Flippers: Pre-hung or slab?

Question

I've got a couple flips where I'm planning on replacing all of the interior doors with pre-hung units since the existing jambs are pretty beat up (some kicked in)... but made me think to ask this question:

If the jambs are in good shape, but the doors need to be replaced (say it's a style issue only) AND you'll be replacing the trim, do you go for pre-hung or slab in that case?

What do you do and why?

Letitia Harris · Answer

I've done pre hung 6 panel doors on my last 3 flips.  They look amazing, it's fast, every is happy!  Frames from the 50s, nope, they don't compare for the most part.

Brian Pulaski · Answer

I have only replaced with slabs to date, but my trim and jambs were in good shape. If I were tearing out the trim also, I would think about prehung. I think a would lean toward prehung though, as the install would be quicker, and less tools involved.

Drew Clements · Answer

@Kurt Gardner and @Aaron McGinnis, that's pretty much the way I've been leaning - it's hard to estimate those "quiet" costs of slab installation... that would require more time and experience to truly quantify. But for now my gut is telling me the predictability and peace of mind is worth the pre-hung premium. Thanks for your input!

But as Kurt alluded to, I'm sure there's a inflection point where slab is the way to go - when there's enough volume and you have a carpenter that does enough of them to make outcomes are predictable...

Aaron McGinnis · Answer

If you're replacing trim and slabs, might as well do a prehung. It'll end up being faster and give you a better outcome at the end of the day.

Kurt Gardner · Answer

Slab has always cause me trouble when I do it myself, but when I have my contractor do it, I leave it up to them...

I don't think there's a solid answer because of the trim/custom sizes/other issues you may face for each door.

Personally, as long as my budget allows, the time savings of my contractor (and the overall "fresh" look) outweigh the cost of a pre-hung..and I'm usually only replacing 3-6 doors.

Now, if you're replacing 15+ doors...lol.