All Forum Posts by: Steven Maduro

try this

here is the link

I have tried uploading and hyperlinking to photo bucket

even just pasting the photbucket link in the body of the post nothing seems to work.

I love lemonade and I live by this very over used saying.

Purchasing Foreclosed properties provides me with ample opportunities to

try out this slogan.

my latest lemonade

was when faced with a fiberglass shower enclosure that had the front portion ripped out. apparently someone wanted the plumbing and so tore up the front part of the enclosure

the other two sides were perfectly fine so I decided to

take the opportunity to upgrade the look.

I replaced the front with backerboard and used some clearance tile from lowes. to attach to the backerboard I also used some stone tile and cut it into strips to make for a makeshift picture frame. I swapped out the regular knobs with a central control knob and added some stainless steel tile down the length for an extra hint of customization

my inspiration was a jungle in the rain forest that was hiding a hidden door into a future world Okay I know sounds silly

but that was what was actually going through my mind here is the photo

In all fairness to K MArie Poe great post writer on the original thread.

the original couple that went ga ga over the shower head ended up having to break their lease after 10 months they could no longer afford the rent. they did provide fair warning and did their best to clean up the apartment.

and were understanding when I did not return their security deposit.

Moreover, they were never a day late with their rent.

they left the place rather stinky due to a rotten potato in the cabinet which went unnoticed

and I spent 3 weeks cleaning the place to get rid of the stinky weed and cigarette smell.

the other first tenant was a nightmare

he paid on time and was clean but did he complain about every single little thing.

since those renters moved out

I have had no problems from the subsequent tenants

The difference was that the second tenants moved into a place with

all the appliances in place. including dishwasher

Overall I think I will always strive to offer more for the same dime. whenever possible.

fyi

and the no vacancy piece I think is a testament to the business model

@Steve Babiak

Yes thank you.

I had trouble locating that post, and wanted to tag onto it.

It is always a gamble when spending money.

but like the movie Field of Dreams said over and over

If you build it they will come.

I believe that there are people who although don't make much

and cannot afford the extras would love to have the extras and take care of the privilege.

What I have found is that if you price too low you get people who are too slick for their own good.

It is my model to offer the upgrades for the same price as my competition.

not lower but the same.

So the value is built in upon lease signing.

Compared to some of my land lord friends

I have saved money in not being vacant.

I have one friend who has had a unit vacant nine months over a three year period. he rents a basic no frills brand apartment

and charges the maximum the neighborhood allows

and seems to always have disgruntled tenants

where I have averaged one month and this was due to cleaning and repairs but the unit only spent 3 days on the market before being rented.

My tenants in the doo dad units seem to be quite pleased and work with me instead of against me.

Hard to say exactly
Leslie If you look below you will see it was smart shopping that helped.

the faucets cost not much more than regular because I sought out clearance and odd lot dealers, goose neck faucet 129 water fall faucet 39 from amazon

rainfall shower head 39 from amazon

I spent 900 for both laundry center functionality wiring and plumbing and retrofitting the preexisting closet to function as a portal for the laundry center plus 400 a piece for each stack washer dryer from scratch and dent supply house.

the most money over builder grade was the under cabinet lighting which was relatively cheap about 20.00

and perhaps the fancier vanity lighting and living room and kitchen lighting purchased from odd lots 10 bucks a piece retail value 60-100 a piece

laminate over carpet was actually a bit of a savings.

so overall maybe 1500 over normal renovating costs for both units.

I purchased oops paint so I saved there.

worked side by side with the contractor hands on in the dirt

to save money and learn at the same time.

and countless hours working on the design elements.

on one unit I repurposed a track light and hung it as a vanity light it looked awesome and cost me $5.00

I bought a round mirror from ikea for 14.00 so no extra money there

put a glass shelf underneath total cost for bathroom remodel not including vanity $ 27.00

Hello Bigger pockets

Back in 2012 I bought a Duplex in a B or C neighborhood

I did very upscale renovations

centering around fancy kitchen and bath faucets

floating vanities, water fall faucets, upscale lighting

laminate flooring

adding stack washer and dryer

and using design styled paint schemes such

as an accent wall.

or under cabinet lighting.

I was asked to report back after a year or two and here are my results

out of my two properties that have the extra doo dads

I have had little problem collecting rent. I have gotten pretty stable tenants that actually take care of the property.

my one property with just average amenities seems to be the opposite I cannot seem to get a proper paying tenant in there.

I am not saying there is a correlation just reporting facts.

my upscale items are purchased from closeout sales or odd lot

or on sale or clearance at Home Depot or Lowes

Many items I purchase from Amazon and save a lot there as well. I have to say that the overall reaction to my apartments is more than favorable and it definitely helps me not to have a vacancy too long.

My average vacancy has been 3 days from posting the unit. I believe offering the laundry center in the unit has been worth its price and cost to plumb and wire My tenants certainly appreciate not having to go to the Laundromat..

I have provided a quality of life upgrade. If I had it to do over again I would do it all again in a heartbeat. Offering more bang for the buck is just good business for my business model I have other landlord friends who do not agree even after my good reviews. However they have units that sit vacant longer. and tend to have more problems from the tenants they do have.

Just like I do from my one unit that has just average fixtures, faucets, layout and paint schemes.

I am happy to ereport back thank you to all the original respondents to the original thread.

seems to me that 50 to hundred per client should be enough to make someone do the job properly

ok this is very dooms day like.

I can't believe it is this dismal.

on doing a little travelling.

It would be great to put my hands in a property managers hands ( a competent ) PM

and do what I have to do.

sheesh

they get about 10% of the rent

plus one months rent for any tenant they bring on board.

aish there goes my dreams of travelling abroad

Someone must have a good positive take on this scenario.