Best practices for taking on a fixer-upper house

There are several options home buyers have when they are considering buying and fixing up for profit a fixer-upper type house. They can get one near where they live and they continue to live in their own home while the renovate it. They can buy one at a distance and hire trusted contractors to do the work for them. Or, they can move into the house themselves and live there while they renovate. Each option comes with its pros and cons, but fixer-upper veterans Margie Florini and her husband, Joe Randazzo, prefer to live in the homes they’re renovating. Here is what they’ve learned in their years in the fixer-upper business. Location, location, location First of all, Florini emphasized the importance of location. “We look for the environment and location that works for us. You can change the house but not the location,” she explained. But more than considering whether the house is near to the grocery store or your place of work, look at the location’s specific details, its benefits, its downfalls. Consider house orientation “I look for sad-looking houses in lovely places,” Florini said. Consider whether the neighborhood is nice enough for your renovations to be accurately reflected in the home’s value. It’s possible to over-renovate a home when it’s located in a poor area. Think about how the home sits on its land. Does it feel like everyone walking by on the street is looking in the front window? Which direction is it facing? Will the setting sun shine directly into the dining room during dinner time? Take an expert with you Once you’ve answered these questions and decided the location is okay, it’s time to go on a walk-through (if you can—bank-owned or auction block homes often are not open for you to walk through, but you can look through windows and visit the property). Take a home inspector or builder with you for an expert opinion on possible flaws in structure, electrical wiring, plumbing, etc. The inspector will come up with a list of items to be fixed, but a contractor can help prioritize that list and price everything out for you. For instance, one thing Florini has learned is, “Knob-and-tube [wiring] is a real red flag”  because of how expensive it is to fix. If a house has much of that, you might need to pass it by. Consider living in your fixer-upper One benefit Florini and Randazzo experience with living in the homes they’re renovating is the deadline isn’t so tight. They lived in their first home for 10 years before updating and upgrading it. After adding a sun room, mud room, and second story, they sold the home for three times their investment and didn’t have to worry about two mortgage payments while they were working on it. Interior Decorating and Remodeling News Brought to You by BaseBoardRadiatorCover.com Source:bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/real-estate/2014/11/30/ready-tackle-fixer-upper-here-help/hGnRd701RyR2sACAfR5HrL/story.html