Making a list

I’m making a list of stuff I would need to know the prices of when I start to rehab. I want to make sure I don’t miss important items when I’m going through Home Depot looking at prices.

Can some of you share some “MUST KNOW THE PRICE OF” items?

Thanks
auggflo

Well, it’s been 40-gallon gas water heater week for me!

I think you should have a general idea of the price of:

  • Doors (interior and exterior in different sizes)
  • Baseboard (by the foot)
  • Sheetrock (cost installed if you don’t do it)
  • Paint (interior/exterior, different sheens)
  • Carpet (by the sq. ft. installed with pad)
  • Vinyl flooring/ceramic tile (installed by the sq. ft.)
  • Plumbing items (faucet, replacement knobs, etc)
  • Tools
  • Framing materials
  • Roofing materials
  • Standard vanilla appliances
  • Counter tops in various materials (installed by the sq. ft.)
  • Kitchen and bath cabinets
  • Kitchen and bathroom sinks
  • Lock sets (interior and exterior)
  • Poured concrete (by the sq. ft.)
  • Switches and outlets
  • Wiring
  • Insulation
  • Replacement window

That should give you a starting place…

Keith

What a great list. Thanks Keith!
This is going to be a fun trip to the Depot.

Thanks
auggflo

If you have the time, spend a couple of hours looking and pricing…they have all kinds of interesting stuff…get to know what it is and know how you might use it.

After high school, I worked for three years in a hardware store…I really learned a lot about how stuff works and how to do things. We had this old guy (like in his late 80s!) that worked a few hours a week with us – what a storehouse of information! I used to pick his brain all the time.

Keith

What a great list Keith!

Add to that your exterior dangers (learned by school of hard knocks):

Tree removal
Fence and/or repairs
Initial clean up and mowing
Drive way repair
Signage

Interior:
Don’t forget lighting and ceiling fans. BTW use Walmart for ceiling fans, I’ve priced them everywhere, including a company that rebuilds them (for high-end that is the way to go – e-mail me if you are want their website, $500 fans for $150 plus shipping, I’ve used them and they are good), but for your basic rental rehab, use Walmart. They just kill the competition.

Hopefully you will only have an initial exterior clean up cost. Where I am, shallow-root pine trees are abundant. The only reason I remove them it to protect my investment. I watch carefully before I buy now, because of how expensive they are to take down.

You are smart to think ahead. Good luck to you.

Auggflo, contact a home improvement center in your area. I did and they have commercial estimators who will give you price quotes for free. Why are you worrying about ‘prices of building materials’ when you should be building your business instead? I agree that you have all estimates in writing but, you should want to deal with a contractor that can do it all. You can also establish a business account with these stores so, you can pay stuff on 30, 60 days or longer. In the end, you may pay more but, you will lose less sleep since these companies will handle the subcontractors and guarantee the work.

JOHN

If you want to do a entire rehab, just figure aobut $7-$8 per square foot, or $12 per square foot if your using a contractor. this is for basic nice material,nothing to fancy though…this is where i am at on the 2 units i have done, and i think a few people on here tend to agree with this number as well. you can go through and make an entire list and go price it, but that will take time, and there will almost always be things that you overlook. Like with laying tiles, you have tile, mortar, grout, and sealent. Staining trim you have stain, sandpaper, and polyethelene. This is where i am learning to cut my time and expenses down after doing 2 houses now…I am still a beginner and still learning, but i spend about as much time in a home improvement center as i do working on the house itself.

black95gt, thanks for your reply. I like those numbers. Could make things a lot easier. What do other’s thing? Would like to hear pros and cons of doing it using these numbers.

Thanks
auggflo

I think you should have a general idea of the price of:
  • Doors (interior and exterior in different sizes)
  • Baseboard (by the foot)
  • Sheetrock (cost installed if you don’t do it)
  • Paint (interior/exterior, different sheens)
  • Carpet (by the sq. ft. installed with pad)
  • Vinyl flooring/ceramic tile (installed by the sq. ft.)
  • Plumbing items (faucet, replacement knobs, etc)
  • Tools
  • Framing materials
  • Roofing materials
  • Standard vanilla appliances
  • Counter tops in various materials (installed by the sq. ft.)
  • Kitchen and bath cabinets
  • Kitchen and bathroom sinks
  • Lock sets (interior and exterior)
  • Poured concrete (by the sq. ft.)
  • Switches and outlets
  • Wiring
  • Insulation
  • Replacement window

That should give you a starting place…

if you want to do it by list dont forget

Blinds
register vents
screws
nails
glue
hinges
tape
and other overlooked pieces like this. This
is what i tend to overlook and forget to add into the prices. this stuff can add up very quickly.

Then when you get your total add 15-20% for contingencies.
I always add the cost for my specialty tools into the price of the house like my tile saw, router, mitre saw. you can also depreciate the tools as well. I can tell you that if you plan on doing houses, buy the tools as you need them. That first house i did, i layed tile by Scoreing the tile and using nippers…boy did i wish i had the tile saw then. Good luck