Having a hard time estimating rehab costs in order to make offer.

[Gurjot Grewal]

Hello BP

I'm planning on doing a long-distance BRRR. Currently making offers and looking for a deal. J Scotts' book on estimating rehab costs has been helpful, I'm almost done reading it (will probably re-read it). But when making offers at a distance I'm still having a hard time estimating rehab costs, which is making it hard to make an offer.

There's a property on the MLS that's been sitting for 100+ days. I can see the kitchen, bath, flooring and walls all need work. On google street, I can see the siding needs work. One room has a hole in the ceiling. In some pictures, the lighting is on so I can assume some of the electrical is in working order. It's a 1800sq foot duplex.

How can I come up with a rough rehab number to see how much I should offer on this? I am educating myself on developing a scope of work and I know after a couple of deals I will start to grasp the numbers better. But for now with it being my first one, how can I get to a ballpark number in order to make an offer. Of course, once under contract I will have a contractor walk it. 

[Andrew Postell]

@Gurjot Grewal estimating rehab is one of the hardest things to do. My market might be totally different than your market. So in order to get a good understanding of what it costs to rehab a property in a specific market you have to either go through it several times on your own OR you have to lean on other real estate investors in that market OR you have to have a contractor teach you how to do it. Those are the only ways. If you are buying a property off the MLS that means you have an "Option Period" (in most cases) - that's the perfect time to get an estimate from your contractor.

You can certainly connect with other local investors virtually. There are many groups that meet across the country. Some post here on the Bigger Pockets Marketplace. Many post on meetup.com. Even facebook will have some. Networking is always a great practice and you never know who you might meet there and what good information they have to share. Would certainly recommend connecting to one online to see if someone is helpful enough to share with you their methods.

Hope all of that makes sense.  Thanks!