If you’ve invested in a couple of fixer uppers in your neighborhood, you need to make sure home remodeling is carried out in the right way. This makes it easier to recoup your investment and then some.
Like any home remodeling project, you need to consider certain elements to ensure your fixer upper investments are well worth it. And based on our experience, the following items are crucial:
You may have already done an initial walk-through before making an offer for each fixer upper. This time, however, it needs to be more detailed. You’ll need to develop more in-depth price estimates as well as a list of materials and supplies required. Also, consider adding a 10 to 20 percent contingency budget just in case other issues arise in your fixer uppers.
You may already have a fair idea of what permits are required initially. Ascertain exactly what paperwork needs to be done to get the required permits and prepare for the fees you’ll need to pay. Doing so will ensure that home remodeling work can continue unhampered once the paperwork is sorted out.
You can also decide on who’ll take care of the permits on the outset with your contractor. Securing permits can be a time-consuming process so if the contractor can do it for you, why not benefit from their expertise?
If any one of your fixer uppers shows substantial structural damage, ensure you get the professional input of a structural engineer. Your contractor may already employ one in-house, or you may opt to hire one yourself. Either way, the structural engineer will need to coordinate with your contractor, and outline a list of accurate repair estimates covering all structural issues. These include:
Fixer uppers require some amount of investment, which is why you need to do your homework beforehand. This means being prepared for home remodeling costs, as well as other contingencies and related fees.
These include your down payment, as well all other associated renovation costs.
As you move from one fixer upper to another, it would help for you to share your vision for each unit with your contractor. This way, they can come up with a reasonable estimate including the required materials and jobs for each phase of the project.
What you can do is make use of a vision board or collect cut-outs of the designs you envision for each fixer upper. You can also collate these by scanning them or saving jpeg files that go together and which correspond to each unit. Once done, you can send these across to your contractor. When you meet for your walk-through, you can then discuss whether the designs you want are feasible.
So, okay, you can probably volunteer to strip old wallpaper off the walls; that is, if you have the time. Still, fixer upper home remodeling tasks are not for DIY-ers. Since your goal, in this case, is to not only recover your investment but also to profit from the fixer uppers you purchased, it’s best to leave the work to professionals.
Got a fixer upper requiring remodeling work?
Please call us at Team Contractors. We have a highly skilled team of contractors who can help you achieve your property investment goals in Rockaway, New Jersey.
