All Forum Posts by: Jamie Derasmo

As the others said, it depends on your renovations and your market but I wouldn’t expect too big of a forced appreciation on a $12K upgrade. Remember too with cash out refinances, most lenders ensure you leave 75% in the house. Do some market research, make sure the upgrades add value, try to calculate an After Reno Value for what you think it’ll be worth after upgrades are made. Every market is different and dollar for dollar renovations is not how it usually works so it’s hard to give you a answer on your question.

The laundry room off the garage is perfect as a laundry/mud room. Don’t move it! It’s an asset for sure!

Hi Eron, that looks like a pretty spacious house! Without knowing how much you are looking to spend or what plumbing/electrical you want to move, I would say absorb the “eat in kitchen” to be part of the kitchen. Is it possible to move the fridge to the longer wall that abuts the laundry room? Wrap the counter down under the window to meet the sink. If you want an island, delete the peninsula and instead of putting the fridge there, (like in your updated sketch) put the stove there. How much countertop did you add next to the sink and on other side? It *seems* like you would have room for an island now, in line with the end of the kitchen. 
What software are you using for your sketches?

That's pretty common throughout most of RI since our town lines are not super definitive. It happens with SFH as well, especially on the Warwick/East Greenwich line. Good thing you checked but make sure he understands to check the school district regardless of what the house zip code might be!

I agree with other posters that you should be more worried about more extensive water damage. And if one renovation revealed a $25K project, what else is there? It sounds like you still want to move forward, maybe offer to meet in the middle and he lower the price by $12.5K? He knows about these issues so it’s going to be even harder for him to sell or get as much as he wants. Obviously I don’t know your market but I do think it’d be worth trying to meet halfway if that’s what you’re comfortable with that. I’m doing a renovation right now and electrical is absurd, the cost of wire is super inflated, I recommend going with a smaller company who have better rates, it would just take them a bit longer.

Typically with refinancing a mortgage, it's advised to wait 6 months and maybe even a year for value to appreciate (season). Also do you have at least 75% LTV? Most lenders won't let you borrow more than that in a second home/investment home but you can always check with lenders to be sure. Based on that math, and IF you have the necessary LTV, you'd only get about $13K (I'm not including the $5K in potential appraised value). With closing costs, it doesn't seem worth it right now, in my opinion.

I would still exercise my right as the buyer to have my own inspection done. You will have to pay for it but it will give you peace of mind. Unless you’re really comfortable assessing home conditions, don’t take the risk.

Spend some time getting to know your neighborhood to see what is in demand. Are there still a lot of 1/1s, are most 2/1 or 2/2s. Where is the laundry located in those homes? Little details like that will make a huge impact and since it sounds like some projects can wait, I’d wait until I had a solid direction. I would say above all else, do the electrical. I understand it’s not bang for your buck but it’s a fire waiting to happen and you said it yourself, it’s not safe right now. Just upgrade it and leave room on the box so as you continue to upgrade, you can add to it if necessary. It’s peace of mind for you now and for when you rent it out.
While you’re planning the renovation, save up your money. Nothing wrong with going one room at a time as long as there’s a clear vision of the property use and cohesive look.

As Caroline stated, tax cards are often wrong because the homeowner can provide that information. Check with your local building inspectors office to see what the actual property is, check to see if there have been any permits maybe to increase it to a 3 bed. If it’s on a septic, the house only has the amount of bedrooms a septic can handle, it would not matter that other rooms meeting all other requirements are there. (I.e. a 2 bedroom septic can only be sold/appraised as a 2 bedroom house) Appraisers verify information via the building inspector’s office. You’ll actually run into this fairly often so best practice is always for you or your agent to verify with the building inspector prior to writing offer.

I totally empathize with your situation and am sorry you’re going through this. It took me 3 months to find a good contractor for my renovation but I was willing to wait it out, very lucky I had that luxury. Covid has skewed everything, some estimates I was and still am getting are absolutely absurd. ($80K to upgrade panel and rewire a $2200 sq ft house- NO!)
In my previous renovation, the contractor hacked the job, and never showed for any license board hearings. I filed a claim with his insurance and got my money back that way without having to take him to court. Check if he has any license with your state licensing board and if so, obtain his insurance info. Sounds unfortunately like he didn’t though.

As for moving forward, set a budget and a solid plan. Ask friends, neighbors, coworkers for any referrals. Did you use a real estate agent? Ask for their go-to. Maybe get on an app called Nextdoor and ask for referrals. Join your local FB Investor group and ask for referrals.

Interview as many contractors until you feel comfortable. Try to line them up soon so hopefully you can be in the hiring process in the next few weeks. The reason I said have a solid plan is so you can get an accurate quote from everyone, compare apples to apples. Before moving forward with anyone, make sure they have a license, are insured, and will pull the permit under their license. Read and adjust your contract to detail even the littlest scope of work.

Check with your own insurance company to see if you can claim anything for storm-related damage.

I’m sorry you’re in this predicament, I thought finding deals was going to be the hardest part but right now it seems finding companies who do the right thing is much harder.