All Forum Posts by: Chris Calabrese

I find the double-hung are only 10-15% more, and it's another feature that can help separate your house. Also look at what the new home builders are doing in your market. They do a lot of research and tend to know what sells.

I know in my market $200/square is a pretty good estimate for a re-roof. If you price it out yourself, materials probably run about $100/square for architectural shingles, felt, ridge vents, etc. A 11000 sf ranch should be about 22 squares or around $4500.

A lot depends on the neighborhood. If it's newer and most homes in the neighborhood have bigger master baths, it will limit your buyer pool. If it's an older neighborhood, the buyers may not necessarily expect one. In my experience, if the renovation is done well and the area is nice, a well-priced home will sell easily.

We make an average of around $30k on houses valued around $110k-$140k, but we do a lot of work ourselves. I think that if we hired out all the labor we would make around $20k.

You need to have enough margin built in that if something goes wrong, you can still turn a profit. Set a realistic ARV and know your rehab costs.

Yup, white trim and doors. Just make sure they're prepped properly. Most are oil stain and will require a good oil primer like Kilz for the paint to adhere properly.

With all rehab decisions, like Ann said, do what the majority of buyers will like in today's market. Walk some builder models and duplicate.

Yeah, you definitely want to approach this one carefully. The HOA probably can't do much, but they may be violating a city ordinance by operating a business out of the home (possibly even if it's volunteer). This is the exact reason that these laws exist, so that a residential neighborhood stays residential. I'm sure the other neighbors would have trouble selling their homes too.

Have you talked to the owners yet? Can you try to schedule showings during certain hours so it's not as noticable? We make it a point with every house we buy to introduce ourselves to all the neighbors and explain what we do. People are often more receptive and will even help you sell your house.

I like #7, but include other systems and appliances other than your HVAC. I like to do quarterly walkthrus to try to catch any issues early.

Lowering insured value is a good idea, but I own two townhomes where the HOA requires me to carry replacement value insurance. I wish there was a way around this.

I think the knowledge gained in the course could be useful to some extent, but not worth the 40-60 hours of course time unless you plan on getting licensed. The majority of real estate classes are focused on law - contract law, estate law, etc., and if you don't take the exam you'll need someone to handle this stuff for you anyway.

After about a week on this site, you'll have more practical investing knowledge than you can ever gain in a classroom.

I know code around here allows 2 layers, but it shouldn't cost much more to remove the old shingles. Most roofers just include it in their price anyway since it's so easy and standard practice. The other advangtage is it allows you to find any damage to the decking and repair it. Otherwise, a home inspector may find it from inside the attic later.

Well, the title pretty much says it all. Is anyone still doing these loans despite the 90-day seasoning rule? I know that FHA now allows a waiver, but it doesn't seem like any bank will actually do it. I have a good FHA buyer, but can't get them financed for another 45 days. Anyone know a good lender in South Carolina that might be able to make it happen?

2 other issues are: house is titled in LLC name, and buyer is obtaining a state housing grant for the down payment

Thanks for any help!