Share your Out of State Renovation Nightmare

[James Brewer]

Hi Folks,

I'm considering trying to BRRRR out of state and have heard managing large renovation projects can be extremely difficult while being so far away. I do plan on flying out several times for a 6mo project, but certainly not several times per week.

Clearly you can't rely on a solid GC as much as I thought, so what do you do to make it work?

I'd like to hear any success or failures you've had in doing so and how I can mitigate any issues to be successful.

Thanks!

[Rodney Sums]

Quote from @James Brewer:

Thanks @Rodney Sums, from California to the Midwest I'll be many states over. I work remotely so flying there is no problem, I'd just be away from my wife and kids so I wouldn't want to be gone too long. 

I could probably stay for a week while the project is getting started and I wonder if I could have remote check-ins with the GC or picture/video updates. Maybe they won't want to go through the hassle, not sure. Could I partner with someone that could help me oversee things? Probably too much work for an agent since there's no actual money involved (or could there be?), but what if I found a PM willing to start charging monthly fee early during this time before it's rented so they could do regular weekly or 2x weekly check-ins and can report back to me - that way they are also compensated for their time?

No disrespect to contractors when I say they can be great at their craft but customer service isn't always the strength. The ones who do excel in that are high priced and in high demand and even then as I presume you've experienced it can be hard to get them just to call back. I've had multiple contractors referred to me from good referral  sources not call back just to get a quote for major jobs like room additions and ADUs. I shutter to think of the hassle if they did get started and were in different time zones not returning calls in addition to not taking pics to show progress routinely. Add to that we are competing with institutional developers for contractors so they're all real busy. If you're looking to do something major that requires lots of supervision the idea that comes to my mind is partnering with another investor that is in the area if you're doing a flip. The second idea is if you're going to buy and hold, having a property manager work with you through the rehab process with the understanding they'll manage it when you're done and perhaps paying extra for them to be your eyes. I have had property managers be a contact for rehabs on my rentals before. I've certainly had to use a PM to manage lower levels of repairs and upgrades too local and out of town