All Forum Posts by: Will Barnard

I have made a living on redoing kitchens and bathrooms and can say with certainty (due to my experience) that getting my money back out and then some has worked time and time again. When you have an older outdated bathroom, converting it to new and modern will most likely increase your property value (forced appreciation). This is how most flippers make their money, force the appreciation by renovating dated kitchens and baths. Kitchen, baths, curb appeal, fresh paint are the best investments in a home for value add.

You also get the gravy of enjoying the new renovation for the time you remain, so there is a bonus to you as well. $9k sounds about right so financially, it likely makes sense. Please keep in mind I have no idea of your local market conditions or what the local comps have, so this advice is "generally speaking".

I would visit any number of their ongoing and recently completed projects and get full details on them - costs, timelines, etc. I would then check their license and insurance and lastly, get some references (from the job sites you visited).

As mentioned above, you have too many obstacles - Licensing, housing for crew, travel costs (including getting their tools and equipment there). Materials will be costly no mater what so any cost savings on a less expensive crew would be lost and then some in the logistics. Then there is the experience and knowledge of the area which they will lack. I concur - bad idea.

Varies by area but anything modern is hot right now. Contemporary, modern farmhouse, mid century moderns are all brining higher values here in CA and many other states.

Here are a few photos of previous projects:

Essentially you are asking how you can buy a home to flip with no money out of pocket and no experience. That is no easy road. Even a HML will need to see at least 6 months reserves and good credit for the first loan and you would then need a second via private money lender or some HML's who do both acquisition and rehab loans via first and second (expect to pay dearly for that).

With no experience, you best bet would be to partner with someone but you would need to bring the deal to the table for that, otherwise, you are not brining anything to the table.

 As another local LA licensed general contractor and RE developer, I agree with this assessment and would only add that the range will vary depending on size of build out as well. Just like the cost per can difference between buying a six pack or a 12 pack, larger homes will get a slightly lower cost per SF than a smaller home (2500SF or 1200SF as an example).

When considering ADU's, the cost also goes up as they are typically smaller units (400Sf-1200sf max) AND the fact that you also need to run direct gas line and sewer line connections to the ADU which adds additional costs (and those vary depending on the length of the run and what is in its way (hardscape or softscape).

First, lets get the lingo down. When you say foreclosure homes, that could mean a home with an NOD filing (Notice of Default), NTS (notice of sale), or an REO (Real Estate Owned meaning the bank owns the property now AFTER it went through the first two filings, then to courthouse steps and nobody purchased it so it went back to the bank).

If you are talking about finding REO deals, then you would need a contact with agents you specialize in REO properties to get the info before they put on the MLS, but in many cases today, the banks require them to list on the MLS. You can also get in contact with asset managers for the banks but that is no easy process.

If you meant pre-foreclosures where the owner has had an NOD or NTS filed against their property, then you can go direct to the owner to arrange a deal. if they have equity, then you can make an offer. If they do not have equity, then you would need to make a deal with them and negotiate a short sale with the lender. If you do not know how to do any of this, you will have a tough go at it so i suggest learning or hooking up with someone familiar with this process.

I misunderstood, I thought this was originally a flip then decided to keep to hold and rent, I did not realize you intended to keep as a primary residence in which case the info from Jay and others is correct, you cant get any depreciation on your primary residence, only investment properties.

Perfectly legal, but as you stated, going in with full ask to retrade the price later can get you a bad reputation in the market and to me, reputation is just about everything. Lots of people try and retrade and often they point out items that should have been obvious from the start of the offer (like paint or flooring). Well, duh. Hidden items are your best and most practical means to retrade. 

 Keep trying, perhaps make friends with a neighbor and have them alert you when he arrives home. Try different hours, perhaps in the evening.