All Forum Posts by: Glenn Espinosa

We decided to k.i.s.s. and keep the home a 1.5bath. I don't regret in in hindsight. After much though, we concluded that having a 1.5 bath will be less of a risk than stuffing an extra small shower in an already tight bathroom. We just didn't want any big negative feature of the house to stick in the minds of would-be buyers.

With that said, good luck with your house Jim!

Update:

House is moving right along. Got behind schedule due to a delay in financing (see my other thread) but everything is back up and running now.

Some milestones -
Structure was fixed, 2 piers were added
Wall dividing kitchen and living room removed
Wood paneling removed and drywall hung
Electric upgraded, new fixtures

This weekend -
Work starts on the roof and siding
Drywall finished
Paint begins

Quick notes and lessons learned -
Negotiate with EVERY contractor, I've agreed to pay the full bid price from 2 contractors only because their bid seemed fair at the time and was substantially lower than competitors. In hindsight, I probably could have squeezed out 10-15% from these deals.

Keep track of the measurements contractors are taking. I've had some say the siding on my house would need 18 square of siding while others were as low as only 12 square.

Do not schedule electricity to be turned on the same day as work to begin. If so, be prepared for the city to show up promptly at 4:00 PM

I am a young new investor looking to network with experienced as well as new rehabbers and/or landlords in the Hampton Roads area.

I've got a lot to learn and would love to pick someone's brain over lunch, maybe go over my current projects.

Lunch on me, Thanks!

Glenn

Thanks for the reply guys.

I talked to my mortgage broker and we are set for Friday at the latest. He gave me the go ahead to tap into the $5000 as well as get my loan under way for the rehab. With that off my shoulders, I can proceed to wait patiently for this quad deal to unfold and it will be winning property on my part.

I'll be able to pocket my housing allowance from the military with this property, can't wait!

So the closing has been delayed again, this time my mortgage broker won't give me a straight answer as to when. My guess is the lenders are sitting on their behinds.

My problem is that I have a flip going on at the same time and my first round of contractors are finishing up this week. I need to finalize my rehab money and I can't apply for anything until I close on this property. I have $5000 tied up in bank accounts that I can't touch because I need that buffer money for closing...

If this week goes by and I can't close I will be forced to pay my contractors with that $5000. Closing after the fact probably won't get my loan approved. What happens if I can't get get financing?

At this point, the flip is more important to me and the delays in this quad deal has put a very sour taste in my mouth. I would not mind sacrificing my $500 EMD and wiping my hands clean.

Thats a different way of looking at things J Scott, still doesn't make me feel better though, ha!

Either way the house is closing tomorrow or Tuesday and I can move forward from there.

I am buying a quadruplex that takes in $2400 in rent a month. Original closing was set for the 12th but do to appraisal/inspection delays it has been pushed back to the 20th, maybe 21st.

The closing was pushed back because on the day of the appraisal/inspection (a Friday), the seller's plumber had an emergency and had to cancel the AM appt to put in a new water heater. The seller was slow in getting another plumber out there and needless to say the 10 AM appraisal/inspection was pushed back until 5:30PM... not enough time for the appraiser to get the paperwork in and thus the underwriters didn't get moving until the next monday...

Further delays are due to I don't know what, I am starting to get pissed at my loan officer for not answering my questions as thoroughly as before.

My question is that since I will be credited a prorated rent for the month of June, am I literally losing $80/day ($2400/30days) by having the closing date pushed back? From my calculations, this amounts to as much as $720.

If so, any recourse in getting this credited back to me?

So I've been tossing around the idea of converting the 1/2 bath into a full. to do so, I'd have to tear down a wall and convert the adjacent room's closet into the shower, plus frame up a new closet in said room.

Even with doing so the bathroom is still very small. With the wall tear down the shower could still only be 60x29 at the most with the toilet having only about 6 inches of clearance between the shower.

Forget trying to put a 1 piece shower in the space... I'd have to build the shower from the ground up using tile. Also, an open type shower with just a single glass enclosure could save a few inches... maybe something like this

http://freshome.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/small-bathroom_glass-shower.jpg

Has anyone done something like this and if so would you recommend it?

I almost want to say to myself to K.I.S.S. and keep it 1.5 bath...

Thanks guys, I definitely planned on having exterior guys starting work prior to the interior finishing..

@Savana: Believe me Savana, my girlfriend and I are familiar with cheap vs style and are actually finding ourselves holding back in terms of too much style and expenses. We have taste, my girlfriend especially, and she is the one with the responsibility of picking out colors, finishes and what not.

@Steve and Ryan: I will double check on the smoke detectors, if anything I will buy some and install them myself rather than the $55/unit install fee and mark up from the electrician

Any thoughts on the scheduling that I've planned for?