Rehabs going over budget, what am I doing wrong?

[Carlos Alcazar]

Hi everyone!!

just wanted to reach out to everyone for some advice. I'm having a little bit of trouble properly executing rehabs without contractor estimates blowing out of budget 

im trying to find contractors to establish long term business relationships with but I can't seem to bridge the gap between estimates and true costs

I'll give two examples:

one was a single family home and I received various estimates ranging between 20k to 40k. Ended up going with a contractor who quoted 30k. At the end of the day the project came in at 65k 

another is a most recent 4 unit where the estimate was 35k and I'm now approaching 80k in total invoices.

fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice.. shame on me :)

these where two different contractors and not only did they go over budget but over projected deadlines.

how does everyone here prevent this from happening; I understand 10% - 25% project overages for unexpected items but I've definitely exceeded this range. 

What's more frustrating is that at the end of the day; the finishing/prettyness portion of the project is where corners are sometimes cut to stop the bleeding which directly impacts the appraisals and ultimately; the money I get back at the end of the deal.

I know there's an element of luck at play when finding deals (can't see through walls) and if that's the case.. I need to keep away from any casinos that I come across :)