Westwood NJ - Single Family Fix & Flip Project

[Anthony DiBella]

Investment Info:

Single-family residence fix & flip investment in Westwood.

Purchase price: $295,000
Cash invested: $70,000
Sale price: $450,000

Live-in Fix & Flip (Section 121) investment between my brother and I in Westwood, NJ.

This was a single family 3BR/1BA home on a quiet dead-end street, close to NYC transit, favorable investment in the area, and with a good school system. This 1940's cape was was livable, but quite outdated, in need of TLC, and with an awkward layout.

Additional Pictures:
https://www.dropbox.com/home/Westwood%20Before%20%26%20After

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

This was our first intro to real estate investing. Wanted to find an affordable project in a desirable location and create value via rehab and appreciation.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

Found this on market through our realtor and were able to negotiate $40K below asking due to the work needed on the property.

How did you finance this deal?

Conventional 30 yr fixed with ~6% down. Refinanced after 1 year and re-appraised with ~38% equity due to appreciation and renovations completed at that time.

How did you add value to the deal?

Gut renovated the entire home, including reconfiguration of the main living area floor plan (open floor plan), basement, and upper-level bedrooms. Re-landscaped the front and backyard, including adding a patio and waterfall feature.

What was the outcome?

Were able to sell for 53% higher than our purchase price and pull out considerable cash for our next investment.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

We were living in the property and since holding costs were not as relevant as they would have been for a vacant flip, we had the benefit of being able to renovate and learn over a longer than usual timeframe. We were able to save money by taking on much of the physical renovations ourselves (with expertise from personal connections) and discover areas where outsourcing provided more value. This full gut renovation helped calibrate our expectations (cost/timing) for future projects.