All Forum Posts by: Laureen Youngblood

Hi Carlos,

There are going to be a number of forum posts about how to vet a contractor.  Dig around and you will find more information than you need.  I have a couple of Blog posts that talk about finding good contractors

Contractors - The Final Frontier!

In addition - ALWAYS check references.  Make sure their bonds are large enough to cover the current amount of work they have under contract.....and do more digging on the forums and Blogs

Good Luck,

Laureen

@Seth Heitzmann, Welcome to Oregon.  I live in Eugene/Springfield and work in Philomath/Corvallis.  I would love to talk with you about the local markets and opportunities.  I house hack my house...which means after my divorce I rent my two bedrooms out.. have one open to rent now.  I am also searching for a duplex/multi opportunity and have some connections with local real estate people.  get in touch and we an chat

Exciting Stuff!!! I envy your youth and opportunity.  I have have had the opportunity to live close to Boise and now live on the western side of Oregon.  I think the advantage of Boise for an ambitious investor is its proximity to both Idaho and Oregon.  Being on the state line will give you the choice of which state offers the best residence/real estate/tax laws and investment opportunities.  Make sure you talk to people in the know about both so that you can make an educated decision.  Boise is less that 30 miles to the Oregon state line as the crow flies and has some pretty exciting investment opportunities.  Having said that - I'm a green girl and just have to live where green things grow all year.  My family still lives over there and I visit regularly - Definitely on my investment list!

I agree with a few of the suggestions above.  Your existing contractor should have at least one referral for you if he doesn't have the ability to do both projects.  Providing a scope of work and following the suggestions above regarding references, and insurances is a must.  Your contractor shouldn't be responsible for selecting the types of finishes you want in a property.  However, a good one might have a few suggestions.  In addition, I have written a few blogs regarding this topic. you can check them out here:

Contractors - The Final Frontier !

and here;

@Ben Leybovich

;) Does this mean you are volunteering to do a webinar to teach us Newbies about the numbers? What do you think @Joshua Dorkin and @Brandon Turner ?

Joking aside.  I am a Newbie (kinda)  I have been on BP now for about a year.  I have listened to every podcast, read many forum posts, asked questions and I am pretty sure I would have immediately recognized that as a pretty sketchy attempt at "eraser" style numbers.  Multiplexes are not my niche.  (yet)

However, I don't believe that restricting the use of those calculators is going to prevent a Newbie from making a bad investment if that is what they really want to do. I could be slightly biased in my desire to maintain access to those calculators...and when do we become "not" Newbies. Like I said above, I have been on BP for over a year, called myself a REI for that long, made a few offers (around 30) and still have not closed my first deal. Who sets the bar? What is the bar?

I grew up in Monterey County, California - third generation from the Oklahoma migration during the Great Depression.  Couldn't wait to get out, even if it is one of the most beautiful places in the world.

Spent my twenties bar tending in Las Vegas.  Great place to spend your twenties, was not for me long term.  Miss the heat and long summers, though :)

Spent a few years with family in Eastern Oregon (not my place at all) - then transferred into the University of Oregon.  As soon as I topped the pass and drove down into the Willamette Valley I knew I had found home.  That was in 2001.  

The great advantage is that a college town is always good for Real Estate and in this valley the percentage of people that start school here and then stay is pretty high.  Its hard not to love the green, lots of water, tons of stuff to do and friendly people.  If you are an outdoors person you just can't beat Oregon.

@Mike F.

You are correct.  There are many variables.  However, if a "low bid" is low enough under the next one and a third or fourth contractor is willing to go even lower, it is not typically a good sign.  Competitive pricing is not what I was hearing from the original description.  Thank you for bringing that up.  

My experience is that any contractor willing to undercut a low bid is more desperate for work than he should be.  Meaning he/she is typically a combination of in-experienced, unprofessional, unreliable, and possibly not very good.  You get what you pay for....and typically end up paying more for "cheap" work than the better quality higher prices.

Bad mouthing anyone in business is just bad practice!  Unless they have verifiable information that is in direct relation to specific problems then it's just rumor and who is to say they won't turn around and do the same to you?

The replies above are pretty accurate to the challenges you would face attempting to bring a contractor in to every property you view.  At some point (probably very soon) they would quit replying to you at all and then you have lost a potential good contractor (which are hard enough to find in the first place)  Sending pictures and giving a basic scope of work with square footage on the house might get you close.  But you really are not going to get a good contractor to go take a look at multiple properties and spend the hours to get you bids unless you have the property under contract.  On average an accurate bid for a remodel project will take a contractor up to 8 hours or more of his time.  That is a lot of time per house to not get the work.

@Richard Rountree   I am not familiar with any contractors in California, but have written a couple of Blog posts on finding good contractors.  You might find the information useful during your search.  Check these out:

Contractors - The Final Frontier!

and

Characteristics of a Good Contractor

I hope these help and good hunting!