For a smaller renovation, if you have detailed/itemized invoices and excel breakdown of the renovation, there's typically no need to pay for an improvement study.With the invoices/excel breakdown, you essentially already have an improvement study.

What are typical major capital expense items for these buildings?  

The renovation has been progressing well, but some of the actual project costs have exceeded the allocated draw amounts for certain line items.

They fail because several smaller scope gaps compound during the project.Common examples include things like:• electrical upgrades missing from the scope• underestimated flooring quantities• trim and finish work not included• exterior repairs overlooked• mechanical or HVAC items assumed to be fineIndividually these items don’t look significant.

You can elect up to $2,500 per item ($5,000 with audited financials) and just expense qualifying items without worrying about the improvement vs. repair debate.

Material prices stabilized a bit, but labor and contractor bids are where most of the surprises happen.One thing that helped us a lot was moving to very detailed scopes of work where every contractor prices the same line items.

We break all our cost down by line items and put them into a data base of past projects. 

I’d love to get some eyes on these line items to see where I'm getting "investor taxed." 

I just did a condo (50 year old condo complex) in CA about 6 months ago and the UW was looking at the reserves and made the HOA change their line item to general fund to reserves to make the loan work.

You need to schedule preventative items dependent upon the age and current condition of the unit, such as sewer line inspections or cleanouts; AC condenser cleaning; roof inspection and maintenance (including gutter systems), and testing water supply line integrity.Relying on a Tenant to report items is not a good strategy, as they often are oblivious to issues that need correcting; and, Tenants should not be expected to attempt repairs.