Hidden Coast's first out-of-state and multifamily property, conveniently purchased prior to the announcement that Intel would be building the largest chip manufacturing plants in the United States only 45-minutes away in Licking Counting, Ohio.
Project details
Property type: duplex
Square footage: 2812 (1406 per unit excluding the basements)
Year built: 1965
Neighborhood: Eastmoor
Bedrooms: 3 per unit
Bathrooms: 1 full, 1 half per unit
Noteworthy: 2-car detached garage and one unit has a finished basement
Intentions
Our goal with this property, like all others, is to renovate it to a high standard that is appropriate for the neighborhood in terms of value. The kitchen will feature new white shaker cabinets, granite countertops, black matte hardware, and stainless steel appliances. The bathrooms will have upscale tile showers, granite top vanities, and black matte hardware to match the kitchen theme. Fortunately, the original floors are in fair condition, so we plan to refinish them. For the rest of the property, including the kitchens, bathrooms, and finished basement, we will install new luxury vinyl tile to contrast with the dark stain we have chosen for the wood floors.
The garage is in rough shape and will require replacement of all wood sheathing and fascia boards, as well as installation of new .60mil rubber EPDM roofing. The good news is that EPDM roofing can last upwards of 20-30 years with proper maintenance. Additionally, we will install a new garage door with a lock to provide extra storage space for one of the units.
The rest of the exterior is in relatively good condition, but we will still install new gutters, power wash, touch up the paint, replace the rear exterior awnings, and landscape to improve the curb appeal for our future tenants.
Renovation updates
We purchased this property on November 1st, 2021, and after collecting all estimates, we officially started renovating the property on January 17th, 2022. We will add new photos below in the order of the completed work, along with a few notes. January 17th 2022
This week, the focus was on demolishing the existing finishes, such as cabinets, counters, vanities, and floors. Additionally, the team worked on installing new electrical features, including white outlets, switches, and matte black fixtures throughout the property. The construction of the kitchen cabinets and backsplash installation also began. Finally, the old, damaged awnings were replaced with modern metal awnings that are expected to last indefinitely.
February 7th 2022
The team has been working diligently this week to install Luxury Vinyl Plank (LVP) flooring throughout the property in areas where hardwood flooring does not exist. LVP is a popular choice for rental properties as it is scratch and dent resistant, and completely waterproof. These features make it an ideal choice for long-lasting flooring, which should last at least 10-15 years with regular use. In contrast to the neutral walls, we opted for a light floor color that contrasts the refinished wood floor off of the staircase. This choice should also make the downstairs living room and kitchen feel more spacious.
In addition to the flooring, we painted all of the walls Agreeable Gray in an eggshell sheen to resist light wear and tear in common areas while covering most minor wall imperfections.
In the next update, we will showcase the almost-finished kitchen, the new detached garage roof, and the newly painted trim, ceiling, and doors.
February 11th 2022
As the snow starts to melt, we wanted to give you a quick update on the garage renovation. We've installed new sheathing, 60mil EPDM rubber, and vinyl fascia board, as you can see in the pictures below. Next, we will paint the trim white to match the garage door that we plan to install in a few weeks.
February 18th 2022
Well, there's good news and bad news. The good news is that the renovations are progressing nicely and on schedule. The bad news is that the excessive snow and rain in Columbus recently caused a sewer line backup in the basement. The worst part is that we had just finished installing a new floor and painting one side of the basement.
We'll provide more details on the flooded basement soon. For now, take a look at the progress being made in the kitchens, bathrooms, and bedrooms.
March 10th 2022
Last week, we visited the renovation site to check the progress of the project. Unfortunately, we we are behind schedule at this point.
The basement flood was caused by tree roots in the sewer line. Luckily, the city of Columbus responded quickly and removed the roots and cleared the sewer line to prevent this issue from occurring again in the future. To prevent a similar situation from happening, we are installing a valve-stop to allow water to exit the basement but prevent its return through the sewer line. The basement flood has caused damage to the drywall and required significant repairs to the gas furnaces and water heaters. In Unit 906, the finished basement had to be converted to an unfinished basement due to the water damage to the walls.
We expect to complete the project by the end of the month at the latest. Meanwhile, check out some of the pictures of the exterior, the basement after the walls were freshly painted, and the bathroom where we removed the old shower.
March 24th 2022
This project continues to take longer than anticipated, which is increasing our holding costs and will no doubt impact our long-term interest rate once we refinance. However, overall the renovation is coming along nicely.
We hope to wrap up sometime next week with the final finishing touches. After that, we will coordinate a number of different inspections as we prepare the property to be listed for rent.
On a last note, the city confirmed that the water backup was, in fact, caused by a main sewer line blockage, so we're going to attempt to get reimbursement for the damage that occurred.
For now, here are a few pictures as we get closer to the end. The basement, in particular, turned out great and makes the space feel much more spacious and clean.
April 1st 2022
Everything is starting to come together at this stage of the project, and we're really satisfied with the results! Next week, we should finish all outstanding tasks with the intent of placing tenants in both units by the end of April.
The final remaining tasks include installing blinds, finishing the painting of the exterior trim and garage, extending the kitchen to the left and right of the stove, and completing a few minor wrap-up items, such as installing matching cabinet hardware and replacing any yellowed outlets.
April 15th 2022
And we're done! Well, almost.
It's funny how the larger parts of this renovation, such as the kitchen and garage roof, were completed rather quickly, but the smaller items seemed to drag on forever.
Anyway, the appraisal has been completed, and we're nearly finished with this project. We will now begin searching for potential tenants. We plan to list Unit 904 for $1,400 per month and Unit 906 for $1,575 per month. Both units are identical, except that 906 will have exclusive access to the 2-car garage.
April 30th 2022
Unfortunately, the appraised value came back lower than we had anticipated. Now we have two options: we can either sell for a small profit and start a new project, or we can place tenants and generate cash flow until the property appreciates to our target value. We are currently undecided, but the good news is that we learned a lot throughout this entire project and will not sustain any major losses.
That being said, to make matters worse, the City of Columbus has denied any wrongdoing regarding the basement flood, so we will have to realize those costs as part of the renovation. However, if we decide to keep the property, we now have new gas furnaces and water heaters in both units, which should last for many years with little to no maintenance.
What lessons have we learned? First, we need to verify comparable sales and rental rates within the same zip code. Second, we must always expect the renovation to cost more and take longer than we originally anticipate. Finally, we should have used use crime maps and Google Street View to better analyze the neighborhood where the subject property is located.
May 10th, 2022
This will be our final major update as we close out this project and focus on our next build-to-rent opportunity.
Regarding South Weyant, we have found a tenant for both units and it's generating a positive cash flow on a monthly basis. We admit that we underestimated both the after-repair value (ARV) and the expected rental rates for this property.
Our plan for now is to rent the property and sell it after one year to avoid paying short-term capital gains or earlier if we think we can put the capital to better use. Alternatively, we may hold the property long-term, given our relatively low fixed interest rate, and allow the property to continue to appreciate.
February 18th 2023
This property has been sold to a new owner who intends to live in one unit and rent out the other to the existing tenant. Throughout the process, right up to the sale, we learned a lot. The new owner leveraged an FHA loan, which appraised lower than the contract price and required several minor repairs, such as chipped paint, to be repaired prior to closing. This proved to be quite a hassle to deal with.
We are looking forward to putting the capital from the sale to better use on our new construction project, as interest rates have skyrocketed since our last update.