Just bought a foreclosure to 'flip".......{gulp}

[MotorSeven]

Well sports fans...I think I have lost my mind. Went to a foreclosure auction on Wed and bought a 2001 3br 2ba house on .44 ac for $22,500. It was the only house in a small nice subdivision that had been inhabited by rodent-like humans. I remember driving by it 3 years ago and shaking my head at the mounds of garbage in the yard.

The interior is a mess/needs a truckload of bleach & Kilz, all new flooring, roof leaked in 3 different spots & I doubt the central ac/heat works. Exterior is all vinyl and in good shape, bathrooms are all intact and undamaged, kitchen cabinets are oak and also in good shape. I mowed the lawn yesterday and hauled off a trailer load of lawn art, climbed up on the roof and found the roof in remarkable shape except for 3 small places where the shingles were GONE I'll post up the pictures as I go. Right now my estimate is about two solid weeks of work & $10K to have it ready.


I tell y'all, sticking our necks out is very unsettling even if the potential pay off will be over $30K.

 

[dave1949]

Sounds like a reasonable deal where the neighborhood will support the value. 2001 is not old, so that helps.

Good luck!

 

[oldnslo]

Best wishes and lets hope there aren't more surprises waiting..

 

[EddieWalker]

Congratulations. I used to flip houses for awhile in the 90's, but got out of it when the market collapsed and it got harder and harder to find buyers. One thing that I learned and lived by was to do everything with the goal of making it appeal to the largest number of potential buyers. Don't make anything trendy of fashionable. Think of what the buyers are wanting, keep in neutral and make it spotless clean. Curb appeal is everything, but once inside, they have to be thinking of making it their own and how it's going to be for them to live there. Pretty colors on the walls or cabinets is only going to limit your options. I have a client right now who I'm helping get their house ready to sell with bright red kitchen cabinets. I think they are ugly and a huge mistake. The wife loves them and thinks they are what will sell the house. Her husband wants them painted white, but she isn't allowing it. My guess is that it's going to sit on the market for a lot longer then it needs to because of that kitchen.

Eddie

 

[MotorSeven]

I forgot to add this. The bidding was between me and one other guy, a local I know. If one of us had no shown up, the other could have bought this house for $1 plus the auction company's fee of $2,500. First thing that came to my mind was Maxwell Smart's "Missed it by that much"........{sigh}:

Get Smart: Missed it by that much - YouTube

 

[MotorSeven]

I was waiting for you to chime in Eddie. Here is the attack plan:

-Thatch in new shingles today
-have water & power turned on then hope I don't hear hissing or smell anything burning
-tractor and bush hog the overgrown back yard that blocks a fantastic view down the valley
-haul off all the 'stuff" inside including the flooring and water damaged ceiling sheetrock insulation & flooring
-bleach all surfaces
-repair ceilings & either re-popcorn or scrap it all off, or use drywall mud and brush print ceilings
-tape off an spray kilz on all ceilings & walls(yes this is a must ...trust me)
-paint ceilings & walls with semi gloss white
-carpet the bedrooms, laminate the kitchen, living room & hallway
-repair/replace ac unit
-replace front and back door, both have been kicked in more then once
-repair existing covered deck, then build additional open deck(10x15ish) to take advantage of the backyard view
-install new fridge & stove

I can't remember what was down in the bathrooms, vinyl or tile so both may need to be replaced. I am sure i missed a few things, but that is the bulk of it. I already crawled into the crawl space and saw nothing terrible except spyders, vapor barrier was intact and it was dry.

 

[s219]

Be careful with the bleach -- it can start corrosion on metal stuff like nails, hardware, wiring, ducting, etc (don't ask me how I know). If you have mold, Concrobium works great and can be fogged into rooms.

I look forward to the pics and progress. This definitely sounds like a doable project. Of course, it's the unexpected undoable stuff that always slows things down and costs more... ;-)

 

[radioman]

hmm -- in my opinion, you there are already making mistakes in your plan. the popcorn -- yes scrape it all off. no more popcorn. it sells with no popcorn IMHO. Use FLAT white, not semi. flat hides any imperfections and becomes more neutral and pleasing to the eye for buyers. If the door,trims is already white then by all means go ahead and paint them semi. as for kilz-- if all walls and ceiling needs it, then I think its cheaper and easier to cover all with 3/8 new drywall. This way , the walls look new, not painted over look which helps to sell . This way even the best stainblocker might have bled thru giving you grief down the road.

 

[radioman]

hmm eddie beat me to it in posting time...

 

[riptides]

I was waiting for you to chime in Eddie. Here is the attack plan:

-Thatch in new shingles today
-have water & power turned on then hope I don't hear hissing or smell anything burning
-tractor and bush hog the overgrown back yard that blocks a fantastic view down the valley
-haul off all the 'stuff" inside including the flooring and water damaged ceiling sheetrock insulation & flooring
-bleach all surfaces
-repair ceilings & either re-popcorn or scrap it all off, or use drywall mud and brush print ceilings
-tape off an spray kilz on all ceilings & walls(yes this is a must ...trust me)
-paint ceilings & walls with semi gloss white
-carpet the bedrooms, laminate the kitchen, living room & hallway
-repair/replace ac unit
-replace front and back door, both have been kicked in more then once
-repair existing covered deck, then build additional open deck(10x15ish) to take advantage of the backyard view
-install new fridge & stove

I can't remember what was down in the bathrooms, vinyl or tile so both may need to be replaced. I am sure i missed a few things, but that is the bulk of it. I already crawled into the crawl space and saw nothing terrible except spyders, vapor barrier was intact and it was dry.

Ditch the pop corn, mud use gets expensive on time and effort, IF your not good at it.
Ditch the semi-gloss. Flats hide imperfections and allow easier paint overs later.

IMHO

 

[riptides]

Ditch the pop corn, mud use gets expensive on time and effort, IF your not good at it.
Ditch the semi-gloss. Flats hide imperfections and allow easier paint overs later.

IMHO

And never mind my post, sheesh...... timing is everything!

great minds think alike.

 

[tcartwri]

Be careful with the bleach -- it can start corrosion on metal stuff like nails, hardware, wiring, ducting, etc (don't ask me how I know). If you have mold, Concrobium works great and can be fogged into rooms.

Have you used this first hand? Interested in your experience.

 

[bdeboer]

Without knowing your local market or being able to see the view, I wouldn't spend the money on the deck.

I would guess that the house will sell about the same one way or the other.

 

[grsthegreat]

The foreclosures in your area are way cheaper than in my area. I am in tye process of closing on a 1998 house, 3br, 2 bath needing minor cosmetic work. Got it in the 95K price range.

the house appraised last year at 149K, so its a good deal. Im not in the market to flip, i plan on renting it out. Rents in this area are 900-1000/month. I figure 100K in the bank CD is earning about $104/month. So 900-1000 per month is alot better use of this money.


Also, i 3rd or 4th Eddies idea of flat paint on ceilings. I made the mistake years ago of rolling semigloss on the lids...what a mistake.

I still like semi gloss on the walls though. easier to clean small handprints,etc.

 

[murphy1244]

Have you used this first hand? Interested in your experience.

I did HVAC and I've seen lots of Rust caused by Bleach.

 

[RobertBrown]

I tell y'all, sticking our necks out is very unsettling even if the potential pay off will be over $30K.

Nothing ventured....Nothing gained.
I wish I could say you have made a smart purchase, but I can't because I know nothing of the market where your at, or how you paid for it.

How bad could it go?
Seems to me you're not going to regret this and your probably going to come out ahead.
Best of luck, the quicker you can sell it, the better off you will be. Renting maybe a good option too, hard to say from where I am.
Hope you make a bundle. :thumbsup:

 

[Dr Dave]

Sounds like a good deal, hope you dont find any surprises.

Dave

 

[MotorSeven]

ok, 10-4 on the semi gloss ceilings, I will do flat. My mistake on the popcorn..it isn't, it looks like mud and a sponge or brush...I'll shoot some pictures of it tomorrow. I worked on the roof today until I could not touch the surface, or pick up a shingle or my flat bar that was sitting in the sun...could fried an egg on them. I'm on the second bundle of shingles...lots of small repairs...must have been that hail storm we had 2 years ago that caused $6K of damage to Les's Sorrento...golf ball sized stuff.

Used the tractor to brush hog 30 more feet of back yard, cut down a "shrubbery"(said in a high British nasal accent) that was growing through the deck steps and overhanging the roof. Pushed all the cuttings down the hill in the back yard.

bdboer, I think a nice deck will accent the view and will cost me less then $1K and two days of work. If there was no view I would agree, but the house is kinda small at 1200 sq ft, so a deck will add much needed space. Anyway, I am a deck guy, built them as a second job for almost 30 years & can do them in my sleep.....easy and quick.

Here is the roof as I found it: