Houses 1940 and down

[Enver Perez]

I am a new investor and i am in the middle of closing on my first house . I've been listening to the bigger pockets podcast and have read several blogs and I'm curious to know why most of the investors suggest to get house 1940 and up .... My house was built in 1900 and I will start heavy rehabbing after the closing which should be in 2 weeks Thank you in advance

[Kyle Hipp]

My oldest property was from the 1880's and newest from the late 1930's. I have found that if something is upgraded correctly it should be good for a long time. I do shy away from properties with boilers as I prefer forced air HVAC systems. Most properties have some level of updates done.

On the exterior of the house. I try to rip back to the sheeting when doing theroof or siding. This allows you to correct any issues that this reveals. Windows I normally wrap with aluminum and ensure that everything is esealed up correctly. Make sure gutters are running away from the house. Insulate the walls with blown-in insulation as well as the attic. On the inside the houses are usually more segmented but with understanding structure youcan open things up pretty easy. Update windows from single pane to double pane vinyl. Update water lines from galvanized to pex. Update drain lines from cast and galvanized to PVC. Electrical is usually somewhat updated. Migth have an old fused subpanel or some knob and tube remnents. Most of the time the main panels has been converted to circuit breakers. Youcan add nice surface mount electrical which will serve its purpose and cost a lot less than busting into the walls. A lot of lines will be ungrounded and you need to upgrade over time. Sometimes structure is pretty goofy, I have found a number of doors or windows without anything resembling a header and front or back porches falling apart but if you address them and fixthem correctly you are doing pretty good. The biggest thing for me has been getting a solid understanding of costs on all these projects when originally purchasing.

I think this is an interesting market and definately lots of potential. I have found a lot of people like the older homes with their charm. Lots of newer homes lack the detail that older homes have with wide, thick and tall baseboards and trim. Coved ceilings, trays, deatailed fireplaces, arched doorways, hardwood floors everywhere, tongue and groove fir front porches.Converted wall hollows from the telephone cubby or ironing table hidaway or inset medicine cabinet.