It's important to pay close attention to your real estate rehabs. When repairing systems like plumbing, electrical and roofing, a mistake can be costly.

A thorough inspection of the subject property will serve as a basis from which to begin the rehabilitation. Until you are experienced enough to perform this inspection yourself, it is wise to seek the services of a competent professional.

Most contractors will give you a free estimate of repairs when they know they stand a chance of getting the job.
You may consider exercising your option to do the work yourself. In the beginning, it might be worth while to spend your time working on your properties, but as the number of properties you own increases, you'll be better served to delegate your fix up work to some one else, while you focus on finding more deals.

If you are going to do a fair amount of work on your properties, always keep in mind that if you're not a plumber, electrician, roofer, carpenter or such, don't try to tackle jobs that are beyond your skill level. Leave those jobs for the professionals.

Don't Over Do Your Fix Up

Another word of caution. Many times you'll find that a little cosmetic repair will bring a property back to life, thus saving you lots of money. It is important not to over-rehabilitate your project. If the property is in a low to moderate income neighborhood, the amount of money you spend on such items as flooring, plumbing fixtures, door hardware, etc. would probably be lower than that of a property in a high dollar neighborhood.

Become a Prudent Shopper

Do a little shopping around for the best prices on materials. While your local hardware store may fill your needs when it comes to small items, rarely can they compete with the large contractor warehouse type stores. If you are planning to do some or all the work yourself, I recommend that you purchase good quality tools. Much money is wasted on cheap tools that have to be re-purchased over and over again. If you're performing a small job and have no desire to do your own contracting work, then it doesn't matter as much.

Be aware that you can rent almost any tool you'll ever need from an equipment rental yard. Look in the local telephone directory under “Rental”. While rehabbing the property, pay particular attention to the following:

• Curb appeal: Exterior paint and landscaping are the first and the last thing a buyer or renter sees. Don't skimp – make a good impression. More than likely they'll drive by at different times of the day and night. Give them something pleasant to think about.

• If you're remodeling (moving interior walls around), try to create a design that will give the property an open feeling.

• You may find it more cost effective to replace old, outdated kitchen cabinets with new ones. Look in your local phone directory for cabinetmakers and compare prices.

• Consider using ceramic floor tile instead of sheet goods. It may be a little more expensive, but it will pay off in the long run.

• Consider installing ceramic counter tops instead of the Formica type. Not only are they more durable, they are also more attractive to potential renters or buyers.

When rehabbing, some of the areas to focus your attention are:

• Foundation
• Plumbing system
• Electrical system
• Roofing
• Interior walls
• Exterior walls
• Landscaping

Stay tuned. In the upcoming “Part 2”, I'll discuss foundations, plumbing systems, water heaters, showers and tubs.