All Forum Posts by: David Frandsen

@Jonathan Wilks thanks for the feedback! Yes, treating them to coffee would be a great "thanks!" I may just need see how things play out. 

I have owned a 4-plex for less than a year. Recently I just finished rehabbing one unit and now it is up for rent. I am having horrible dreams of our property manager getting the wrong person in the unit and all that work going down the tubes (My property manager is great thus far by the way). What steps could I take to make sure my property manager has the proper tenant screening criteria in place? Any recommendations on conversations I could have with my property manager on how to proceed?

Also, Is there a way to structure  payment to a property manager in such a way that motivates them to get the best tenant in the unit as opposed to a flat percentage? Trying to think ahead. Thanks in advance for the input. 

-David F. 

...everything takes longer. Get someone on board to help make decisions about what should be torn out and what should be restored. For example: I'm currently thinking instead of restoring the cabinets I should have gotten new doors and drawer faces made up. Would have saved me a lot of time sanding and fitting the crapy old doors. Anyway, let me know if you have any questions. I'd love to help. 

@Wallace Zhou I am currently rehabbing a late 1920's home that has been converted to a 4-plex (probably in the 60's). I am also a contractor. Even I learn new things all the time on how to rehab an old home. If I've learned anything it's that everything takes l

Great ideas @Dylan Long ! The visuals really help. 

The finishes and restorations flow well. Good job. 

@Kyle M. Some thoughts: I would get a good paint job on the kitchen cabinets and paint them white with some black hardware. Make the island twice as big and leave room to pull up bar stools on the backside. New kitchen flooring. Stainless appliances if you can afford. 

In the bathroom do a tub but tile the surround above the tub. You could do "granite" tiles that look classy but are cheaper than granite slabs. New vanity. possibly new floor in the bathroom as well. New white toilet. 

The cost looks to be more than 10K but should be able to do it for less than 30k. 

P.S- I typed all this then read @Dylan Long post and he said exactly the same thing basically. I totally agree. 

@Jeff Lee I think the real question is "what will sell the house in your area?" There are so many different tastes out there. Figure out what is selling in your area and go with something similar. 

@Josh Norris It sounds like you want a cost breakdown so you can assure the contractors are using quality materials. If this is a concern I think you should specify in detail what you are looking for so you can get apples to apples bids. But I will say that on a project this size you may have a hard time getting your contractors to bid this way when they don't even know if they will land the project. What is typical is that contractors will have an "allowance" for items. For example:

They will "allow" for a $100 bathroom faucet in the master bath. If you tell them "I want this faucet." and the cost is $300, at the end of your project you will be billed a $200 "extra" because you went over your allowance. Hopefully this is all spelled out in their contracts. 

I hope this helped shed some light. Good luck on this project. 

Best,

David Frandsen

@Kate Kedenburg I have owned a 1930's four-plex conversion for almost a year now. It was a good conversion in my opinion but I could see how a bad conversion would be a pain. Older houses are just more of a hassle in the rehab phase. Everything takes longer and costs more than you want (Even for an experienced contractor like me).  Not a bad thing, just be aware. There is something to be said (in my area at least) for apartments with a little more character than the modern boxes build today. This older conversion worked for me but may not work for others. 

Definitely get the regular inspections done and I would also consider bringing in a plumber and electrician. If the electrical circuits were not split up properly this could cost a bit to remedy.