All Forum Posts by: Phillip S.

@James Wise  I don't disagree, but at this stage what "value" would I be providing to these GCs, Realtors, banks, inspectors, appraisers, or anyone else I do business with aside from the money I'm paying them?  I guess it depends on the market you are in, but my experience has been if a contractor wants work he'll come out and bid on the job.  And to correct the record - I never actually said I wouldn't be willing to pay the GC anything.  The issue (for me) is the expectation that I put the property under contract before the GC even gets there.

@Account Closed  Nope no property under contract yet.  I'm just trying to connect with one or more GCs now so when the opportunity arises I can call them up and say "hey there is this property I'm looking at making an offer on could you take a look at it and give me an estimate?"  However what I'm hearing from folks on here is that is not how it generally works, and I need to get the property under contract first.  To me that seems like putting the cart before the horse.

@Michael J.  $5K is just a number I threw out there, but in my market (Baltimore) that is not unheard of.  The last property I bought was an auction that required a 10% deposit, which was about $11K. 

I'm curious if there are "rules of thumb" that can be followed to get a rough estimate of costs.  For example if fully renovated comps in the neighborhood have 4 beds / 3 baths and 1800 sq ft., and the subject property has 2 beds / 2 baths and 1500 sq. ft., and I want to add 2 bedrooms and 1 bathroom to the layout, is there a rough formula for that??

@Ryan Evans  I think what you stated is the tack I will have to take to learn how to do this on my own.  However the GC I spoke with wouldn't even do that unless I already had the property under contract.  

@Jen R.  Thank you for the comments and suggestions.  $5K is a number I just threw out there, but around here (Baltimore market) that is not unheard of especially if the property is an a more desirable part of town.  I really hope I can find someone like you described who would be willing to walk a property with me and give their opinion on the rehab costs.  By the way I grew up near Dayton :-)  

@Max T.  I suppose an inspection contingency is an option, but wouldn't that hurt my chances of getting the house if someone else who knows more about construction than I do submits an offer that doesn't have that contingency?  I would probably have to increase my offer price to compensate.

@Max T.  Well when you can't afford to lose your deposit it does.  Yes I realize if I can't afford to risk $5K I probably shouldn't be doing this.

@Max T.  Thanks for the comment.  Rough ideas can be a recipe for disaster if you are not experienced.  A "rough idea" could be off by $20 grand and easily sink a project.  I want to avoid making that mistake, which is why I'd prefer to get a quote before I even submit an offer on a property.  I understand where you're coming from though.

@Theresa Harris  I like that suggestion, thanks.

Needless to say I'm not having beginner's luck when it comes to connecting with a general contractor.  I have attempted to contact 3 different GCs thus far and only heard back from one.  The one that responded pretty much said "You're a waste of my time. I only work with experienced investors.  Contact me when you have a property under contract and then I'll come out and give an estimate for $300."   So let me get this straight.  I'm supposed to put a property under contract before I even know what the construction costs are going to be for the rehab?  Is there something I'm doing wrong here? 

@Joe Norman Thanks Joe.  It has been my experience that having a room qualify as a bedroom can increase both the property value and the rent that can be charged.  For example one of my units is a studio, with the living room and bedroom separated by an archway with no door.  The bedroom is about 300 sq ft and it has two windows.  I am debating whether or not it would be worth the money to close it off and add a door so that it would qualify as a 1 bedroom.