IP Reno far from home

Hi,
does anyone have any thoughts on buying an ip property say 3 hours from your ppor to do small Reno' s to.
Eg paint job, new carpet or floorboards, new kitchen and bathroom.
Is it better to just find an ip in the area your looking at that does not need anything done to it or can you find that hidden gem that needs work and somehow manage the Reno from afar.
What if any are the strategies employed to get it done.
Thanks
 
I am doing a reno on a property i bought in Goughs Bay - on the banks of Lake Eildon near Mansfield and Mt Buller.

I have tried to get their on Saturdays for quotes and talk to tradespeople etc. I have been using a handyman to do most stuff. Me and my mates have come up for a few weekends to paint. It will be a holiday rental.

I dont mind the drive its a 2.5hr drive from bayside melbourne. I enjoy the drive. If you want to do a reno 3 hrs away - make sure you enjoy the driving.

I have done many one day trips and have even left at 7am to meet tradespeople.

I have not been able to attend while the work was done. I got a little shock after the concrete was poured and this week I had a bob cat to level the driveway and spread stones. It will be interesting to see how that went this weekend.

So far its been a positive experience.

Anyone want a holiday rental up the High Country?
 
IMO if you like driving , have the time and it's a really good earner , why not it's only a one off but !
If not many of the above , I wouldn't because the downside is it's amazing how the distance and costs in time and profit alone eat things up.

I've been doing one that's a 3-4 hr round trip , depends on what I need to pick up on way , for 12 mths now . I enjoy the drive although I don't actually like the spot itself when I get there but really , it's all becoming a pain on the practicality and profit side of things now, it's costing a fortune.
I just want it gone lately and I'll be working much closer to home from now on.

Good luck with it anyway
 
I agree with you Blaster. Mine is a one off. All my other reno projects have been in Bayside Melbourne, near home. Oh and each round trip costs nearly $100 in feul for the Ford Territory.
 
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I think this is the exciting thing about renovating and property investing with the travel and projects you take on. I would like to buy a few properties in various locations around Australia in the future so I can get to see some of the country while working.
 
Yeah I guess it's finding the right balance between exciting and painful as far as reno's go.
And I gotta say that just by reading these few posts the picture in my head is more painful.
 
I have properties 3 and a half hours flying time away - I live in Melbourne with properties in Cairns.

I have done major renovations. I fly up, hire a car and stay up there for a couple of weeks during the holidays, do what I can and organise trades people to do the rest, then fly up and back to finalise and check on work in progress.

You have to cut down the travel time by staying on the job as much as possible.

Chris
 
Woops , anyway , I missed out on a ripper 15 min's from home a few mths back. I couldn't believe I missed it . There was 180k in it , that one really hurt.

Cheers
 
We are interested in renovating for profit at the moment and would be very interested to hear your figures and what you envisaged doing to gain $180. In Vic the stamp duty and turnaround costs amount to a decent whack you have to achieve first off without hoping for profit afterwards.
 
We are interested in renovating for profit at the moment and would be very interested to hear your figures and what you envisaged doing to gain $180. In Vic the stamp duty and turnaround costs amount to a decent whack you have to achieve first off without hoping for profit afterwards.


Hello, I live in Vic and pretty well do this for a living now, get out there and do your own figures. Unfortunately I missed the boat on this one anyway , such is life. !
Actually we have a guy up here that's cashed up and runs about picking off stubborn coastal numbers and he does much better than that, small fries.
I've seen him buy 300k uglies that nobody wants and turn them into million dollar master pieces , been at it a long time.
 
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Hi Dean

Of course you can do renos from a distance. I've done quite a few over the years with great success. You do need to be organised (tip: don't get the tradies in the day after settlement just in case it doesn't happen for some reason- I've learnt this the hard way on a couple of projects :eek:) and have an excellent PM who's willing to work with you on ensuring particular jobs are done the way you want them, take photos etc.

Before the property settles ensure you've obtained 3-4 quotes from reliable tradies (preferably ones that others have recommended. SS is a good source of information here) and have them basically lined up to start so the reno proceeds smoothly.

One reno I did about 9 yrs ago I flew to Brisbane, took 10 days off and worked like a Trojan. The result was awesome and the total cost was far less due to my own labour and the fact I was able to shop around beforehand for tradies and materials. I still have that place today and with the same tenants, would you believe? The only thing that's changed is the PM, with Jarrod Lane now managing it in a much superior fashion to the previous PM.

Happy renovating- it's actually very satisfying when the job is done!
 
I am with Jacque on this I have always either lived in or near places I have renovated.

Most recently I had to let the reins go when a property in Melb had to be done - the bathroom sprung a leak (into the kitchen below). I engaged someone to project manage it for me - being a control freak I flew down three times in the month to check on their work, the entire 3 storey house was done paint, carpet, boards landscaping etc. Anyhow we flew down and spent 20hrs over a weekend finishing it off and then flew home exhausted!

The $42k reno, combined with kicking out 6 uni student who I am sure bought the value down last year when the valuer was there, were contributing factors but it just valued $300k more than last Nov so well worth it.

Good luck it is possible - if you are like me you just have to deal with the anguish of not project managing it yourself.

Hope this helps
Jane
 
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