How much to budget for cap X, and maintenance on a new build

Question

I am new to REI and want to know what do you budget for capital expenditures, and maintenance for a house that is newly built?

I’ve read 5% for Capital expenditures, and 10% for maintenance. In your experience do￼ these numbers change if it is a new build?

Thanks!

-Gabe

Cameron Tope · Answer

Hey Gabe,

Brandon wrote a great post that CapEx is about $180/mo if you hold the property long term. We budget $200/mo to be safe and have found this to be a solid estimate. See below for the chart from Brandon's post which I've updated based on our local prices.

Capital Expense

Total Replacement Cost

Lifespan (years)

Cost per Year

Cost per Month

Paint

$3,500

5

$700

$58.33

Cabinets/Counters

$4,000

20

$200

$16.67

All   Appliances

$2,000

10

$200

$16.67

Components (garage door, etc.)

$2,000

10

$200

$16.67

Landscaping

$1,000

5

$200

$16.67

HVAC

$3,500

20

$175

$14.58

Flooring

$5,000

30

$167

$13.89

Roof

$5,000

35

$143

$11.90

Structure   (foundation, framing)

$5,000

50

$100

$8.33

Plumbing

$3,000

30

$100

$8.33

Windows

$5,000

50

$100

$8.33

Water Heater

$1,000

15

$67

$5.56

Driveway/Parking   Lot

$2,500

50

$50

$4.17

With a new build, you're obviously starting at the beginning of the useful life on everything so I would remove cabinets, HVAC, flooring, roof, structure, plumbing, windows, water heater and driveway. Now, if you plan to hold it for over 30 years then I would add those items back in.

Hope that helps!