Rehab costs per sqft in DC, VA and MD

[Joshua Boshnack]

I'm trying to get a sense of the rehab costs/sqft for a fix & flip of the main areas in the DMV (Washington, DC, Norther Virginia, and Maryland). I understand there are some basic variables to consider, but the main ones I'm considering at this point are 

(1) the differences between DC, VA and MD. (I understand DC can be quite a bit more than the surrounding areas, though I'm not clear why).

(2) basic and luxury finishes. 

If there are any contractors, experienced flippers or investor agents that could drop some knowledge on me, it would be so appreciated. I'm a newer agent working with investors with no flip experience of my own and only lived in the area for a couple years. Thank you!!!

[Jack Seiden]

Quote from @Joshua Boshnack:

I'm trying to get a sense of the rehab costs/sqft for a fix & flip of the main areas in the DMV (Washington, DC, Norther Virginia, and Maryland). I understand there are some basic variables to consider, but the main ones I'm considering at this point are 

(1) the differences between DC, VA and MD. (I understand DC can be quite a bit more than the surrounding areas, though I'm not clear why).

(2) basic and luxury finishes. 

If there are any contractors, experienced flippers or investor agents that could drop some knowledge on me, it would be so appreciated. I'm a newer agent working with investors with no flip experience of my own and only lived in the area for a couple years. Thank you!!!

 Price per sf isn’t really a good metric you could $50-$200 depending on the scope, if it’s cosmetic, if you have to replace systems, if you have to add systems, if you have structural etc. D.C. isn’t necessarily more per sf, it’s permits on structural adjustment’s and dealing with dcra, can be very hard (though I find dc extremely easy if you don’t need a building permit.) as far as finishes, those are usually about 20% of my budget (labor being the other 80%) and the difference between higher end and building grade finishes is generally negligible (think 5-10k difference on a 150-200k reno.) The biggest thing to realize though is unless you have in-house labor the margin’s basically don’t exist outside of D.C. and even there is extremely tight. It’s extremely hard if not impossible without having an advantage on labor costs to make money flipping and extremely easy to lose money right now.

[Joshua Boshnack]

Good insights. Thanks Jack.