All Forum Posts by: Victor G.

He's licensed and has his own personal company on the side.

I hired an architect who design my garage conversion/adu. He does this work on the side of his actual W2 architectural firm job.  The drawings were completed and submitted and approved. I have approved permitted plans in hand. I started the project and am about 90% completed with the construction.  My city inspector says that I do not have enough electrical capacity on my electrical panel; therefore I have to add a gas line.  This will trigger a revision to my Title 24 calculations.  I have no problems with this and would gladly accept the change.

I brought it up to my architect 6 months ago. I have messaged my architect but hasn't communicated with me in months. I 've tried texting, calling and emails.  I got one message in 3 months stating that he's been too busy with his w2 job. This has been delaying the completion of my project for 6 months now.  

I don't know what to do next.

Isn't the architect the designer of record the only one to do this revision?  I've asked him if I can help him, pay him, or refer me to another architect to no avail. I get crickets in return. 

 I was told to send him a certified letter in the mail for 72hr response otherwise it would be a breach of contract.

Should I go visit him at his w2 firm and ask him in person?  Should I take him to small claims court?

Please advise. 

Yes. I have a 200sf detached ADU (12x17) with its own separate yard. It comes with a Queen Murphy bed, toilet room w/sink, shower & kitchenette. It rents it both short term & medium term contracts. It's become very lucrative in my market. I'd say go for it! I did.

I got this house were I'm converting the attached garage into a granny flat (ADU). I'm wondering what the cost to add another gas meter to the existing one? I'm essentially making a SFH house into a duplex with this garage conversion. ...just wondering if it's worth going with gas (for dryer, tankless water heater, range). I've heard an (2022) estimate cost of a few thousand to ten thousand for installation and permitting. Anyone have any input??

@Dan Heuschele

Thank you for your input. Awesome response.

Good point on the dryer usage. There wouldn’t be a whole lot of loads for one or two people.

I, too want to get a induction stove. I think they’re incredible...Pricey, but incredible.

@Maxwell Ventura Thanks for the information; this definitely helps me on my decision. I’m leaning towards all electrical.

@Andres Andrade

First of all, congratulations on your CM degree. I, also graduated with the same degree and used it wisely to get a decent W2 job with a large commercial GC. That allowed me to save up my funds to buy my first rental and then after other properties.

You may want to expand your search if the there aren’t any residential companies out there looking to hire at the moment. There are plenty of commercial, civil, and industrial firms that may be hiring. Within those industries and companies, there are plenty of like-minded individuals who dabble with real estate investments because it comes natural to us. Good luck in your search. T

I'm building out an ADU (1bed/1bath w/loft) from a single family house with an attached large 2 car garage in a B+ class neighborhood in San Diego. The existing house has both gas & electric utilities. I'm torn whether to install both gas & electric utilities or just install electrical only. This would require the utility company to install a separate meter for each utility (electric & gas). I'm trying to weigh the cost for the construction vs the rental desirability of the ADU once completed. My choice would affect the selection of the following items: kitchen range, tankless water heater, clothes dryer as well as construction materials. Here are the pros and cons:

PROs:

- The cost to buy gas appliances are more inexpensive than electric appliances; 

-the cost to run gas is substantially cheaper than electric as well. For example, using an electric dryer will cost on average $40/month more than using a gas dryer.

-A & B Class Tenants tend to prefer gas for cooking and heating (although SoCal has very mild winters). Could be a deal breaker for some prospective tenants.

CONs:

- installation of gas pipes and gas lines can increase the construction budget quite a bit. 

-requires a separate meter for gas installed (if units are billed separately).

-Another inspection required other than electric inspection.

-the idea of having one more utility to worry about breaking in my investment rental i.e. gas leak .

Let me know your thoughts. Thanks.

@Elliot Terekhin

Unfortunately, No pet rent for any ESA. You’ll have ADA people coming after you for discriminating against disable people.

I would check the current lease agreement contract, if one is in place. If there is one, you'll need to ride it out until it ends unfortunately. Once it expires, you can draft up a new lease agreement and reset the rental price to whatever you want. Check your state laws on how much notice you'll need to inform a tenant before you raise the rent. 

If it is a month to month, then you can raise the rent per your state's requirements (given them ample notice).