All Forum Posts by: Karl Radburn

Hi John! I dabbled in drilling for a couple of years :) glad to hear you got the podcasts to keep you sane! :D

Hey guys thanks a lot for the replys and info! As I'm very new to this,I'm still learning about how to come up with numbers such as what the house will be worth if completed to different standards...so I'm afraid I might not be right! However,from looking at recently sold houses,here's the numbers I came up with best as I could: -We are currently invested about 70k (this includes buying the house for cash). -If we complete the house to basic standards (not replace windows,paint original kitchen cabinets,not put on siding),this will probably bring us up to a total invested amount of about 80k,and at this point I think we could easily sell the house for about 150k,maybe 160k if we are lucky. -if we put in a new kitchen,put siding on the house,and replace the windows,I think we could do all this for about 20-25k,which would bring our total invested amount to around 100-105k,but judging from similar houses that have sold,I think this would bring the value of the house to around the 200k mark? But these numbers are just my opinion.my partner is in the market to buy his own house for him and his family and has been house hunting for a house in the 200k region.he says that all the houses he looks at are junk compared to ours and feels that once our house is complete to basic standard (with the extra work I've talked about,siding etc.) it will be worth about 200k? So I'm not sure what to think,however I just feel it's safer to go with my numbers (as they are lower). But regardless of who is closer with their value,surely the extra work will bring in more money right? In relation to renting it out for the winter,we would inform renters that we are intending to sell next summer,and for that reason would be renting it out to the right person for a much lower rent. I just want someone in there for the winter,because if we leave it vacant our insurance is through the roof! Looking forward to hearing your views! -Karl

Hey all!

Im pretty new to the forum here! Myself and a partner are currently about halfway though our flip.it was originally intended as a buy and hold but we decided we would be better of to flip it due to it not being entirely suited as a rental (on a huge yard that needs alot of maintenance and a little out of town).so we decided to sell it,and I will but my half of the money into another property,but rent and hold it.

Anyway were currently unsure about some things and i thought it would be a good idea to come on here and ask.

when we are finished,the house will be a 3 bed,two bath with a finished basement.However,we are really stuck on how much things we should update.we are in Northern BC,Canada and winter is coming fast.

My partner (matt) wants to just finish up ASAP and just get it to OK standards (put in the new floor,paint the old kitchen cabinets,finish up the bathrooms and what else needs to be done and put it up for sale during the winter.

Problem is that houses dont sell very fast here in the winter and can sit on the market for a long time which dosnt look good,and you tend not to make as much on them.

Also...the house has stucco which is ugly as sin...the house was built in the 70's (and im sure was very stylish back then!)but hadnt been touched since...so the stucco has these disgusting seashell designs on it....

The kitchen cabinets,although in good shape,are very dated also...

and the windows are double glazed,but they are the original windows from the 70's it looks like.

we are both low on money and could probably just afford to fix it up to the standard matt wants to.

But what I am trying to convince him to do,is to rent the house out for the winter and save the income from rent (we own the house right out so have no mortgage) then come back to it next summer when we have the rental money and money we have saved and using that money,

-put siding on the house.

-update the windows.

-put in a new kitchen.

He is kinda "iffy" about the whole thing and we are both kind of confused on what is our best option..

can anyone here give us some advice please? In your opinion,would it be worth updating those things?or would we be best to just leave them as is and put the house up for sale?do you think it would make that much of a difference and be worth the extra money?

thanks alot in advance you guys!i will post some pictures if anyone would like to see.

        -Karl

Hi all!

My name is Karl and I am a 25 year old male originally from Dublin,Ireland,and hopefully a soon to be RE investor!

I have wanted to get involved in REI for years,but have been in Canada on temporary working visa's and therefore could not set up a company or borrow money from the bank (they wanted at least a 50% down payment!).

My background is mostly in mining (the exploration side of things and drilling) and have some experience in helping contractors as a labourer (Framing,painting,flooring,fencing etc.) and am looking forward to learning alot more in the future through my own investments!Also hoping to do other small work through my company,such as lawn mowing,snow removal,painting etc. to make some extra money to put towards investments.

Myself and my Canadian girlfriend are currently in the process of her sponsoring me to get my Canadian permanent residency,which has been a long,very complicated process!But we are hoping I will finally be approved before Christmas or early next year....hopefully!

Once I am approved (or if I am approved!) I am planning on setting up a corporation and hopefully buy my first property.I am planning on buying either an apartment/small house,or a two story house which I can split into two different units.

Anyways right now I am just reading as much REI books as I can,watching DIY videos and cruising BP (which has been a goldmine of information!).I am dying to get my permanent residency and finally have all these opportunities open to me!but between now and then,am just trying to learn as much as I can.

Really looking forward to getting to know all of you and becoming part of the community.Im sure Ill be bugging all of you soon with lots of newbie questions! 

Talk to you guys soon!

                                                              KarlR