If you are a real estate investor, you will have to deal with rehabbing in one or more of your projects. Rehabbing can be a very organized and scientific way of making a property desirable for potential renters. It appears easy if you know what you need to do to achieve your goals. However, most investors find it tough to complete a rehabbing project. In fact, it is the final stage of rehabbing that proves to be the most difficult for investors.
What is the process of rehabbing?
You must set a budget for the rehab and write down the jobs you have to undertake. You give the contract to the contractor who gives accurate estimates and he commences the work. He irons out all the wrinkles and completes the rehab.
Surprisingly, it is not the hiring of the contractor or writing checks that proves to be difficult. It is the finishing stage of the rehab that proves to be the most difficult. This includes painting of surfaces, checking the appliances and fixtures, and all other minor details.
What makes last 10% of the process so difficult?
Here are top reasons why an investor finds the last phase of rehabbing so difficult.
Difficult to coordinate everything to perfection
Rehabbing involves many different jobs, some of which are dependent upon completion of other jobs. Different contractors are doing different jobs and it proves difficult to achieve perfect coordination among them.
Difficult to pay attention to minute details
You are consumed with finishing the task at hand so much that you often fail to pay attention to minute details. These are the details that are spotted by either your buyer or the tenants. These missing details can make your rehabbing a little less effective that it should be.
Workforce is exhausted during the final phase
By the time the project is about to end, all the contractors and their employees’ just want the project to end so they can move on to the next project. Keeping them focused upon the remaining tasks proves to be a daunting challenge for you.
Removing the obstacles
To make sure the final phase of rehabbing goes off quickly and smoothly, you need to clearly spell what you want from the contractors in your agreement. Another play to achieve your goals is to withhold a sizeable chunk of the payment until all the jobs have been finished to your satisfaction. Your final inspection should cover all the finer details as it is your last chance before the payment is released. If your budget permits, you can announce a bonus continent on finishing all the jobs, including minor details, on time. Some contractors add a clause of penalty if the tasks are not completed in high quality on time. This means a policy of stick and carrot to get the job done.
Conclusion
If you are an experienced investor, you know that it is possible to avoid difficulties in the final stages of rehabbing. All it takes is drafting the contract in such a manner that your contractors know that incentives are awaiting them if they do their jobs honestly with full dedication. You need to carry out close inspection in the last stage of rehabbing to scrutinize finer details that can make or mar the entire project. You must show who the boss is by taking harsh decisions and by coordinating the activities of all the contractors. Be alert during the final stages and your rehab project is completed without any hassles. The lure of the incentives takes care of all the tiredness and exhaustion that sets in during the last stages of rehab.
If you’d like to talk more about property management, or you need help with Everest Property Management, please contact us at Everest Realty.
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As a top producing Realtor and Property Manager; Terry specializes in sales, extensive construction homes, rentals, REO’s, short sales, and all aspects of Real Estate. After graduating the University of Michigan with a master in MBA, Terry continued his endeavor and now has over 15+ years of experience in the Real Estate world. If there is anything that has to do with Real Estate and sales, you can always be sure of Terry to provide important, specialized knowledge.
