Learned a lot, Major gut job that I still have as a rental

[Aaron White]

Investment Info:

Single-family residence hard money loan investment.

Purchase price: $105,000
Cash invested: $24,000

Purchased from a wholesaler using hard money lender and equity in home. House had a terrible smoker and cat lady which made it a complete gut job. Great learning experience. Today the house is worth 180-185k. Had to test these strategies I heard of on Bigger Pockets to see if they were true and they are! I made a lot of mistakes on the repairs and overspent due to my lack of understanding of what needed to be done and what is not critical.

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

Listening to Bigger Pockets podcasts and hearing different strategies

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

I met a wholesaler looking at a house on the MLS. He brought me the deal and it met the criteria I wanted and in the area I wanted.

How did you finance this deal?

Hardmoney to purchase then re-financed into a conventional loan. Sort of a BRRRR but I put some of my money in it too.

How did you add value to the deal?

The house had a heavy smoker, WAY too many cats and some how a mice infestation. We had to gut everything and killz the property twice before we could start.

What was the outcome?

I learned a lot on what I should NOT do for repairs and what to look for.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Don't hire the cheapest contractor/ bid he is much more expensive and annoying.
If it aint broke don't fix it!
if you can patch it don't replace it
This deal probably was a better flip than rental but it would have helped to do repairs right to maximize my profit

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

I worked with a wholesaler , HM lender and conventional lender for the refi. Asked a million questions bc it was my first deal and they were all instrumental in my success.