Buying A House in Few Days With Water Damage Need Advise

[Lane Ewert]

We want to buy this house as our first with an FHA loan that allows repairs, fix it live in it for two years and sell. What is the best way to asses the ARV quickly? There have already been offers made and our Realtor said we need to come in above asking. So in the event we do win we are supposed to have a 7 day period to get out if it looks too costly. Any advise would be greatly appreciated or questions I don't know to ask. I feel this would be a great opportunity for me to learn about RI along the way.

Numbers:

90k asking price (what # is good to come at them with?)
(its a foreclosure)
comps in the area are around 150-165
Roof has been leaking so obvious water damage and updating

Thanks

[Account Closed]

Originally posted by Lane Ewert:

Roof has been leaking so obvious water damage and updating

When/if you do get estimates, don't forget to consider cost for mold remediation. I'm sure this varies from state to state, and maybe you can find someone to do it for real cheap (without a license - but that's a whole other set of risk) depending on how bad mold is.

the fact that you have water leaking from the roof down can mean water coulda gone anywhere along the house. also, depending how long this damage has been around for exposure to water, the mold could be really bad. hopefully you can find a contractor with experience who can give you an accurate quote of assessing water damage and what will need to be repaired.

cost for termites may be another concern depending on how old the house is, how badly the roof is damaged - termites see open spaces for their meal to get started for their homes and food could spell trouble. even tho the house was tented 2yrs ago w/a 5yr warranty, you can have infestation much sooner than estimated if your roof says eat me in a termite climate. not sure if termites are an issue there - some places are more prone to termites than others (climate, etc.)

definitely consider assessing repair of water/mold/termite damage... THEN, get an estimate for updating the property. after all is said and done, it might not be worth all the trouble and expenses to go through when you can get a house with less extensive unknowns for damage. water can go just about anywhere.

again, i don't know if your area makes a big deal about mold - cali certainly does (at least when it comes to insurance not covering it) :)

10-20k could just be for repairs
another 10-15k for upgrades (depending how fancy you go)... while i'm not a construction guy nor have extensive years of experience in rehab, no experienced rehabber or construction guy can give you an accurate estimate online without knowing what they're looking at. even if you ballpark it w/the above #s, you're looking at 20k-45k AFTER you purchase the property... how long will it take to be able to move in (and at what cost)? how much will it cost in all the extra hassle depending on how extensive the damage will be to your primary home? that's unknown .. perhaps until you're in the middle of it might you get a decent estimate.

wonder of Will Barnard and @j scott and other experienced investors might know better.

good luck!