When we built our personal residence, the contractor left about half the upstairs unfinished. Over the last 2 years, the mister has wittled away at the space in his spare time, finishing out a bedroom suite for DS and a gameroom for hisself. During Ike, we housed fleeing relatives in the aforementioned gameroom and discovered that the half bathroom we’d put off ’til last probably should’ve been higher up the priority list. The only upstairs bathroom is a Jack-and-Jill meaning our relatives either had to traipse past other sleeping relatives or trot downstairs by flashlight.

So to start the project, another Toto Ultramax arrived via Ebay via UPS to further clutter up the mister’s garage (amazing how much packaging surrounds a toilet.) After 7 years with 6 people crammed in a shoebox doublewide with 2 low-flow toilets from Hades, we love, love, love these beauties and having all potties match makes the half bath look planned rather than afterthought (or so we hope.) Which left only a couple of things to choose and, big-shot rehabbers that we are, it should’ve been no problem picking out something as simple as a sink, right? Right??

 (good gravy…)

After many tushie-numbing trips to town coupled with much gnashing of teeth, we arrived at Ikea in Houston looking for something else entirely which eventually meant meandering through the bathroom stuff as no one around here can stay on-task for more than 23 minutes tops. We soon found ourselves surrounded by 20-something urbanites who whipped around our stodgy-selves like so many lemmings around a boulder as we made many fascinating comments such as, “this stuff isn’t half bad” and ”it’s pretty good actually” and “would you just smack one of these Blackberry-toting, pencil-necked pups and ask them how-the-heck we’re suppose to purchase anything with only a golf pencil and paper scrap??”

Eventually, we did prevail with only a select few Irritating Hipsters harmed in the process. But it wasn’t the mister’s fault as he’s  a Very Big Guy Indeed and all the college grads these days seem to be very delicate little weenie babies who want their mommy at the least little provocation.

So here’s the sink and faucet:

Hollviken sink: 31″, $100. Faucet $50 but doesn’t appear to be on their website.

And the base:

Flaren: $129. Picture taken crammed into corner of 4′x6′ space with cabinet occupying the middle ground.

Gameroom: The open door is the half bath in progress. Note the light over the pool table…

… and see how it (sorta) looks like this outdoor fixture we found at Lowes for $18. The glass (which isn’t installed in this picture) has tiny bubbles throughout which gives a very nice effect.

More pictures once the mister finishes but so far it’s looking good.

Popularity: 8% [?]

Tags: bathroom, building products, Ikea, Rehab

This property is still on the market and I’ve been rolling ideas around, trying to come up with something to make the place profitable without depleting our cash reserves completely.

So I’m standing at the kitchen sink, washing the icky-ness from the breakfast dishes, see? Minding my own business, see? And like a dufus, I notice this:

The view from my kitchen window…notice anything interesting? Neither did I.

The memory of our neighbor standing by those horses smacked me like a wet mackerel across the chops:

“Sold nannie’s house for $8000… gave the guy 4 months to move the d*** thing, but he never got ’round to it.”

I’ve been looking out that window everyday for a year without actually *seeing* that house.

The possibility of anything coming from this is slim, but the lesson’s clear enough– opportunities are everywhere if you just keep your eyes open.

Popularity: 10% [?]

Tags: real estate investment, Rehab, rent houses

Confessions of a Former RK Addict

My first real estate investment book purchase wasn’t actually about real estate at all–RK’s Rich Dad books inspired us to action and I will be forever grateful.

Unfortunately, most of the real estate advice and examples were seriously dated, going back to before the humongous tax reforms that changed real estate investment forever back in the ’80’s. I came away with some vague ideas on buying property for nothing down on the courthouse steps, forming an S Corp and hiding out our assets in Nevada.

It took months of re-programing just to pick through the train-wreck on the floor of my brain to form a coherent plan that might someday work in our locale. I feel a bit silly now… if I’d just known that RK’s strength is financial literacy and inspiration, maybe I wouldn’t have gorged on multiplex ownership at the all-you-can-eat buffet.

To The Rescue

Just finished reading Terry Sprouse’s book, Fix Em Up, Rent Em Out, and sitting here wishing I’d had this resource back then. This is just right–concise and tightly focused with a workable plan to get moving forward. Had this been our first intro to REI, we might’ve started 2-3 years sooner.

The first sentence of the introduction targets Terry’s audience like a Patriot Missile: “This book is aimed at the person who has a strong desire to invest in real estate but wants to keep his or her regular 9 to 5 job.” And with that, the cobwebs of my mind cleared–most REI books are a waste of money because they just don’t apply. An innocent newbie could plow through 18 chapters before discovering the intended audience is “twenty-two year old felons from Detroit with ADD and shattered credit who can’t hold a job more than 6 months due to authority issues.”

But I digress…

My favorite chapters have to be Chapter 8:  Renting Out Houses (we’ve been landlords awhile and I still yellowed up the whole chapter) and 11: A Tale of Two Investment Strategies (love, love, loved reading about his experience with these two houses~)

Without breaking a sweat, about 10 people come to mind who could use this book. Good job, Terry– very nice indeed:)

Popularity: 12% [?]

Tags: Rehab, REI, rent houses

Books That Deserve a First, Second, Third and Thirty-third Reading

Reading this wonderful post over on Shaun’s blog, How To Get Started In Real Estate For Under $400, got me thinking about our own beginning in REI. For starters, our experience closely mirrored his post (never tried #10… just not a birddog by nature). And I can’t help wondering how much we spent on our real estate and financial education. Books by the dozens followed me home, some helpful, some not-so-much.  Many’s the time, I wished for an outhouse just so the book wouldn’t be a total waste. 

So in the spirit of meat for the hungry, here’s a list of favorite authors. These are the books re-read between projects.

For inspiration:

• The first few books by Robert Kiyosaki, particularly Rich Dad/Poor Dad, Rich Kid/Smart Kid, Cash Flow Quadrant. These started our journey to financial independence. It took way too long to figure out they don’t actually tell you *how* to do a single thing and much of the advice is seriously dated and/or doesn’t work InYourLocalMarket. Still, I recommend them to everyone because the concepts are foreign to most and nobody tells the story better.
• Richest Man in Babylon by George Clason. If you haven’t read this book, buy a copy right-this-minute and send me a big thank you donation when you’re financially free. And I’m not joking- read and apply the principles and your life will change. (Make sure you’re reading the original version written in 1926 as a series of pamphlets– several contemporary authors have written books with the same or very nearly the same title.)

For practical application, anything by:

• Jay P. DeCima aka Fixer Jay (author of Start Small, Profit Big in Real Estate and Investing in Fixer-Uppers) Jay’s method will work almost anywhere making his books an exception to the general rule that most real estate books are big on pep-talk and low on practical application. The mister and I read his books about once a year.
• Lonnie Scruggs - Lonnie’s known as the mobile home guy (Deals on Wheels and Making Money With Mobile Homes) but I love his books for another reason-he understands the principle of compound interest. Read through his stuff and you’ll begin to see the Richest Man in Babylon principles worked out practically in the present day.  (I’ve got his latest book, Taking the Mystery Out of Money, on order and plan to review it separately.)

Note: Terry Sprouse over on Fixer Uppers and Rentals Houses has a book titled, Fix Em Up, Rent Em Out, that looks particularly good, especially for anyone getting started. It’s next on the reading list with a full review planned for next week.

Popularity: 12% [?]

Tags: getting started in REI, landlord, Rehab, rent houses

 We made it over to the house late last night to check on the tile installation.

Couldn’t get back far enough to get a shot of the entire kitchen without stepping on the newly laid tile.

A slightly different angle

Some preliminary ceramic tile photos:

I’m really liking this terracotta color. The texture on this tile is particularly nice.

A view into the bedrooms– the continuous installation makes the room seems larger.

Popularity: 22% [?]

Tags: ceramic tile, glazing kitchen cabinets, Rehab, rent house

The cabinets are glazed~! For complete DIY instructions, try Ask The Decorator– (includes an excellent video and checklist.)

Marc Bridges is a dear friend and I can’t thank him enough for his help. After a full day cutting hair at one of the swankiest hair studios in Houston (M Salon, on Richmond), he drove to the middle of nowhere to teach the mister cabinet glazing techniques. He also showed great forebearance with the hefty helping of silliness that accompanies any Brz family project.

 Before mixing, the glaze looks like thick elmer’s glue. Marc had this left over from a previous project so we’re not sure the exact paint to glaze ratio.

Getting started takes intense concentration– at least from Marc.

Rubbing the glaze into the drawers using cheesecloth, paying special attention to the corners and molding.

Wipe-off technique demonstration.

 Touching up the corners with a small brush to give definition.

Finished drawer taken without flash to show the color.

The pantry door– can’t wait to see how the cabinets look once the floor’s installed

Popularity: 29% [?]

Tags: glazing cabinets, kitchen makeover, Rehab, rent houses

Marc’s on his way over right-this-minute. As soon as he arrives, we’re going over to Magnolia to glaze the kitchen cabinets~ Happy Dance! (The mister would like to point out that, technically speaking, he and Marc will glaze and I will chronicle for posterity via digital imaging although I would like to point out that no one would *know* unless the photographer were in attendance.)

To illustrate, a few pictures to show progress so far:

Before: Cabinets were non-functional–doors didn’t close, drawers were missing.

During: My nephew, Christopher, repaired  and rebuilt the cabinets. Can’t tell much from the picture, but things are much better.

Mr. Brz sprayed the cabinets and doors using oil based primer and paint (Sherwin Williams: Dover White.)

He turned the living room into a spray paint gallery by taping off the walls with sheet-plastic. The walls are Sherwin Williams Softer Tan.

And this one’s included because my honey looks so cute through the window from the porch.

Popularity: 24% [?]

Tags: painting cabinets, real estate investment, Rehab, rent houses

We paid 83K for this 3/2/2 in 2004 with nothing but our good credit rating, an 80/20 loan, and a handful of credit cards. We borrowed enough to pay closing costs from family until our income tax refund came back.

Everyone’s got to start somewhere. I’ve hesitated to show our first purchase because the before pictures are gone-with-the-wind and its hard to imagine how truly hideous this place really was without a visual. The owner inherited the house and lived for years without working plumbing, without ac/heat and without paying taxes. The walls were sherbet green. The clashing  green, builder-grade carpet had never met a vacuum, much less a cleaning. Fiberboard cabinets in the kitchen and bathrooms had disintegrated years before and literally hung off the walls at odd angles.

Much worse than any dirt were the signs of violence– exterior doors kicked in, holes in the sheetrock and interior doors at fist level. Books in the closet were truly upsetting (printing the titles would probably get us flagged by various government agencies that I’d just as soon avoid.) Family photos left on the wall showed smiling mom, smiling dad and smiling children. The juxtaposition of photos and evidence of repeated violence was scary.

Mr. Brz and child-units worked every available day for 6 months to complete repairs. On May 30, the family declared the house finished and we celebrated. Around the table that night, I heard a steady chorus of ‘if I never set foot in that house again, it’ll be too soon.’

On May 31st, a massive oak tree destroyed the trailer we’d lived in for 7 years. Friends arrived on June 1st and moved us into what was intended to be our first rent house in one afternoon. We were very thankful that night

What We Did

Sweetened condensed version: 

• Everything behind the sheetrock was okay– wiring, plumbing, windows, brick
• Everything visible outside the sheetrock had to be rebuilt or replaced– cabinets, counters, faucets, flooring, sinks, toilets, tubs, light fixtures, ceiling fans, air conditioner, heater, and appliances.

Big backyard: I spent most of the 18 months we lived in this house sitting under the far tree and thanking the good Lord we had a place to go. Real estate investment was literally a safe harbor–a cushion in a time of crisis.

We found a local carpenter who built these solid oak cabinets for less than the cost of prefab. We saved by finishing them ourselves. The laminate counters sweep up the wall to form the backsplash.

The mister installed these pedestal sinks  ($110 at HDepot) and beadboard paneling in both bathrooms. It was an economical solution that prospective tenant see as an upgrade.

Ceramic tile throughout makes the house feel larger than 1550 sq. ft. It’s also a breeze to clean between tenants.

As soon as we moved in, we refinanced using OO (owner occupied) financing. The house appraised for $120K. We were able to roll in closing costs and avoid PMI. With the new, lower interest rate our note was reduced by over $100 /month. Today this house rents for $1150, has positive cashflow of $400/month and recently appraised for $130K.

Sweet

Popularity: 14% [?]

Tags: getting started in real estate, real estate investment, Rehab, rent house

At high noon, the mister heads out the door for an afternoon of fun and profit sanding kitchen cabinet doors. At 12:01, Mrs. Brz heads out the door to visit her mother. At 12:04, the phone rings, child-unit #3 fields an emergency call from a highly agitated Mr. Brz.  At 12:08, a face appears at the mother-in-law’s window. Much hand waving and wild pantomime ensues indicating a state of family emergency. 

The amplitude of gesturing and jumping  indicates some terrible tragedy has befallen us… perhaps a tiny Cat 5 hurricane swept through Chambers county overnight hitting the investment house dead-center, leaving destruction and mayhem in its wake? Or maybe a band of marauding wombats has taken up residence in the kitchen, keeping the mister from his appointed sanding duties? Or maybe city hall’s called another emergency meeting to demand even larger checks?

No… it appears the peel-n-stick tile is not sticking.

Having known this man 30 years (and having witnessed a wide variety of panic maneuvers), it did cross my mind that the emergency at hand might be slightly less earth shattering than indicated.  But the mister is usually right, even with evidence to the contrary. He’s the smartest guy ever. Sometimes he can’t articulate exactly what’s wrong, but all that fancy dancing usually has a basis firmly anchored far, far away in the mist-shrouded regions of solid fact. And being a very smart wife indeed, I trust those instincts even when he’s doing The-Sky-Is-Falling dance on mom’s front deck.

So an emergency conference is called, tiles are examined, corners are declared un-stuck when they’re stuck perfectly fine, the mister decides the house ‘needs’ ceramic tile and the budget’s taking another hit for the home team.

This looks like a perfect time to bring up my theory on ceramic tile counters

We’re thinking about the terracotta colored tile on the top row… the same color as the dirt in the yard. Prices have increased since our last installation from $3/sq. ft. to $3.60/sq. ft.

Popularity: 21% [?]

Tags: ceramic tile, flooring, peel-n-stick, Rehab

A Little Demolition Goes a Long Way

Floorplan: Before

And After:

A few days back, I took my friend Marc over to see our latest project. Not only is he a great guy, he’s also looking for a place to rent and we’ve been trying to wrangle him into one of ours for a while. He’s also blunt– a valuable trait in a friend.

While I was busy pointing out the new utility room, siding, windows, fixtures and other neat-o stuff, Marc was busy turning in circles, staring blankly around the room and obviously not paying a bit of attention to my witty repartee. I’ve seen this look on his face before. As Mr. Free says, ‘the gears were turning.’

“I’d knock this out… it’s totally useless. Then someone might actually be able to arrange their furniture.”

Oops…

‘This’  is a little half-wall partition, jutting out about three feet into the living room. Its ugly. Every visit to the house, someone would grab a pole, give it a shake and say, “we’ve got to do something about this.” But nothing was done– and ‘this’ kept slipping through the editing process.

As soon as Marc spoke, I saw the invisible couches, chairs, and tables he was so busy arranging in his head and he was absolutely right. With ‘this’ removed, the kitchen pantry lined up perfectly with the living room wall, giving the combination living/dining room a nice, rectangular shape.

It took Mr. Brz about 10 minutes to remove ‘this”… major improvement for such a small amount of effort. And a reminder that furniture arrangement is important to tenants.

 From now on, we’re inviting Marc over before getting started

Yanking down the decorative thingies

Half-wall is down and, fortunately, it looks like this partition was an after-thought

You can see that the pantry and living room wall line up perfectly– and that the pantry was finished out all the way to the floor. Mr. Brz’s pulling nails with his favorite tool.

Pulling up the boards nailed to the concrete took the longest. You can see the original flooring under the boards.

Popularity: 6% [?]

Tags: demolition, floorplan, investment, real estate, Rehab

Dad and DD1 back in ‘87 on the deck he made of salvaged airport landing pads from Ellington Field

My dad use to take me hunting as a kid. As far as I know, he never picked up a rifle after leaving the Marine Corp, but he loved a good bargain and rundown shacks were his specialty. After years of following him through some of the dumpiest rot-holes in East Texas, a few of the fundamentals began to sink in–

Foundation problems=bad

Water damage=even more badder

So when the mister and I are out and about, searching for our next real estate bargain, I’m checking the brick and drywall for settlement and looking for those tell-tale signs of leak-i-ness. Undaunted by such minor details, the mister has a different list: wallpaper and…

Popcorn Ceilings

(Dum dum dum-de duuuuum)

The Things We Love to Hate

I’m pretty sure this is an ingrained aversion somehow linked to the Y-chromosome. When Mr. Brz and his pals get together around the fire in the driveway, someone invariably brings up one or the other, at which point much groaning and commiserating ensues. When the decibel level reaches a certain pitch, the ladies sitting daintily in the parlor flip a coin and the winner pops a head out the door–

“HONEY? CHERYL JUST GAVE US *4* ROLLS OF WALLPAPER  FOR THE BATHROOM. ISN’T THAT GREAT?”

At which point we slam the door, giggle hysterically, and head back to the coffeepot for another round. 

As mildly amusing and relatively pointless as that may be, it brings us to the Subject at Hand quite nicely. Clifford over on Changing My Direction has a cool video he put together on removing popcorn from poor, unsuspecting ceilings. Such a nice job!

On our current rehab, Frank the Contractor, surprised us by having his crew stamp right over the old popcorn with a round brush in a crowsfoot pattern. The result was surprisingly nice, but I’m told this only worked because our popcorn was of the smaller variety and had already been sealed in the past with some sort of semi-gloss paint.

Mr. Brz says it’s marvelous, especially since he didn’t have to deal

Popularity: 20% [?]

Tags: ceiling repair, popcorn ceilings, Rehab, removing popcorn, renovation

If These Floors Could Talk

The little house we’re completing now is one of my favorites. The first time we snuck inside, tiptoed through the fallen ceiling tiles while dodging the dead wasps on the floors, I knew this ratty little shack was going to be a keeper.

Repo’s are generally a mess. Holes in the sheetrock, exposed plumbing, missing doors, drawers and hardware… anyone who’s looked at a few knows what I mean. This one was *really* something. Mr. Brz and I have poked fun at the odd construction of the house, the non-square-ness of every door, window and corner, the way the roof slants 3 inches from one side of the house to the other. We snickered, speculated, and laughed ourselves silly. What were they thinking? Just how drunk were they when they framed this window? As you can tell, we’re just a barrel of laughs.

Then we pulled up the old flooring.

Underneath we found this… do you see it?

How about now?

And now after much photoshopping?

The rope swing on the hackbark tree out front should’ve tipped us off.

Real people, real dreams, real troubles, real sad.

I’m planning to be kinder in the future to the unknown former owners of the homes we’re rehabilitating.

And I’m going to say a little prayer for Michael, LeAnn and Joshua… wherever they are.

Note: I wrote a series of articles on the Magnolia house for RenoNation at www.Atticmag.com. If you’d like a visual, start to finish, click here.

Popularity: 8% [?]

Tags: investment, real estate, Rehab, renovation