[George H.]

I own 15 rental units as that is my job other than being a teacher. So I have done more renovations than I care to even type. In short, my first home was at 21. It was a side-by-side 2 family in a small village. It was project after project. The other renter was an old lady who just paid and paid to stay. Once my side was fixed and she eventually moved I renovated her side.

Sold the property for a nice profit and bought another fixer-upper. This time a single family home of 1,600 sq ft was so bad you could not even get a mortgage—
$50,000 cash deal. Turned into a COMPLETE and I mean COMPLETE renovation.

Everything except the framing and foundation was a renovation. All new electrical, plumbing, drywall, insulation, flooring, appliances, kitchen, bathroom, siding, roof, garage and driveway. Basically $130,000 later it was a brand-new house. Sold for $298,000 with no realtor. Lived in that a couple of years and even got married and lived with my wife there. It was not our dream home but my wife saw an opportunity to buy a 5-unit Victorian home that did not need too much. So once again we rolled over our money and now this new home had income potential and "Only" needed $85,000 in work (Water heaters, HVAC, Roofs, and our unit we lived in needed a gut out) Fast forward to just a couple of weeks ago we completed our dream home build! A new construction 3,500 sq feet home in a beautiful community with a pool and clubhouse, golf course, sidewalks, and street lamps. Finally no projects! Oh wait now the wife wants a pool...

Best advice.... You will 99.9% of time go over budget and you need to be flexible on time. Expect the unexpected and prepare for the worst!