5 Flips Start to Finish!!!

[Andrew Cordle]

Hey Everyone, 

I began flipping houses more than a decade ago. I can recall how lost I was when I started and I wish that I would’ve had someone to guide me through the process and allow me the opportunity to avoid all of the mistakes and pitfalls that new investors experience. I’ve done a lot of thinking over the last few days about how difficult it was for me when I began. I thought about how hard it must be for the present investor without experience.

I am on Bigger Pockets almost every day and have seen countless examples of investors who talk about how much they wish they had a mentor or someone to help them along their investing journey. So, I’ve decided to try and help a little. I am a strong believer in “teaching people to fish” rather than merely “giving them a fish.”

Over the course of the next several months, I will be posting an on-going series that details my 8-phase process to flipping for (5) Atlanta properties. The price points of these investments range from $400,000-$750,000. The flips will include everything from new construction to major rehabs to full gut jobs…and even a really cool turn-of-the-century Victorian home located in Atlanta’s Grant Park Historical District! In addition, you will be privy to all labor and material costs. I’ll even share the material SKUs I use on these 5 flips. I will try to answer all questions as I guide you through this journey, step-by-step. And there will be plenty of before, during, and after pics for your viewing pleasure and even some videos.

I wish that someone would’ve done this for me ten years ago. It would’ve saved me tens of thousands of dollars and a whole lot of stress! Keep in mind, however, that flipping properties will never be easy. It takes a lot of hard work, on-going education, and dedication to flip and turn a profit. And unlike many of those TV shows and news reports, house flipping, although seemingly simple, it's not as simple as it seems! I'm going to do my best to simplify the process. At least once a week hopefully more, I will be sharing one of the eight phases of the flip as we do them. I’ve put together the following checklist for each of the eight phases - which simplifies what, in reality, can become a very complicated process. I want to remove some of those complications! Here are the 8 Phases of the Flip:

The 8 Phases of Flipping:

1. Project overview - basic info, size, location, numbers, how found property, budget, blue prints, permits, surveys

2. Demo - cost, number of dumpsters, time start to finish, crew size, landscape clean-up

3. Rough Construction - framing, electrical, HVAC, plumbing

4. Exterior - window, siding, roof, decks/porches

5. Interior - drywall, trim, doors, flooring, paint

6. Kitchen - layout, cabinetry, countertops, backsplash, appliances

7. Bathroom - vanity, countertops, fixtures, tile, floor, shower, accent

8. Finished product - landscape, punch list, cleaning, branding, staging

Be sure to keep in touch and feel free to submit any inquiries you may have. I’ll do my best to answer all of them. If you happen to be in the Atlanta area, Maybe I could show you the flip process in-person if you would like. 

For now here are the 5 houses: The next post will be later today explaining each of the 5 houses in detail. Lets do this!!!

Thanks and see you later today with a post for each house!!

Andrew

[Karyn T.]

I soooooo love old houses!  Please keep the character!! :)

[Aaron N.]

It is great seeing a skilled mind at work.  Such a big task Im not sure where I would have started.

[Joe Demonte]

Wow! Look at all those windows in the floor plan. Once you get all that overgrowth out, and restored its going to look incredible inside with all that natural light coming in.
What potential! 

[Mark Breaux]

Hey @Andrew Cordle , I have some questions that I hope you don't mind answering.

• How much risk do you have built into your rehab numbers?
• Did you have your contractor go through the property before bidding? You said it was on the market for less than an hour so I was wondering. Were you confident in your numbers because of your experience?
• Were you the highest bidder?

Thanks for letting me grow in my knowledge through your experience!

[Andrew Cordle]

@George P.  @Dan Hooper  @Aaron N. @Karyn T. @Aaron N. 

Hey guys, Thanks for the comments I am looking for to build this property out. I really think it will be one of the best houses I have ever rehabbed. Please keep in touch if you have any questions. 

@Joe Demonte

Yes the natural light will be huge and we will actually be adding a couple lights such as at the top of the spiral we will be adding two more windows. 

@Mark Breaux

Good questions, let me see if I can answer them. 

How much risk do you have built into your rehab numbers?

If by risk you mean construction overages or things that I did not see before I started demo etc. I think the normal best case budget would be 200k so I am expecting 25k to 50k of extras or uh-ohs.

Did you have your contractor go through the property before bidding? You said it was on the market for less than an hour so I was wondering. Were you confident in your numbers because of your experience?

I did not have a contractor go through it before I put it under contract. Please understand I would not have bought this if it was my first flip or even 25th flip, but I am well into 200 plus flips. Saying that it does not mean I know everything or can't make a mistake. But I am very comfortable with this flip.

Were you the highest bidder?

I was the first person in with a signed contract and wire in to the wholeseller. There were multiple back up contracts on this property the very same day. And yes some of them were more than mine even by I believe 50k more.

I hope that helps. 

Andrew

[Fred Sams]

@Andrew Cordle This is a timely walk-thru. Looking forward to the blow -by- blow. Thanks

[Fred Sams]

@Andrew Cordle 

 Am I following this right you took control of the property with 2% earnest money.

How many days to remit the balance of $245,000 ? Nice ...............

[Andrew Cordle]

@Fred Sams

I didn't necesarily take posssesion for 2% I locked the property down for about 2% or 5k. Then I closed on the property about 45 days later. Now the 45 days was not my choice it just so happen it took that long because the house was in probate.

Hope that shines some light on it, let me know if you have any other questions.

AC

[Mark Breaux]

@Andrew Cordle 

 Thanks for answering my questions! I look forward to your next update!

[Johnna Lodge]

love seeing the landscaping from no view to totally open view for people to see and become interested in progress and want to purchase. Awesome in sharing! I am thinking about your boot camp in Atlanta on labor day weekend..i might be able to come for the rehabbing but will be gone for the marketing..bummer!

[Mike Ritter]

@Andrew Cordle  This is a great series of posts that you are putting together.  A lot of us that are just starting out will find this very helpful.  

I have a question about getting started in rehabbing. What type of properties should those of us just starting out focus on?  Should the property just need cosmetic rehab, small construction required or does it matter?

As you mention in your posts the ATL area has a lot of competition and the big players will beat out anyone getting started most of the time.  Is there even space for new people to get started in rehabbing in larger cities?  I am in Raleigh, NC and am sure there are several big rehabbers in the area.  I am just starting to research so I will hopefully find out.  

Thanks again for the great posts.

[Andrew Cordle]

Ok so here is an update one Phase One of a house we are doing. I will show you several photos of the house then try to explain a little of what we will be doing to the property. 

Here is the list that I compiled for what I call Phase 1 of 8 of a flip. 

Phase 1. Project overview – basic info, size, location, numbers, how found property, budget, blue prints, permits, surveys.

Here is Phase 1 of 528 Angier:

Basic Info: This historical home was built in 1920 and is currently divided into two town homes.

Size: The home’s square footage is 2729sq ft, and it sits on a 6891sqft lot. The home also includes 4 bedrooms and 2 bathes. It is currently divided into two 2 bedroom/1 bath town homes.

Location: Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward neighborhood has garnered national attention as "a cradle of culinary and artistic innovation and as a symbol of gentrification.” The neighborhood is best known as the location of the Martin Luther King Jr. historical site. In 2010, Atlanta-based newspaper, "Creative Loafing” awarded the Old Fourth Ward neighborhood as “The Best Bet for the Next Hot Neighborhood.” In 2011, the neighborhood celebrated the opening of the “Historic Fourth Ward Park” and saw the kickoff of the “Ponce City Market” project.

Numbers: The purchase price was $230,000 and the rehab budget is $140,000. This homes after repaired value, or ARV, is $550,000.

How I found the property: I located this home through a local whole seller. We bought it from him right after he had placed it under contract. We offered him a full price offer with no contingencies and immediately closed with $5,000 in earnest money.

Budget: We are looking to spend $140,000 on the rehab. This amount may be slightly adjusted depending on our final decision on the master suite. (See blueprints)

Blueprints: 

Survey:

We are adding a HUGE mastersuite upstairs to this house which will add about 700 sqft to the house. The mastersuite will have a huge walk in closet as well as a sitting room, the ceilings in the master bedroom will be close to 15 feet tall. We are really looking forward to starting this project soon. 

Let me know if you have any questions.

Andrew

[Mark Breaux]

@Andrew Cordle Thanks! Very cool floorplan. I was surprised at the price because I was thinking "Old 4th WARD" = "bad part of town" but I am from Louisiana. Any "WARD" is seems like a bad part of town!

[Manuel Gonzalez]

how many yards where those  containers you used for demo 

[Shashawna Coombs]

This is Gold! The amount of time that you put into this is much appreciated. Will be following to see the process !

[Necheon Cooney]

Thank you @Andrew Cordle for posting this exciting experience! this will guide(8 phase of flipping) me through my investing journey of flipping houses and avoiding as many complications.  

[John Rubino]

Andrew,

Thanks so much for sharing.  I wish you all the best with your ventures on these projects.  Keep us posted. I'm always looking for a well experienced investor/business to work with in Atlanta....If you have interest in working with a private funder please keep me in mind.

Regards,

John

[Andrew Cordle]

Hey Everyone,

We hope you’re enjoying our on-going flip series, The 8 Phases of the Flip – Atlanta. This week, we’ve posted information for our third house located in Atlanta’s East Village. Be sure to check back to watch these transformations evolve!

East Atlanta Village Rebuild House
Atlanta, GA 30316

We are taking the opportunity to completely tear down and rebuild this home that was originally built in 1935.

Size:
3 bedroom
1 bathroom
1,151 square feet = Living Space
4,356 square feet = Lot Size

Location:
This diamond in the rough is located in the East Atlanta Village neighborhood. The East Atlanta neighborhood has been around since the late 1800’s and was voted as Atlanta’s Best Neighborhood for two consecutive years in 2007 and 2008. East Village is known as being a friendly, warm community and residents rave about the local Farmers Market. There’s a wide variety of food, entertainment, and coffeehouses that make East Village a peaceful and pleasant community to be a part of.

Numbers:
Purchase price = $108,000
Rehab/New Construction cost = $85.00/square foot
Upon completion, this house will be 2,150 total square feet = roughly $182,750 to $190,000
ARV = roughly $400,000 to $420,000

How I found the property:
We obtained this property from one of our real estate agents who constantly scours the MLS for houses. We have multiple agents locating deals for us.

Budget:
We plan on spending $85.00 per square foot which is a little on the higher side due to the premium upgrades that we plan on using.
Total budget = $182,750 to $190,000

BluePrint:

Here is the main level...

Here is the upstairs...

Survey:

So hope this helps, let me know if you have any questions. I will post some pics on the next post after this one.

Thanks

Andrew

[Mark Breaux]

Thanks Andrew!!

So how did you decide to tear it down? Are there houses around it going for $400k? How long was it on the market at the $108k price?

[Andrew Cordle]

1475 Mcpherson Ave SE
Atlanta, GA 30316

[Brendan Mylton]

Holy cow! Talk about needing a lot of work! I would consider two of those being a full tear down.. Look forward to seeing what you do with these!

[Ben Nelson]

Can't wait to see all these houses go through the rehab process. Thanks for your help!

[George P.]

that's a tiny lot. i am amazed that people wont come in and tell you "well, i want a bigger yard for the kids to play".

[Julie Greene]

@Andrew Cordle , like everyone else said, this is such an amazing thread!  Thank you so much for giving of your time and experience for the rest of us to learn from!!  I have a few quick questions myself - the first general grouping of questions is about your business, the second is about one of the houses:

1) How did you go about putting together your team - through local REI or other RE networking groups?! Who are the different types of people on your team (and do any of them work for you?). How long did it take you to put together a group that you felt comfortable with?! I am just starting out....would someday love to do a flip....but don't yet know enough people! ;)

2) I was also wondering the same question that @Mark Breaux  was on that teardown - how did you decide that it was a teardown?  Also, how did you decide what the new house would look like (do you have a go-to floor plan for specific areas?!)

Thank you again - best of luck on all of these projects!  Looking forward to following along!

[George P.]

Originally posted by @Julie Greene:

@Andrew Cordle , like everyone else said, this is such an amazing thread!  Thank you so much for giving of your time and experience for the rest of us to learn from!!  I have a few quick questions myself - the first general grouping of questions is about your business, the second is about one of the houses:

1) How did you go about putting together your team - through local REI or other RE networking groups?! Who are the different types of people on your team (and do any of them work for you?). How long did it take you to put together a group that you felt comfortable with?! I am just starting out....would someday love to do a flip....but don't yet know enough people! ;)

2) I was also wondering the same question that @Mark Breaux  was on that teardown - how did you decide that it was a teardown?  Also, how did you decide what the new house would look like (do you have a go-to floor plan for specific areas?!)

Thank you again - best of luck on all of these projects!  Looking forward to following along!

 i can jump in and give you some feedback.

1. depends. if you are lucky to work in the construction field, you could do it in 1/10 of the time and get some great people to work for you. everyone's different. no set rule. i have spoken to contractors and they say "i have been doing this for 25 yrs and still looking for good help". so everyone's different. 

2. when the numbers make sense, it's a teardown. if you have the crew and your comps come at 200k+ ARV, AND you have the funds, it's a teardown. you dont have a crew? dont even attempt it.