New Property New Renovations

So I've got a few weeks until settlement and I've been planning what to do with this property even before they accepted my contract. The new property is in Girrawheen W.A. and needs some desperate renovations. My plan is to renovate, rent out and in a few years demolish & development.

Link to the property is below, it does look as bad as the photos but it is all cosmetic.

http://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-wa-girrawheen-119952129

My plans are to gut the property and get it rental able
Paint the house
Install a second hand kitchen which I already have
Redo the bathroom tiling
Install new carpet or clean up the floor boards underneath
Clean up the front and back by either removing the trees or trimming them.
Misc repairs like guttering, replace fibre board, wardrobes.

Most of the work will be done myself with a budget of $10-$15,000. The difference is if I remove the front trees professionally, asbestos removal (if needed) and anything unforseen.

Here is a link to an identical property in the same suburb but this one is in much better condition
http://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-wa-girrawheen-120355369

 

This is the kitchen I got from a house about to be demolished.

 

Looks like you'll be busy over the next few months! I'll be keeping a close eye on your thread as I'm about to start doing something similar to one of our properties in Rivervale.

Love the kitchen you managed to get. How did you find out about that house that was being demolished and what did they charge you for the kitchen?

How exciting.

 

My plans are to get it completed in 1 month, I'll be taking 8 days off work and the way my roster works it ends up being 3 weeks. I can also increase that time without a problem.

The kitchen I found off gumtree and pulled it out yesterday. I paid $1500 for the kitchen and they let me take anything else I wanted, so I got security screens, lights and I might go back and get some more stuff. Their was a perfectly working LG split system but it's to big for the house, also it was to much effort to remove due to it having to be degassed which costs money and the property isn't connected to power which adds to the cost.

 

You mean 3 years or more, if your gunna demo I wouldn't get too carried away i.e tipping unnecessary funds into it.
If current tenants are reliable and happy to stay suck it up as long as you can, if they move do some basic tidy up with paint etc and budget re-let.
I empathise the excitement but tipping 15k into something a diggers gunna knock over, trucks gunna cart away?

 

Hopefully a few years, rezoning this suburb has been delayed multiple times.

I just want to reno to get it revalued afterward and also make it neutral geared.

The owner is currently living in the property and has since 1998. Doesn't look like that have ever repaired anything & they are moving out.
I wouldn't call it rent able at the moment and wouldn't want to rent it out, it's very dirty.

 

Ok, looked like tenanted, owner lives worse than some tenants I've seen.

I'd paint the panel board in the kitchen/dining
Pull the carpet and see how good the timber comes up with a polish, wouldn't put down more carpet, vinyl if anything.
Wall paper and holes looks like a bit of work along with the sagged ceiling.
You could make up some sliders for the robes, paint the sides
No pics of the rest

How much did that kitchen cost, get it from Gumtree?

 

nice place! ill come squat there for a while till you settle, and ill remember to take my vitamins (note on the microwave)
Next perth day meetup locale? byo chainsaw, i checked out the street view. you'll need to get rid of them at some stage might as well do it now

good project! is there wallpaper through most of it?

 

That's a great idea for weekend Perth meet ups, I'll bring my chainsaw & tools, each of us when renos required has a turn, puts on the BBQ and drinks

 

Good ideas, I will see how stuck that panel board is as I've removed some before from a brick wall. I had to skim coat the wall as it left lots of holes everywhere from the glue. If it's asbestos painting over will be a smart idea.
If the timber sanding costs a lot I might do vinyl as I don't expect the tenants to look after carpet.
The holes in the walls are an easy fix & the sagged ceiling is for the outside extension. Probably a leak somewhere.
Sliders for the robes is a good idea.

I got an OK to the property today to takes lots of photos and get measurements. I'm going to ask the owner if she mines me doing stuff outside while she still lives there.

 

haha the owner still lives there so you wouldn't be able to squat

Wallpaper is everywhere but I've been able to remove wall paper easy.

 

I'll be in that! Mine next weekend?!

 

Looks like the wallpaper is already coming off so hopefully will be easy enough.
If there are floorboard underneath (most likely) then it might be better to hire a sander and DIY than do new carpet.

That is a nice kitchen you've picked up.

 

Beer and chainsaws!

I was thinking DIY as Bunnings have hire sanders. I've read posts from people who have done it and the said it is a pain it the butt.

I will post up some more photos later today, going to spend about 30 minutes at the place to write down a list of what needs doing and have a chat with the owner as well. I might try get some sample of suspected asbestos so I can get it tested early.

 

Haha - always a good combo!

 

Good think it's compulsory for all houses to be sold with RCDs to help protect over enthusiastic handymen. DH was soooo enthralled with his new electric hedge trimmer he cut through the power cord. RCD to the rescue

 

Sanding is fairly straight forward and be alot cheaper (<$1000 diy) compared to carpet and newflooring >$4000(?)
I did a lounge and hallway <40m2 over a weekend, One day sanding

 

Well I've just come back from getting measurements and photos and it's better then I expected after they have removed most of their belongings.

• The wood floors are in very good condition so I will stick with them, they might not even need a sand, two bedrooms have carpet over the wood but just lift up.
• The kitchen, dining, laundry & toilet have three different types of lino. I might lay stuff straight over the top due to it maybe being asbestos.
• The outside extension room wasn't sagging it's just the foam ceiling which needs reseating.
• The 3 tree trunks are not very thick. Two I could do myself but one would need to be done professional due to the power line.
• The garage/shed is in very good condition.
• One of the neighbours wood fences is in bad condition, will need to be fixed/replace before renting.
• Most of the interior walls are plasterboard, I don't know about the bathroom or lounge room.
• The cornicing and ceiling in the house is in very good condition, just dirty.
• It has aircon vents in the ceiling but I don't know if it works, forgot to ask.
• Some of the lights in the house don't work as well as the ceiling fans. Easy fix.

I had a good chat to the owner so I got the back story why the place was run down.

I also suspect their are some problems with the power points due to extension cables being everywhere.

 

I noticed the lights were plugged into the power points in a few of the rooms. Light circuit buggered perhaps?? new light and fan combo easy fix and lift a room for little cost

un likely it would be ducted air con, would it?? Or would it be one of the, on the roof de humidifiers? Cut out the duct vent and plaster over, get a couple of wall mount air cons, or split system

 

Yep I would say electrical problems but the RCD's & smoke alarms don't look that old. I would say they didn't both spending money to fix the problems.

I'm looking at google maps satellite view and I can not see a air con unit on the roof.