Ready to start the conversation about moving to Montgomery County, MD, DC or Northern VA? Click the link below to schedule your private Zoom video call to learn more about these areas: calendly.com/caryn01/buyer-seller-consultation?month=2024-04 Or feel free to email me at caryn01@gmail.com
Well..I bought a cheap house and flipped it myself. I'm in construction . Did 99% of the work myself. Only thing I had to do was get an electrician to go over my work for a permit. After adding one more grounding rod it passed. Life is great with no mortgage.
Half ass renovations. In an area of my town, flippers are doing half ass renovations to mill hill houses, sat for over 50 yrs slapping a $400,000 to $500,000. Just stupidity and greed😮😮
I think some flips are done well.... but maybe like 1%... the rest are lipstick on a pig. But if a GC flips a house over winter to keep his crew busy the end result can be quality.. then problem is most flippers don't know how to use a hammer and they contract everything out, always the the lowest bidder.
Yes…they are always gray…have same countertops…same light fixtures…same flooring and tile. It’s like a flippers blueprint - exact same from house to house
I think regardless of whether you buy a new home or flipped home or historic home, everyone needs an emergency fund. I visited a family with a 3-year old home that had multiple issues with cracks, electrical problems, etc. Never compare renting to mortgage only. Ownership is at least initially much more expensive than renting. You have property tax, repairs, regular maintenance, any HOA fees and insurance on top of mortgage. Don't focus on appliances. You can buy new or refurbished appliances that are fairly affordable. I bought an brand new in-box GE profile dishwasher for $400. I would really focus on deal killers like water intrusion into the house due to poor grading or bad gutters or foundation issues. I would check the sewer line out to the street (can cost $30k to fix this). Check HVAC and roof. These things can cost $20k each. People tend to focus on refinished floors or paint color or flooring or counter tops. All of these things can be changed over time. Walk around the basement and exterior of the home. Look for water stains. Look to see if the dirt around the home slopes toward the home or away from the home. See if the outlets have 3 prongs instead of 2 prongs.
The story you began with is just about exactly what happened to me, my SIL, and an old buddy from high school. Me and HS buddy live in Ohio and his house is 1/3 the cost and size of mine. Ive stayed in about 20k of debt yearly due to home repairs. So whatever i pay off one year gets racked up again next year, but ive brought the house back to about 80% of its capability. Just need to level the concrete, replace some doors and windows, and driveway repaving. My HS buddy does a little thing here and there and sits at about 5k a year in repairs, but he is falling behind and will need to catch up soon. The basement is being neglected and its effecting other things. My SIL just bought a million dollar home in portland oregon and they are sinking about 50k in repairs in the first year alone. Leaking, sewage, electric, attic all did what MY house did and fall apart in the first 6 months. But a million dollar home in an urban environment is just naturally going to hurt trying to repair. Also we bought in 2017 before any jumps in local real estate so the house is reasonably valued for its real value.
It almost sounds like you are saying that it might be a bad idea to buy a house that someone else spent the absolute minimum on to cover up all the real problems and threw it on the market to make a quick buck? Are you sure?
Great Advice- Hire a good inspector, *TALK TO NEIGHBORS AND PREVIOUS OWNERS*, hire an experienced plumber, a HVAC specialist & an electrician (this will cost you no more than $300-$500). Don’t expect an RE agent to be present during your inspection. It’s not personal. They are not inspectors and are told not to be present by their boss (broker), attorney, and even the state licensing board. Look for a buyer’s agent, not a seller or dual agent.
Yea general contractors, at least good ones, aren’t interested in walking some newbie investors interest of the month just for it to go nowhere. If you waste their time once, assuming they even show up once, they’ll ignore your future calls
Why home inspections are worthless. Hire an actual builder or better yet learn to do it yourself. No matter what you have to know the the basics. You will often get "this isn't right" but that doesn't mean it actually needs to be "fixed". No house is perfect. Many scary sounding stuff is OK. Cleaning ducts for example is 100% scam.
Most home inspectors have you sign a bunch of forms when you hire them. I *believe* you can only sue them for the cost of the inspection- but I’m not 100% sure of this. If anyone else knows- please chime in
Ready to start the conversation about moving to Montgomery County, MD, DC or Northern VA? Click the link below to schedule your private Zoom video call to learn more about these areas: calendly.com/caryn01/buyer-seller-consultation?month=2024-04 Or feel free to email me at caryn01@gmail.com
Been in construction for over 20yrs and currently a Realtor. This is 💯 true
Spend the money for a quality home inspector. Get pest inspection in certain areas like mine that are know to be termite area.
Flipped houses always have negative surprises. Corners were cut. So easy to avoid by seeing sales history these days.
True!
Well..I bought a cheap house and flipped it myself. I'm in construction . Did 99% of the work myself. Only thing I had to do was get an electrician to go over my work for a permit. After adding one more grounding rod it passed. Life is great with no mortgage.
Flipping is when you sell it. Did you fix it sell it and take the money and go buy something else?
Half ass renovations. In an area of my town, flippers are doing half ass renovations to mill hill houses, sat for over 50 yrs slapping a $400,000 to $500,000. Just stupidity and greed😮😮
Never, EVER buy a flip. EVER.
I think some flips are done well.... but maybe like 1%... the rest are lipstick on a pig. But if a GC flips a house over winter to keep his crew busy the end result can be quality.. then problem is most flippers don't know how to use a hammer and they contract everything out, always the the lowest bidder.
@jonathantaylor6926 Agreed.
It is not true in california
You can spot a "flipped house" the second you step in the door!
Yes…they are always gray…have same countertops…same light fixtures…same flooring and tile. It’s like a flippers blueprint - exact same from house to house
Yep. They all look the same.
I think regardless of whether you buy a new home or flipped home or historic home, everyone needs an emergency fund. I visited a family with a 3-year old home that had multiple issues with cracks, electrical problems, etc. Never compare renting to mortgage only. Ownership is at least initially much more expensive than renting. You have property tax, repairs, regular maintenance, any HOA fees and insurance on top of mortgage. Don't focus on appliances. You can buy new or refurbished appliances that are fairly affordable. I bought an brand new in-box GE profile dishwasher for $400. I would really focus on deal killers like water intrusion into the house due to poor grading or bad gutters or foundation issues. I would check the sewer line out to the street (can cost $30k to fix this). Check HVAC and roof. These things can cost $20k each. People tend to focus on refinished floors or paint color or flooring or counter tops. All of these things can be changed over time. Walk around the basement and exterior of the home. Look for water stains. Look to see if the dirt around the home slopes toward the home or away from the home. See if the outlets have 3 prongs instead of 2 prongs.
The story you began with is just about exactly what happened to me, my SIL, and an old buddy from high school. Me and HS buddy live in Ohio and his house is 1/3 the cost and size of mine. Ive stayed in about 20k of debt yearly due to home repairs. So whatever i pay off one year gets racked up again next year, but ive brought the house back to about 80% of its capability. Just need to level the concrete, replace some doors and windows, and driveway repaving. My HS buddy does a little thing here and there and sits at about 5k a year in repairs, but he is falling behind and will need to catch up soon. The basement is being neglected and its effecting other things. My SIL just bought a million dollar home in portland oregon and they are sinking about 50k in repairs in the first year alone. Leaking, sewage, electric, attic all did what MY house did and fall apart in the first 6 months. But a million dollar home in an urban environment is just naturally going to hurt trying to repair. Also we bought in 2017 before any jumps in local real estate so the house is reasonably valued for its real value.
It almost sounds like you are saying that it might be a bad idea to buy a house that someone else spent the absolute minimum on to cover up all the real problems and threw it on the market to make a quick buck? Are you sure?
🤣
Pro tip: marry a plumber. Best decision I could’ve made, when we bought our house he double check and triple checked after the home inspector.
Hot take!
Or an electrician!
Don't marry the roofer though.
Great Advice-
Hire a good inspector, *TALK TO NEIGHBORS AND PREVIOUS OWNERS*, hire an experienced plumber, a HVAC specialist & an electrician (this will cost you no more than $300-$500). Don’t expect an RE agent to be present during your inspection. It’s not personal. They are not inspectors and are told not to be present by their boss (broker), attorney, and even the state licensing board.
Look for a buyer’s agent, not a seller or dual agent.
Yea general contractors, at least good ones, aren’t interested in walking some newbie investors interest of the month just for it to go nowhere. If you waste their time once, assuming they even show up once, they’ll ignore your future calls
This was so thorough. Thank you
You’re welcome!
Why home inspections are worthless. Hire an actual builder or better yet learn to do it yourself. No matter what you have to know the the basics. You will often get "this isn't right" but that doesn't mean it actually needs to be "fixed". No house is perfect. Many scary sounding stuff is OK. Cleaning ducts for example is 100% scam.
Can they not sue a home inspector?
Most home inspectors have you sign a bunch of forms when you hire them. I *believe* you can only sue them for the cost of the inspection- but I’m not 100% sure of this.
If anyone else knows- please chime in
Very good
Lol..did they hire house inspector.
Sounds idiotic- they knew that there was no water softener-- what a horrible inspector they had
and this is why u have property insurance...