Flip This House #3

Parents Social Lounge Parent Cafe
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<p>A lot of times they are builder-grade cabinets, which means they are really cheaply made. The particle board starts to decay, they get easily chipped and banged up, the veneers start to come off, the shelves and bottoms are sagging, they are disgusting on the inside from years of not being cleaned properly, etc.</p>

<p>The “lipstick on a pig” approach doesn’t always work.</p>

<p>If you have nice cabinets that will take paint, and like the painted look (I don’t - way too country for my taste), then it can make sense to paint. Refinishing is uneconomical or impossible in many cases, as even cheap cabinets can have finishes that can’t be removed without wrecking them.</p>

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<p>PhotoOp, I do not think repainting would have worked here since the entire layout of the kitchen was changed to make it… a kitchen. :slight_smile: Cabinets of a different depth were needed to do what the op wanted. Mashing together old and new cabinets does not always work. </p>

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<p>At my old house I didn’t want to pain because I found the old cabs too be too ornate (and old fashioned) for my taste. </p>

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<p>I think I watch too much HGTV, they always rip out the old cabinets and replace them. I understand when you are refiguring a kitchen or making it bigger - or when the cabinets are beyond their useful life - sometimes it seems like the renovators think cabinets are just disposable though.</p>

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<p>In this particular case, the cabinets were extremely cheap. They were in very poor condition. But the most important thing was… the configuration was the worst I had ever seen. The cabinets (or lack thereof) were not functional in any way. And they were not standard size or depth.</p>

<p>One of the main reasons I will tear out cabinets is because they are so old they don’t have the functionality that a modern kitchen has. For example, drawers are a lot more functional than a shelf in a base cabinet. Deep drawers are best for holding pots and pans (who wants to get on their hands and knees and try to pull out all the pots/pans from a low shelf???) Corners should have lazy susans or half moon pullouts to make it easier to get to things. Built in trash and recycle cans with a pull out cabinet are fantastic… and eliminate the need for a small trash can under sink or a trash can in the middle of the kitchen. It’s very difficult to reconfigure old cabinets for these types of functionality because they are not the ‘standard’ size.</p>

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<p>HUNTING UPDATE</p>

<p>I have been out looking at some other properties. I probably inspected about 6 and I am currently fighting hard for these two:</p>

<p>HOUSE #6 - This is a poor condition 3bd/1 ba house with only 1,000 sq ft in the Bay Park neighborhood in San Diego. The house is in a very desireable neighborhood, but all of the other homes are at least 1,500 sq ft. The house needs new roof, new HVAC, etc. But, more importantly… I would have to pull a permit and add about 500 sq ft to get the best value for the lot. So, it will take about $100,000 in remodel costs. Asking price was a little high so I thought I could make a somewhat lower offer. I called the listing agent directly, but he never answers his phone. There is an entourage surrounding this guy. The lady who answers the phone told me they had no other offers but that I would have to work through their ‘buyers agent’. She didn’t understand that I wanted to make an offer directly through the listing agent. Next thing is the ‘buyer’s agent’ calls me back but he can’t even answer any detailed questions about the condition of the property. He also tells me that there are no other offers on the house.</p>

<p>So, I filled out a blank purchase agreement to make my offer and submitted it through their offer email address. I get an immediate reply that they have received many many offers and will be sending a counter back in a couple of days to all offers. I followed up in a couple of days and it has become obvious that they just cannot be bothered with me. Probably some major investors are in their pocket.</p>

<p>HOUSE #7 - This is a very poor condition property that is on the records as a 3 bedroom 1 bath 1400sqft, but the 3rd bedroom (plus a full bath which doesn’t seem to be on record which is strange) is located behind the detached garage. Not sure someone wants the 3rd bedroom out behind the garage :slight_smile: </p>

<p>It was listed at a ridiculously low price. House is located at the base of Mt Helix in La Mesa area (inland about 20 miles), which is one of my favorite areas. Street has mature trees and nice homes. I am planning to take out the kitchen, move the wall and add a master bath to the large master bedroom. There is a breezeway between the garage and the house that I am hoping that I can enclose to create a family room. I will make a 3rd bedroom in the breezeway area also because there is 400 sq ft added in that area. So, it will end up as a 3bd/2ba with nice master suite and large living area. Other bedroom/bath will be advertised as a study, office or hobby area. But, there might be permit issues here also because I want to add a bathroom and square footage, and it’s better if the new total square footage is on the public records.</p>

<p>I called the listing agent and met her at the property. There were investors swarming all over the property. But we established a good relationship and I am working directly with her. She is not representing any other buyers. Currently there are multiple offers, most of them at the asking price. There is one crazy investor that is $50,000 higher than asking price. She is sharing the information with me so that I can decide if I really want to go strong for this house. The listing agent that I always use to resell the property (my agent, not same as listing agent) has gone through with me also and she thinks she can get a ridiculous amount of money if I do these changes - the architecture is similar to Mid Century Modern which is crazy hot in Southern California. So, there is room for me to go up close to the high offer.</p>

<p>So, I wrote a heart warming cover letter to the Sellers. Sellers were divorced in 2009 and somehow she let the husband stay in the house for 5 years as part of their divorce agreement, but his time is up and they are splitting the proceeds. Unfortunately, the Sellers have come back with a ‘highest and best’ counter offer to all of the potential buyers and I have to wait and see what will happen.</p>

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<p>Progress Update on Remodel:</p>

<p>We are done with all the rough plumbing and electrical. We wired cable from kitchen wall around the outside back patio and into wall behind fireplace. The fireplace is now wired with cable, two HDMI cables for HD connection to cable box and a Blu Ray DVD player, and AV cables in case she ever wants to connect the TV to a surround stereo system. Then we had to put 5/8" fire shield drywall back onto fireplace.</p>

<p>We are in the final steps of replacing all drywall, taping and mudding, sanding, re-mudding, sanding and then primer. We have to have all walls and primer complete by Monday afternoon because the flooring is going to get installed Tuesday. This process always takes longer than I can tolerate because you have to wait for the coats of mud to dry before you can sand and apply the next coat. Takes forever!!!</p>

<p>My carpenter has turned two doors around for the bathrooms. For some reason this house was designed so that bathroom doors open outward. Well, the powder room door opens and blocks the entry from the garage. We all know that everyone comes/go from the garage… hardly ever using the front door. So, if someone used the powder room and left door open, the entry from garage is blocked. Same thing upstairs. Hall bath door opens outward and blocks a bedroom door entrance. I can just see kids fighting and slamming these doors as they come and go into the bath or their bedroom. So, we took doors off hinges, removed all hinges and door hardware and had to reverse everything so that doors open inward to bathroom. This of course causes problems trying to fill in the chiseled grooves in doors for hinges. Now you have to putty/Bondo the chiseled areas, dry, sand, repeat, prime and then we are going to have to find matching paint to repaint all the trim. A lot of people think these are simple changes, but the days of waiting for steps to dry is very time consuming. Trying to get the details to match up (match old paint) takes numerous trips to paint stores. </p>

<p>So, it has been 14 working days and we are ready for flooring to go in. As soon as the floor is installed downstairs we are going to start assembling and installing new kitchen.</p>

<p>My main issue right now is that the owner still has not selected any tile for the bathrooms and we are going to start tile one week from now. She wants a lot of fancy stuff and I keep warning her that it has to be ordered and delivered. Could take longer than a week. She works during the week and has 2 young girls so she really only has Saturdays to go o ut and buy things (her ex husband has the kids on Saturdays)
New pictures loaded to the Flickr photo group</p>

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<p>

Wouldn’t it have been quicker to remove the moldings, cut the nails holding in the frame, and turn the entire frame around? Or would that have had the doors open on the wrong side?</p>

<p>re the hot mop seal in the bathroom - I’ve never seen this done… is that a weird CA code thing? Around here people just use membranes. I’d be worried about installing tile on top of tar.</p>

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<p>Call me naive (it won’t be the first time), but aren’t realtors bound by their professional licenses to present any and all good faith offers to the seller??</p>

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<p>Yes realtors are required to present all offers. In this case there are about 4 offers at asking price, a high price offer and mine is a little lower. So basically there are two front runners. When I engage the listing agent as my ‘buyer’s agent’, they are doing dual agency. Thus, she is representing me and she will get both ends of the commission if my offer is selected. In my experience the listing agent will do everything in their power to help me make the best offer. Unless the Seller has specifically asked a listing agent not to reveal the terms and conditions of other offers, she has the ability to share with me the general terms of the highest offer.</p>

<p>Even if I cannot beat the highest offer in purchase price, I can usually beat the highest offer with my terms. I spend a lot of time learning about the Sellers and their specific motivation. Sometimes Sellers are just so tired that they don’t want to clean out the house, haul away trash, clean up the yard, etc. Sometimes Sellers are a group of heirs that are fighting amongst themselves. Sometimes the Seller is still in the house and needs flexibility for moving out, etc. I will always shape the terms to be in the best interest of the Seller. Usually I can close in 5 days and get cash into Seller’s hands very quickly, without any contingencies regarding inspection, appraisal, etc. Or I might release a huge initial deposit immediately to Sellers through escrow letting them have money to move on with their lives. These houses are usually in such terrible condition that you can guess that the Sellers are really strapped for cash.</p>

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<p>Couldn’t turn the door frames around because then the hinges would be on the other side and the door would’ve hit the toilet when opened. However, that is a brilliant idea and I’m going to remember that the next time I change a door around ! I really hadn’t thought of it. </p>

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<p>I just found out that I did not get house #7 in La Mesa. There always was a higher offer, about $10k more than my offer. But, those guys did a slightly slimy thing during the highest and best round. They called up the Listing Agent and offered to remove their buying agent and give her the buying agent commission AND they promised to let her be the Listing Agent when they resell after their remodel. I’m in Nbr 2 position.</p>

<p>I cannot beat that. I would’ve had to be even slimier and tell my listing agent that I have worked with for 5 years that she wasn’t going to get the sale. After she researched the property, confirmed a future sale price and walked the property with me. I just can’t do that.</p>

<p>Still haven’t received Counter Offer from #6. Minimal communication from Listing Agent. Not holding my breath.</p>

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<p>Sounds like it’s time to unearth House #8.</p>

<p>Seems like the renovation winds up being the easier part of the flip. Getting the house in the first place is the challenge.</p>

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<p>The rule of thumb is that you make your profit on the buy… not the sell. I have to be very careful not to get emotional and raise my offer just to ‘win’. Although I will admit that there have been several houses that were so special that I just had to have them. One of them was the Spanish Bungalow in North Park, I just couldn’t pass it up.</p>

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<p>@coralbrook, you made money on that one, though, didn’t you.</p>

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<p>Yes, I made money. But not as much as all the guys on those television shows :slight_smile: </p>

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<p>Yesterday we started laying the flooring in the townhouse. The owner selected a very interesting choice, solid strand carbonized bamboo. The product does not have ply layer base. The bamboo is crushed into strands and the floor is solid and very heavy. It is carbonized through a process so that the color goes through the whole piece. My flooring guy said that you need to be a little bit careful with solid strand because it can expand if a lot of water gets into it - like a flood in kitchen or something. </p>

<p>The owner bought special water leak monitors for each sink in the house that we are going to install.</p>

<p>I got the flooring at a discount $3.23/sq ft plus we used the highest quality foam underlayment, 3mm with water barrier for the concrete floor on the first floor slab. Total cost for 1,300 sq ft was about $4,000 with delivery and a lot of trim pieces (they cost a lot of money) for the stairs, thresholds and end caps.</p>

<p>Photos loaded</p>

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<p>HUNTING UPDATE:</p>

<p>House #8 is in a central location old tract area, built 1955 on a slab (which I don’t like, too many potential issues trying to move plumbing). I would never have looked in this neighborhood because I’m not familiar with it. My agent saw it on the MLS and went to look at it since she was nearby. It is 4bd/2a in only 1,250sq ft. But the layout of the house is really good and it has vaulted ceilings. It has a drained cement pool in backyard with no equipment that needs replastering. Usually I steer away from pools because they are money pits to try to fix. But the house is 1/4 acre in a central location on a canyon. There is a million dollar house right behind it. Views down the canyon to the south (no ocean view in distance). This back yard is going to sell the house, after I spend a lot of money of course!!</p>

<p>It is an interesting transaction because some wholesalers that have those “We Buy Houses” bandit signs up everywhere bought it directly from a prior owner. They then just clear out the trash and put it up for sale within one week. They are big players in my area, my competition. They seem to have changed their business strategy and now they work hard to find deals that are not on the MLS, they buy directly from sellers who have homes in terrible condition. But they don’t bother to do the renovation, just sell quickly. They probably make about $25k each transaction.</p>

<p>I called him Sunday afternoon and asked a lot of questions about the house, he was very nice. At that time they said they didn’t have any offers “Because it just went on the market Friday night”. I took my carpenter over on Monday afternoon and we did some due diligence inspections but the electric and gas utilities were not turned on so we couldn’t figure out if the HVAC system even worked. I called him Monday evening and he says “Oh, we have multiple offers” and he couldn’t even be bothered talking to me. Uggh. </p>

<p>So I made an offer that is probably in 2nd place but my terms were very aggressive. I only asked for inspection period to confirm whether the HVAC worked or not. I even said we don’t have to bother with an escrow company, we will work straight through title company only. This saves both of us about $900 each.</p>

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<p>I have bamboo flooring in my kitchen, although it is a different pattern than what you are putting down. It looks like this: <a href=“http://www.flooring-professionals.com/wp-content/uploads/1970/01/bamboo-flooring.jpg”>http://www.flooring-professionals.com/wp-content/uploads/1970/01/bamboo-flooring.jpg&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>It has held up very well for 13 years, except for one piece on which apparently the finish wasn’t properly done. That piece is pretty scratched up.</p>

<p>We have the light-colored, non-carbonized form. It darkens naturally when exposed to sunlight, and if I pull back the rug under the table it is noticeably lighter than the surrounding floor.</p>

<p>This shows the color better: <a href=“http://www.completeflooringandkitchens.ca/wp-content/uploads/catablog/originals/bamboo_01.jpg”>http://www.completeflooringandkitchens.ca/wp-content/uploads/catablog/originals/bamboo_01.jpg&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Very pretty flooring!</p>