be included in the permit drawing set.  In small residential remodels, drawings like this nature are not required by the city, so then the role of your interior designer is really to pick out materials like tile and paint colors.  You'll learn real quick that these fees are budget items (particularly for rentals) and not the best way to spend your money... unless she's doing it more for experience and you're not being charged the regular rate of an interior designer, or you can make sure you cap her scope and hours and agree to a reasonable flat fee.

    There is really no legal implication, interior designers do not stamp drawing like architects and engineers so it doesn't matter that she's in school or not.

    1Reply
  • Jeff B.
    Buy & Hold Owner · Redlands, CA · Member since 2015 · 5k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    10y

    ID? as in title for both purchase and resale??

    0Reply
  • Caroline Hedin
    Architect · Tacoma, WA · Member since 2015 · 68 posts · 28 votes
    10y

    @Daniel Lehman I second @Dorothy Ma.  If she's doing the work for a small fee and portfolio photos, awesome that you're willing to help her out.  If she's looking for a full fee, you might try Pinterest and Houzz instead - in particular on your buy and holds. 

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  • Tonye Wokoma
    New to Real Estate · Seattle, WA · Member since 2018 · 9 posts · 3 votes
    7y

    @Dorothy Ma Thank you for this explanation. I'm currently trying to figure out who to hire to design the renovation of my newly purchased Seattle home. There's a lot of work to be done and I don't know where to start. 

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  • Michael HaasBusiness Member
    Real Estate Agent · Redmond, 🌧️ Seattle Investor-Agent | 🤑 Helped 400+ Clients Invest in Real Estate | 🏘️ Owns 23 WA Rentals & Airbnbs | 🏗️ Built 5 DADU's | 📈 You Can Do It Too · Member since 2016 · 724 posts · 3k+ votes
    7y

    Interior design would likely just handle your finish selections @Tonye Wokoma- if you’re doing a Reno-rehab and don’t know where to start you probably need a PM/GM.

    I second Pinterest for the finishes- it’s really not complicated. Find some high end renovated or new construction apartments in your neighborhood- take a picture of all the finishes and steal your favorites (ideas that is- not the actual finishes from the apartment 😅)

    If you have 1-3 rentals you gotta be scrappy as you build your portfolio, don’t throw away your money unnecessarily!

    [email protected]408-439-7873
    HouseHack Seattle | Michael Haas & Team572 Reviews
    WebsiteView Page
    4Reply
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