Rehabs vs New Builds

What comes to mind when I say the words rehab and new build? Of course, the word construction comes to mind. However, contextually, these two themes are entirely different. Rehab is a short term for the word rehabilitation. Indeed, this means that you are taking a property that may or may not be in bad shape and rehabilitating that property into a livable space for a future homeowner. While, new build, is just that. It is new construction. This means that you had purchased a plat of land and are placing a new building on that land. So, as we can see there are quite a few differences in these fundamental concepts within the construction field.

Rehabs

Here we will get started talking about the differences in these two construction strategies. We will get started with rehabs. While thinking about rehabs it is important to remember to do a short and sweet economic analysis. This simply means that you look at the price point you want to be at, at the completion of the project.

For instance, if you buy a condemned house for $20,000 but need to put more than $100,000 into the house, you need to make sure that the house will sell for over $120,000. Now, there are many scenarios that can go into this decision making.

You will want to have someone with construction knowledge do a walk through of the house. After the walk through has occurred, you would want to get a list of material and a timeline built for that property. You should always pay attention to your timeline. This one variable can have the most effect on the amount of return you can see on your property.

While the individual with construction knowledge is walking through the property, they will want to stay vigilant for things like mold, wood rot, animals, and overall structural damage. These four items can really cut into your budget and timelines you had previously set.

While working on rehabs it is important to utilize other companies to complete the project in a timely and affordable manner. The use of subcontractors will allow you to have multiple trades on one job site. Scheduling these multiple subcontractors allows for more flexibility and a stronger attempt at the completion of the project within a reasonable

amount of time. Of course, there are hundreds of more techniques that could be utilized. However, due to size restraints for my article, I am forced to keep this short and sweet. But, if anyone out there has any further questions on rehabs, please reach out to our team.

New Builds

Next, we will go over new builds. This is another area where we could write an entire book. However, it will be my attempt to keep this short, sweet, and concise. Once again, the most important thing of this construction strategy are timelines and budgets. Obviously, you will have a longer timeline and larger budget to work with on these projects but, it is imperative to remember to use those timelines and budgets as law. In construction, it is easy to get behind on timelines. Your job should be to keep the entire project on track for completion.

The new construction strategy starts at the county office. Once you have found a piece of land that you want to purchase; you should reach out to your local zoning and planning office. They can print off a survey map of your property. This will allow you to see the size of the structure that you can place on that land.

Once you know the size of the house you can build, you would want to reach out to a state certified drafter or architect. These individuals will be able to draft up a costume house for construction. Once the plans are processed it’s back to the county office. You must get prior approval for the build. This is due to uniformity codes and certain regulations in place by your local governments. However, once this portion is done and you have a building permit in hand, you can now watch your masterpiece come to life. This is the part where it is important to have your timelines laid out. This will allow you to take a vertical look as you are forging through the project.

It is important to remember that Rome was not built in a day. You must remain patient. However, if you planned properly, you should see your dream come to life right in front of your face. You will be able to see every 2x4 go vertical. You will be able to see all the wires be placed in the wall for future outlets and switches. You will be able to see the walls be coved with drywall. You will see the bathrooms that you had special features designed for come to life. You will watch the house of your dreams start from a dirt lot, grow into something you only dreamed of. And that ladies and gentlemen is the American dream.