Missing Hearth
Purchased a home that is missing the hearth. The fireplace is brick. What is the most inexpensive product to use when replacing this small piece of flooring?
I had heard that the heat could cause damage to different types of wood or tiles.
Granite tile would work, looks nice, and costs $2 a square foot at Home Depot or Menards for the basic "salt and pepper" color. This will be about an inch thick. Home Depot will do the cuts for a small fee (here, anyway). A little grey mortar to stick it down($10 a 50 Lb. bag), and cement board if it is wood underneath (Hardibacker can be cut with a utility knife, $10 for a 3x5 sheet) . The mortar will serve as grout for this purpose- just push the tiles as closely together as possible, squeezing mortar up between them, and sponge off.
Chris
Rereading this, it seemed i was saying the granite tile would be an inch thick- 1/2 inch tile, mortar, and 1/4 inch cement board together is about an inch thick. By the way, the mortar you need is called thinset mortar.
[ Edited by ypochris on Date 01/31/2008 ]
You can also use Porcelain tile, or brick veneer (if it was fired).
I think I am going to choose to brick it out as there are some bricks that are not facing the correct way.
The size is 16 x 69 and it looks like it would need 3 bricks high. I had heard to build a wood frame and use pins to support to existing structure. What type of wood should I use? How many bricks would I need?
Never done this before so any help would be great!
People I know trying to rehab and sell are having a hard time with the selling part. If you wanted 5 good reasons to rehab and rent that would be easy-
Chris
Thanks Laura,
Those 5 make sense. However, what Chris wrote makes sense too... How are you dealing with the selling part of the process?
Bernel
Quote:
On 2007-12-12 19:15, bernel77 wrote:
Thanks Laura,
Those 5 make sense. However, what Chris wrote makes sense too... How are you dealing with the selling part of the process?
Bernel
I have made sure that my rehabs are a step above other comps in the area and I price them to sell. I go just above and beyond with my finishes and make my rehabs stand out. I do most of my work in a very concentrated area and it makes it easy to know the market inside and out.
The one great reason to buy-rehab-sell properties these days is that so few investors are open to buy.... therefore your lowball offer may look good to a distressed seller with equity.
You can buy REALLY RIGHT when you have no competition. You can quickly sell at a profit when you buy really right, whatever the market may say.
[addsig]
Quote:
On 2007-12-12 17:32, ypochris wrote:
People I know trying to rehab and sell are having a hard time with the selling part. If you wanted 5 good reasons to rehab and rent that would be easy-Chris,
Try as I might, I can only come up with 3 business oriented reasons to buy and hold for rental incomeCash FlowAppreciationTax BenefitsWithout padding the list with warm fuzzies like "Because I love it" or "Passive Income is better than Active Income", how would you round out the 5 reasons?
Newkid-
Prices very low right now due to REO glut.
Many new renters due to foreclosures.
Selling dificult, so cash flow rentals make sense until market improves.
Of course, all of these, and your reasons also, boil down to one basic reason- to make money.
Chris
Thanks Chris.
In my rental markets, the REO properties are being offered for less than the average comparable value six months ago. I notice however, that the prices even though lower than six months ago, are still not low enough to generate a positive cash flow (in my markets).
The "glut" of foreclosures has helped to depress sale prices, but the consequence of this is that many sellers are taking their properties off the market and converting them to rentals. This glut of new rental inventory has forced landlords to drop turnover rents and to experience longer vacancies in my markets.
Thank goodness for Section 8. My section 8 tenants seem to be "lifers" and HUD has not refused a reasonable request for a rent increase yet.
This is a wonderful market for owner-held notes. I just picked up a property for 30% ARV, will put an equal amount into it (total 60% ARV into it) and owner-finance for full market value, probably taking a 5% down payment.
All day long...
5 reasons to own rental property
Appreciation
periodic income/monthly cashflow
principle paydown
tax benefits
leverageability
1 huge reason to buy and rent to hold, which I dont hear any conversation on is inflation.
I would much rather hold a rentals that have been purchased with leverage than sit on cash. Jason has the equity pay down in the list, add in the fact that tomorrows $1.00 will buy .50 cents worth of bread and you have a huge incentive to own assets that chug along. Those numbers equate to a 100% increase in rent with a stable debt service (mortgage pymt). Is inflation on its way... I see it and feel it, and I can guarantee you my tenants will see it and feel it in their housing costs as well.
Happy investing
Mike
Check with your local County Building Department. They usually have a code for pool removal. They will be able to tell you how much has to be removed and what you can fill it with. All work inspected and approved by an inspector of course. Your best bet in the long run to avoid liability.
On the opposite note, would an inground pool add value to a rehabbed house or is that one of those questionable added features as to wether you make your money back and resale more profitable?
I did it outside.
The only issue was tiny bugs that were attracted to the wet paint - they sanded out easily after the paint dried.
You will get a mist on most everything so if you do not have an indoor space that you will be finishing after then you should do it outside.
Spray it outside. Take some cardboard boxes and use they to make a spray box slightly larger than the door. Put the door in there and spray it - no bugs, no sanding
I use a large roof tarp as a backsplash -- just drape it over a fence. You can rent decent sprayers from the big orange box. You can also use the foam rollers with the rounded edges--but it will take longer and time is money
I spray if the doors are new.
If already hung, then roll the paint on.
Use a brush to get into any raised panel areas.
Finish with a light rolling.
High gloss with a bit of texture from the roller looks great.
KEN
I use a small 6 inch nab roller that takes me less then 5 minutes per side. I have tried various brands of trim paint but so far Sears Best ~ One Coat does just that for primed or previously painted doors.
The trick to making them look nice is putting the right amount of paint on so it does not run.
I will paint all the doors at once and once they are dry, I take the door off the jamb (leaving the hinges on the door) and then roll and back brush the jambs and casing. Total time per door, jambs and all is less then 15 minutes.
The reasons that painters charge so much is simply because most people hate to paint. Painting is not labor intensive as much as its a matter of kicking your mind out of gear and doing it.
regards
NC
[ Edited by NC_Yank on Date 08/02/2007 ]
Hello. Just did the same thing I bought a wagner paint crew $150. I sprayed all my doors and trim in the time it took to pull the doors and paint behind the door latches. so if u really want to save time buy a airless sprayer and hire a helping hand. ps I sprayed mine in my rehab garage no major over spray cover windows.
Get an airless sprayer. You can get the entry level for around $300 and it is well worth the money. The worst part is cleanup, which must be done well. There are some tricks to this so if you can find somebody to show you how the first time (spraying and cleaning) you will be much better off.
As far as doors in particular go I do this:
Plastic off a room
Lay all the doors against the wall leaving enough room between to make a pass on the outside edges.
Spray the fronts and sides
Let it dry while you paint the jambs
Flip the doors
Paint the back
Sometimes you need 2 coats, it just depends on the nastiness. If you use good paint this is less likely. Personally I prefer to pay $5 more a gallon and only do one coat.
P.S. Make sure you have good ventilation and a mask!
If you dont like the "texture" that rolling creates, and want to save time over using a brush, you can use a paint pad (they come in a variety of sizes, including 6" and 9"
. Once you get used to it, it is a lot cleaner than any other method, and you can paint a door almost as fast as with a roller. And you can also use it to do trim, so there is no need to switch painting devices.
Thanks for the advice joblo!
I will be trying a paint pad in the future.
No problem d. I actually do apartment maintenance and am planning on getting into rehabbing homes (which is why I am on this site). In my line of work, getting things done quickly is key. I can paint a 3br/2ba apartment in a day with no problem while only using a roller setup, a 1" paint pad for small areas (baseboards and around door hinges, for example) , and a 6" paint pad.
You can get a paint pad setup from sherwin williams that has a white plastic roller that you roll the pad over and it will apply the paint to the pad with no mess. You can store a 1" and a 6" paint pad in this setup, and put the entire thing a garbage bag (tied shut) when you are not using it. It will not dry out for months. And if it does, just wash it out, replace the pads (they are cheap), and refill it with paint. Simple, effective, and cheap.
Quote:
On 2007-10-26 15:53, d_random wrote:
Thanks for the advice joblo!
I will be trying a paint pad in the future.
Thanks for the additional info joblo!
This is a great site, if you hang around you can learn a lot here.