$16,000 renovated house renting for $1,000+/mo

$16,000 renovated house renting for $1,000+/mo

Investor · Laurel, MD · Member since 2014 · 251 posts · 140 votes

So if you don't follow me then you probably don't know how I get numbers like these. 

To be short, I am able to do it because I do all of the renovation myself. I'm writing this tonight to show people it can be done. That is if you like it. What I do is not for everyone, I do what I do because I enjoy it a lot. I love fixing up the places I hate dealing with the tenants but I still do it anyways. 

I wasn't always able to do this scope of work. I started small and got the confidence which is 80% of the battle. If you can find the confidence to believe in yourself you can easily tackle most DIY projects. It takes a lot of dedication and research, but it can be done, I am living proof! I couldn't lay a piece of tile 3 years ago, holes in dry wall scared me, and bugs...don't get me started. Fast forward 3 years and I'm laying hundreds of SqFt of tile, replacing ceilings, and now I eat bugs for lunch (not really). I had no idea what I was doing at first but my mind set was this house is completely screwed up if I SCREW UP is it really going to be any worse and if it is I just can retry. The beauty is you are not being scrutinized but anyone but yourself, now I am a perfectionist...so I'm probably harder on myself than someone else would be. But you get the point. It's OK to make mistakes when you are learning. 

I work a full time job, change into my construction clothes at work (some days I'm come home first) then I head to the property to get to work. I have long days, but it does pay off. 

Some people will say "screw that, I could be finding other deals while you are fixing that place up, my time is worth more then that. I would rather hire someone to do it." And that's fine, but this is something I enjoy, as mentioned earlier if you don't then this strategy is not for you. The beauty of real estate is there are many ways to be successful. 

This is the 3rd property that I finished, that has numbers stated in the subject. I will post some before and after pictures of the lower level, I have more but I need to dig them up. But this will give you all an idea. 

The purchase price was $10,000 I spent a little over 4k in materials and about $1500 in closing costs.

* I will note I did contract out one thing and that was carpet upstairs. It made absolutely no sense to do it myself with how cheap I got it contracted from Lowes for about $550 labor/materials.  

As always I am here to help so ask away if you have any questions. 

sdc

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Rental Property Investor · Gulf Breeze, FL · Member since 2014 · 1k+ posts · 733 votes
9y
Motivating Tariq Bahay I've done this before too, personally satisfying. But when I went back and crunched the #s it made more sense for me to contract it out. For one example, it took me 4 months of long nights / weekends to get a property ready to rent. Missed revenue = $2,400 ($600/month). Contractor bids: $1,200 with a 2-3 week turnaround :( Not to mention the family time I missed out on. Have you looked at your properties this way?
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  • Real Estate Consultant · Lancaster, CA · Member since 2014 · 423 posts · 223 votes
    9y

    Great job!  Wanna sell it?

    Stay Blessed!

  • Flipper/Rehabber · Allentown, PA · Member since 2011 · 1k+ posts · 701 votes
    9y

    @Tariq B.

    Very nice. How many bedrooms? Location? Where did you find it?

  • Investor · Brooklyn, NY · Member since 2013 · 117 posts · 4 votes
    9y

    good job. Looks great

  • CA · Member since 2017 · 3 posts · 1 vote
    9y

    Great job! We just have to be brave, DIY is easier than appear to be.

  • Pittsburgh, PA · Member since 2016 · 28 posts · 6 votes
    9y

    I love the mentality and couldn't agree more about it is already messed up so what's the worst that happens. There is something to be said about taking garbage and making it gold. 

    I appreciated reading this, as like you stated, most people are saying they can find other deals instead of doing this work. I've renovated personal homes before and have yet to find my first true flip so it's nice to hear that doing the"work" yourself is worth it. 

    Thanks!

  • Investor · Temple, TX · Member since 2015 · 112 posts · 80 votes
    9y

    Nice work on the reno! I love seeing before and after photos. A good remodel is one of my favorite things to do.

    My current W-2 job + family life (single mom with two teens still st home) doesn't allow much time for DIY on my seven units, but it's something I'd like to do in the future.

    Reading about how you went from knowing nothing to becoming an expert perfectionist gives me hope that I can do the same. Thanks for sharing! 

  • Rental Property Investor · Gulf Breeze, FL · Member since 2014 · 1k+ posts · 733 votes
    9y
    Motivating Tariq Bahay I've done this before too, personally satisfying. But when I went back and crunched the #s it made more sense for me to contract it out. For one example, it took me 4 months of long nights / weekends to get a property ready to rent. Missed revenue = $2,400 ($600/month). Contractor bids: $1,200 with a 2-3 week turnaround :( Not to mention the family time I missed out on. Have you looked at your properties this way?
  • Shawnee Mission, KS · Member since 2016 · 719 posts · 313 votes
    9y

    Jay has a good point ,the longer you take the more money you lose .So you must factor  that in the  rehab cost.

  • Investor · Laurel, MD · Member since 2014 · 251 posts · 140 votes
    9y

    @Michael Evans Thank you! lol Not at this time.

    @Mark Gallagher It's a 3 bed 1 bath, it is located in Baltimore City, this was actually a home path property that in hindsight I actually probably paid to much for. But lesson learned. 

    @Laura Sulak I have a soft spot for single mothers so my hat goes off to you, that you are able to work full time handle two teens and then have real estate on the side. That's awesome! You could always use those teens to help you DIY wink wink. hehe 

    @Jay Helms I am relocating to your neck of the woods in May. I would love to meet up and talk about the area. I have definitely taken that into consideration. There is a massive opportunity cost when you do the work yourself as oppose to contracting. To do what I did to this house would have cost way more than what I missed in rent. Also, I do it because I find joy in it. Seeing an issue and finding a way to fix it myself gives me a sense of pride and satisfaction. A buddy of mine said to me a few years ago, "If the world started over how would you provide, you can trade stocks (I was really into the stock market at the time this was before RE) but that's useless, you wouldn't make it." That really hit home to me for some reason and burned a fire in me to become "handy" from that point forward.

    But if I could get a bid of that price ($1,200) then I would definitely reconsider. Up and till now I was doing it with limited funds. Fortunately I have got to the point where the cash flow is really starting to take off making contracting more practical.

  • Real Estate Investor · Audubon, PA · Member since 2009 · 13k+ posts · 8k+ votes
    9y

    Looks nice.  For future projects, you might want to add filler pieces to the right of that base kitchen cabinet so that you can run the counter right up to that side wall (it will sit on a two-by cleat you attach to the wall, so fillers improve appearance). Never seems to be enough counter space. And sometimes fillers make sense on upper cabinets, but in the case depicted I wouldn't see much benefit to that.

  • Investor · Saint Louis, MO · Member since 2016 · 970 posts · 1k+ votes
    9y

    Awesome story!!! Congrats!

  • Baltimore, MD · Member since 2013 · 85 posts · 28 votes
    9y

    @Tariq B., great job! I am going to follow the same road this spring with one of my properties. However, not all is that easy. The property I have has power disconnected, and to connect it back I need to hire a licensed electrician to pull a permit and do the work. It costs $2000 more or less, I am perfectly able to do it myself, but I can't pull permits. How do you go over permitting issue?

  • Investor · Laurel, MD · Member since 2014 · 251 posts · 140 votes
    9y

    @Steve Babiak Thanks for the advice! I was actually going to just put a bigger cabinet in there. but was on the fence of running duct work right there to the bedrooms but decided against it. At which point I had run out of extra counter top after I decided against it. =(

  • Rental Property Investor · Gulf Breeze, FL · Member since 2014 · 1k+ posts · 733 votes
    9y

    Absolutely @Tariq B.. Look me up when you get settled. 

  • Investor · Baltimore, MD · Member since 2014 · 1k+ posts · 688 votes
    9y
    Good job, but your time has value. Never forget what you could've been doing otherwise.
  • Real Estate Agent · Vancouver, British Columbia · Member since 2016 · 5 posts · 1 vote
    9y

    Excellent work and great return. I hope to hear more stories like this from you!

  • Rental Property Investor · Davenport, FL · Member since 2016 · 593 posts · 382 votes
    9y

    @Tariq B. I love the floors. Looks great. Keep it up. 

  • Investor · Tillamook, OR · Member since 2013 · 8 posts · 4 votes
    9y

    I've be doing exactly what you did for over 40 years. Tools and knowledge of the use of tools are the key. It's hard for guys like us to lose on a deal because we know every facet of a job. Right now in the middle of a 5k ft restoration, just finished laying 1k sq. ft. select oak flooring and awaiting warmer weather to apply the finish. Through the years I have helped many home owners turn their places around and this is what I tell them "kill one rat at a time" if you look at a project like this in it's entirety it will overwhelm you and paralyze you.  

  • Professional · Columbus, OH · Member since 2016 · 38 posts · 3 votes
    9y

    It looks great. Thanks for the inspiration, I plan to do the same thing on my first property. I am having trouble finding that price range in my area . 

  • Investor · Tucson, AZ · Member since 2016 · 2 posts · 2 votes
    9y

    woo hoo!  Great job!

  • Elk Grove, CA · Member since 2016 · 11 posts · 2 votes
    9y

    Great story!! Thank you for sharing. I'm new to real estate investing and yes you are right confidence is about 80% of the battle. I say about because for me its like 94.5%. I felt very encouraged and hopeful after reading your story. Great job!!!

  • Investor · Philadelphia, PA · Member since 2015 · 31 posts · 3 votes
    9y

    @Tariq B. this article is perfect, I have an open house at one of my local technical schools this Thursday, I'm looking to gain knowledge in the carpentry trade, but I've been struggling because the thought of school loans and wondering if I should stay hands off is battling with the DIY concept. I am one, that once I learn something I am like you, I become a perfectionist and I feel that I will greatly enjoy that rewarding feeling. I just want to know is it worth it to go to school (pay more loans) or should I just use YouTube to teach me but I must say that I perform better through the more traditional way of schooling. I am really only looking to lay tile, lay floors, hang drywall, cabinets, and ceilings, countertops etc....everything else I will outsource (electrical, plumbing, mechanicals, roofing). I am greatly encouraged by your testimony, I just wanna have my mind made up by Thursday?

    Thanks for a great article 

  • Columbia, MD · Member since 2016 · 21 posts · 8 votes
    9y

    Very inspiring, good to know that these types of deals in baltimore can produce solid results. Best regards,

    - Caleb

  • Rental Property Investor · Baltimore, MD · Member since 2016 · 153 posts · 158 votes
    9y

    Thanks for sharing. What neighborhood was this in? Any details on the house? 2BR? how many sq ft?

  • Investor/Agent/Entrepreneur · Dallas, TX · Member since 2016 · 464 posts · 564 votes
    9y

    Wow that looks great! I'm not very handy at all, and that's been one of my weaknesses in managing my own units. I try to shadow/help some of my contractors when they do work, but I just get in their way mostly. I'll just have to jump into it and do a small project myself. Nice job again!

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