As you search for properties to rehab, what are the things that most people try are afraid to tackle and you think are really not that bad, hopefully leading to a better deal? What are the things that you avoid no matter what?
As I read through the books, there is the notion of things that people viewing homes get turned off from, smells, cleanliness, etc. Also looking for what are some of the bigger things, i.e. foundation, mold, is/was the house on fire, etc?
I own one rental. So my experience is minimal. But, with this house, I have found that mold was not as scary as it may sound. The seller we purchased from paid for mold remediation in the attic. We paid for the basement. It has to be done, and it wasn’t as big a deal as we thought. Our portion was about $2200. Not sure what the seller paid for the attic.
We are currently dealing with an unforeseen problem. We have a clogged main drain, our clean out is in the basement. But no plumbing company will clear the drain without an outside clean out. So, we are paying $3100 today to have an outside clean out put in and the drain snaked.
The plumbing is a problem because we were completely blind sided by it. Didn’t know when we bought the place that it needed this outside clean out. Probably would have considered that in our purchase offer.
Mold, dirty place, maintenance issues, old style dated property. In general run towards what buyers dislike, but have a good contractor guide you with what is cosmetic and perhaps easy to repair.
here in CA a lot of people are turned off by termites. I know because I initially was too. Now there's a lot of opportunity buying properties with termite issues - less buyers to compete!
Over the years we have replaced/repaired every system you can find in a SFR except having to pour a new foundation. That last one is still a little scary.
If buyers are scared away from anything on a house, that equates to opportunity for the one that can tackle it and with a smaller buyers pool, you are in a better negotiating position with the seller. Using that to offset the costs and time of the “scary repair” is where you can make a deal. It’s all about the numbers as anything in a home can be fixed or upgraded and with the right team, nothing should be too scary to do. That said, there are Projects that are beyond a comfort zone, like hillside construction if you have never done it. So I actually look for the homes with these problems in hopes to get a better deal and have less competition.