Does anyone have an effective formula for estimating repairs? Paint, carpet, appliances, landscaping…the whole 9 yards!!
I’m working on buying my first rehab and thought of going to Home Depot and guestimating the costs is a daunting one.
The proper formula you’re looking for is: N+O+!
If that doesn’t work for you it’s:
Material cost per square/ sq. ft./ sq/ yd. X the necessary squares/ sq. ft./ sq. yd X 10% to be safe + installation(a “square” is 10’x 10’ or 100 sq. ft., siding, roofing, sometimes insulation are measured by the “square”)
Go to Lowe’s or Home Depot and price the junk out. Lowe’s does a lot of installation on a lot of the major components (roof, siding, HVAC, tile, carpet, etc.) so they will have a price with installation (provided your within 20mi. of the store). Contractors know what the materials cost before they give you an estimate so they know they will make money, I’d suggest you do the same. It’ll only take a weekend .
I make a guess on a house and decide on a number that I can’t go over. I know that in Houston $20k will give you a new house worth of rehab (aside from foundation repair or new roof) 90% of houses can be done less than $10k. I use that to get a 10 day option to purchase the house. During that 10 day inspection period, I take a contractor into the house and get a “firm” quote from him. I then know exactly what it will cost. If the numbers don’t work, I don’t exercise the option. If everything works out, I have that same contractor scheduled for the day I close to start the rehab. I have not cut it that close myself, but a friend of mine had the contractors sitting in a truck out side the title office while he was closing and went out got in the truck and drove them right from the closing to the house to get started.
i’ve heard $8 - $10 per sf as a decent rule of thumb for estimating a full cosmetic rehab (interior & exterior rehab, no structural).
it has been right in the couple of cases i’ve recently applied it (after the fact on my own rehab and in talking to contractors who i’ve driven up to and asked how much the project they were on was costing.)
What do you consider a “full cosmetic rehab”?
What kind of flooring, appliances, ceiling fixtures, doors and windows, cabinets, bathroom fixtures, siding, drywall, paint, light fixtures, landscaping, trash removal, etc. does your $8-10/ sq. ft. include?