How’s people finding reasonably priced help to work on rehabs

Joe S.Pro Member

Investor · San Antonio · Member since 2020 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes

How’s folks finding new help to work on properties? It seems like even the unlicensed, uninsured, and no company name etc. is pulling prices out of the hat thinking they can get it.

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Jay HinrichsBusiness Member

Real Estate Consultant · Summerlin, NV · Member since 2014 · 45k+ posts · 66k+ votes

I dont have an answer but its an issue and with the younger generation forgoing the trades I suspect its not going to get better .

If I look at my Oregon trades its heavy to Hispanic with Russian eastern block doing all of our flooring and hard surfaces in the home. Our framing crew is all Caucasian which is fairly rare.

Our siders are a branch of Mennonites as well as our painters but they hire Hispanic labor..

But when it comes to just rehabbing houses as cheap as you can thats usually bottom barrel type labor pool Lots of missing teeth etc.

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Jay HinrichsBusiness Member
Real Estate Consultant · Summerlin, NV · Member since 2014 · 45k+ posts · 66k+ votes
4y
I dont have an answer but its an issue and with the younger generation forgoing the trades I suspect its not going to get better .
If I look at my Oregon trades its heavy to Hispanic with Russian eastern block doing all of our flooring and hard surfaces in the home. Our framing crew is all Caucasian which is fairly rare.
Our siders are a branch of Mennonites as well as our painters but they hire Hispanic labor..
But when it comes to just rehabbing houses as cheap as you can thats usually bottom barrel type labor pool Lots of missing teeth etc.

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JLH Capital Partners51 Review
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6 Reply
Joe S.Pro Member
OP
Investor · San Antonio · Member since 2020 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
4y
Quote from @Jay Hinrichs:

I dont have an answer but its an issue and with the younger generation forgoing the trades I suspect its not going to get better .
If I look at my Oregon trades its heavy to Hispanic with Russian eastern block doing all of our flooring and hard surfaces in the home. Our framing crew is all Caucasian which is fairly rare.
Our siders are a branch of Mennonites as well as our painters but they hire Hispanic labor..
But when it comes to just rehabbing houses as cheap as you can thats usually bottom barrel type labor pool Lots of missing teeth etc.

About seven years ago I hired some folks off of craigslist and I had to stay at the property while they worked or they would not have worked that much. I hired them by the day. My time is way too valuable now to do that. It was real, but it was not real fun. It was not all bad, but it was not all good either. I’m trying to avoid something that drastic. I did find one man that was confident enough that he rehabed the number houses for me without needing to be babysitting. You can only imagine how many duds I had to go through.
6 Reply
Eric James
Investor · Malakoff, TX · Member since 2017 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
4y
If you're in San Antonio I live about a 4 hour drive from where you are.. I have a crew of guys that I used for renovations on BRRRs and now new construction. I pay less skilled guys $20-22/hour and more skilled $25-27. I have one guy who is a foreman or sorts, but I need to supervise them myself as well. We were able to build new construction for $35/square foot in labor cost. I don't know if you consider that reasonable or not, but it works for me.
4 Reply
Andrew PostellPro Member
Lender · Fort Worth, TX · Member since 2016 · 8k+ posts · 6k+ votes
4y
@Joe S. thanks for posting! Always great to hear from a fellow Texan. The #1 method I know of to find good contractors are from other real estate investors. There's several groups in your area that meet and might know of some that they can recommend to you. I lean on other investors because they've already done all the hard lifting for me! And another investor will speak our language and know what we need too. This is the best place I know to go. Ask @Betty Cruz who she might recommend.
1 Reply
Joe S.Pro Member
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Investor · San Antonio · Member since 2020 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
4y
Quote from @Eric James:

If you're in San Antonio I live about a 4 hour drive from where you are.. I have a crew of guys that I used for renovations on BRRRs and now new construction. I pay less skilled guys $20-22/hour and more skilled $25-27. I have one guy who is a foreman or sorts, but I need to supervise them myself as well. We were able to build new construction for $35/square foot in labor cost. I don't know if you consider that reasonable or not, but it works for me.

How often do you show up to check on them?

I read a lot of your post. Whenever you’re through again I’d like to meet if your open to meeting. Will have steak on me if you have time. If you’re pushed for time there’s a pretty big Chinese Buffet with lots of options. :-)
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Joe S.Pro Member
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Investor · San Antonio · Member since 2020 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
4y
Quote from @Andrew Postell:

@Joe S. thanks for posting! Always great to hear from a fellow Texan. The #1 method I know of to find good contractors are from other real estate investors. There's several groups in your area that meet and might know of some that they can recommend to you. I lean on other investors because they've already done all the hard lifting for me! And another investor will speak our language and know what we need too. This is the best place I know to go. Ask @Betty Cruz who she might recommend.

They might share. Investors don’t always share their contractors..
1 Reply
Jay HinrichsBusiness Member
Real Estate Consultant · Summerlin, NV · Member since 2014 · 45k+ posts · 66k+ votes
4y
Quote from @Joe S.:

Quote from @Andrew Postell:

@Joe S. thanks for posting! Always great to hear from a fellow Texan. The #1 method I know of to find good contractors are from other real estate investors. There's several groups in your area that meet and might know of some that they can recommend to you. I lean on other investors because they've already done all the hard lifting for me! And another investor will speak our language and know what we need too. This is the best place I know to go. Ask @Betty Cruz who she might recommend.

They might share. Investors don’t always share their contractors..

in our market our subs are coveted and no way do we share them :)
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Joe S.Pro Member
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Investor · San Antonio · Member since 2020 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
4y
Quote from @Jay Hinrichs:

Quote from @Joe S.:

Quote from @Andrew Postell:

@Joe S. thanks for posting! Always great to hear from a fellow Texan. The #1 method I know of to find good contractors are from other real estate investors. There's several groups in your area that meet and might know of some that they can recommend to you. I lean on other investors because they've already done all the hard lifting for me! And another investor will speak our language and know what we need too. This is the best place I know to go. Ask @Betty Cruz who she might recommend.

They might share. Investors don’t always share their contractors..

in our market our subs are coveted and no way do we share them :)

Mighty kind Andrew to have such a generous mind set though. :-)
0 Reply
Eric James
Investor · Malakoff, TX · Member since 2017 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
4y
Quote from @Joe S.:

Quote from @Eric James:

If you're in San Antonio I live about a 4 hour drive from where you are.. I have a crew of guys that I used for renovations on BRRRs and now new construction. I pay less skilled guys $20-22/hour and more skilled $25-27. I have one guy who is a foreman or sorts, but I need to supervise them myself as well. We were able to build new construction for $35/square foot in labor cost. I don't know if you consider that reasonable or not, but it works for me.

How often do you show up to check on them?

I read a lot of your post. Whenever you’re through again I’d like to meet if your open to meeting. Will have steak on me if you have time. If you’re pushed for time there’s a pretty big Chinese Buffet with lots of options. :-)
I'm on site about 20 hours a week and I also take care of getting all materials they need.

Sure, let's get together sometime. I'll be taking the family down to the Riverwalk sometime this summer. We could get together then if you like.
1 Reply
Rolly Weaver
Helen, GA · Member since 2015 · 96 posts · 68 votes
4y
We use a lot of Hispanic workers.
One good thing of working with hispanics is that once you find a reliable one or team, you can get references to other reliable workers for other work. We've finished whole projects by branching out through one contact.
3 Reply
Allen L.
Rental Property Investor · Chicago and mainly invests in KS remotely · Member since 2018 · 360 posts · 314 votes
4y
Use contractor referrals. Cheap contractors that do good work are connected with cheap subs (that do good work). How to find the first cheap contractor that does good work is a numbers game. I use one guy for most of my rehabs and honestly he was referred to me by another cheap contractor (that did poor work).
2 Reply
Joe S.Pro Member
OP
Investor · San Antonio · Member since 2020 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
4y
I use one guy for most of my rehabs and honestly he was referred to me by another cheap contractor (that did poor work).

@Allen L.
Makes since…:) ^^^^^
0 Reply
Matt M.
Specialist · Easton, PA · Member since 2018 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes
4y
It’s really sad that you guys have to babysit. @Joe S. if I were closer I’d be happy to help out!
4 Reply
Joe S.Pro Member
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Investor · San Antonio · Member since 2020 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
4y
Quote from @Matt M.:

It’s really sad that you guys have to babysit. @Joe S. if I were closer I’d be happy to help out!

Do I need to get you a plane ticket or would you settle for a greyhound ticket? Lol
0 Reply
Jay HinrichsBusiness Member
Real Estate Consultant · Summerlin, NV · Member since 2014 · 45k+ posts · 66k+ votes
4y
Quote from @Joe S.:

Quote from @Matt M.:

It’s really sad that you guys have to babysit. @Joe S. if I were closer I’d be happy to help out!

Do I need to get you a plane ticket or would you settle for a greyhound ticket? Lol

Amtrack !
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Matt M.
Specialist · Easton, PA · Member since 2018 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes
4y
Quote from @Joe S.:

Quote from @Matt M.:

It’s really sad that you guys have to babysit. @Joe S. if I were closer I’d be happy to help out!

Do I need to get you a plane ticket or would you settle for a greyhound ticket? Lol

I only fly first class Joe haha
2 Reply
Joe S.Pro Member
OP
Investor · San Antonio · Member since 2020 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
4y
Quote from @Matt M.:

Quote from @Joe S.:

Quote from @Matt M.:

It’s really sad that you guys have to babysit. @Joe S. if I were closer I’d be happy to help out!

Do I need to get you a plane ticket or would you settle for a greyhound ticket? Lol

I only fly first class Joe haha

🤣😂
0 Reply
Chuks Erinne
Rental Property Investor · Atlanta, GA · Member since 2017 · 221 posts · 188 votes
4y
@Joe S. Join your local REIA and I bet you will have all the quality referrals you need. Some even maintain a Google doc sheet of vetted contractors. Gooduck
2 Reply
Dustin P.
Realtor · Tempe, AZ · Member since 2017 · 541 posts · 442 votes
4y
We have a decent crew with one main guy and a bunch of subs under him but it's definitely tough finding good guys that aren't overpriced. We probably try out at least one new trade each rehab
1 Reply
Michael AllenBusiness Member
Real Estate Agent · Troy, MI · Member since 2017 · 44 posts · 15 votes
4y
Facebook Groups! Join real estate investment groups or contractor groups.
2 Reply
Shelby LeBlanc
Flipper/Rehabber · Houston, TX · Member since 2020 · 87 posts · 59 votes
4y
@Joe S. I just sold a flip & the contractor situation was a nightmare! I ended up finishing the last 3 months myself. Lesson for the next one: I'll Baby sit one & require things to be done my way. If he stays & learns how i like things done, I'll give him more work. It's difficult to find people who want to work & take pride in their work. That generation is a dying breed. Hope you find the right crew.
1 Reply
Matthew Irish-JonesBusiness Member
Real Estate Agent · Buffalo, NY · Member since 2017 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
4y
Quote from @Joe S.:

How’s folks finding new help to work on properties? It seems like even the unlicensed, uninsured, and no company name etc. is pulling prices out of the hat thinking they can get it.

We have a construction division that we developed out of our Property Management company. We are fully licensed, fully insured, we have all of our workers on our payroll, company vans, trucks, and all of our own tools. We have found that most investors, home owners, and other potential clients will pay a premium if we can start and finish jobs on time and do all of the work to code.
If you have ever experienced a cheap contractor, or a shoddy workmanship its something you only want to go through one time. Our company is not cheap, and our employees are expensive but, since we are fully staffed we can allocate 3-6 people per job and stay there until its finished. We don't get call backs, we are on budget, and we handle pulling all of the permits, dealing with architects, and any other management that comes with construction. In our market we are finding people value speed and quality over price. At least our customers do, if they don't they probably go with uncle Bill for the first couple flips or turnover's and then become our customers.
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Eliott Elias
Investor · Austin, TX · Member since 2021 · 9k+ posts · 5k+ votes
4y
Come from a place of relationship building. If you hit up a contractor and the only interaction you have is the bid on the project than you can bet hes gonna treat you and your job like anything else. Be someone whose easy to be loyal to and great to work for
2 Reply
Steven Foster Wilson
Rental Property Investor · Columbus, OH · Member since 2017 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
4y
Quote from @Joe S.:

How’s folks finding new help to work on properties? It seems like even the unlicensed, uninsured, and no company name etc. is pulling prices out of the hat thinking they can get it.

I have went through 7 contractors here in Columbus at this point. When I was starting out, I wanted to learn as much as I could about the construction process. I would follow our contractors around and ask a lot of questions. This helped me to know for the future when a contractor was not doing something right or the price was very off based on the work. I often like them to write down a price for everything. I will also draw up a blueprint or a 3-D visual for them. I think the more information the better,
2 Reply
Bruce WoodruffPro Member
Contractor/Investor/Consultant · San Diego / Phoenix · Member since 2021 · 12k+ posts · 15k+ votes
4y
Quote from @Rolly Weaver:

We use a lot of Hispanic workers.
One good thing of working with hispanics is that once you find a reliable one or team, you can get references to other reliable workers for other work. We've finished whole projects by branching out through one contact.

Just be careful that you get a licensed Contractor when it is required. And my pretty vast experience with this showed that the quality of work was often suspect. As with anyone, you just have to do your vetting and stay on top of the workers.
1 Reply

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