Quick spruce up

[Sleeper]

Tenants have vacated and was wondering of anyone could help with some ideas on the following fixes/repairs.

A. Block internal walls, they have a black plastic/rubber strip around the bottom as seen in some hospital type buildings. The floor has to be re-tiled so the black strip has to come off, which is not a problem as it has shrunk and seperated with age and comes off easily. But is there an easy way to get the glue off the wall before painting. It looks like contact cement and hasn't responded well to a paint scraper or wire brush although if you had forever you could probably get enough off for the paint job. The tiler said not to use turps on it because it will just go to gunk.

B. What is the correct order for internal painting with regard to
ceiling
window frames and ledges
doors
walls

Thanks for any advice
Sleeper

 

[rossv]

Hi sleeper,

1st up, there is no easy way to remove contact glue, you can get a solvent which with a lot of rubbing will slowly disolve and remove it or you can hit it with a heat gun (borrow the wifes hair dryer when she's not looking ).

As far as painting goes .. 1st up the ceilings then the walls and lastly all the timber work in no particular order.

sounds like fun .....


rossv

ps: the easiest solution is to cover the contact with some more skirting

 

[Sleeper]

Thanks rossv

Yeah it's going to be fun alright. If only there were more hours in a day. I'll try the heat gun approach, I'm sure she won't even miss it for a little while/few days

Sleeper

 

[alwayscurious]

Go for it!

WD-40 Melts contact adhesive.
What's more it's quite cheap .

However, i wouldn't use it with a heat gun!

And if you do use it - scrub the walls with sugar soap a few times to make sure it's no longer oily..

On the other hand:
Heat guns can be had for $16 from Bunnings and they work fine.

Just keep the fans on - and try to get outside from time to time so you don't go off your nut from the fumes.


Good luck in the Reno! Look up DD1's posts for more info, plus I did a quick reno at Gladstone - lots of fun.

Some quick tips:

Paint everything that moves & stays still.

New doorhandles throughout
New light fittings & switches & power switches (get sparky).
New shades on the lights.
100watt or more bulbs if you are planning to sell - it will "brighten & lighten".

Front & rear screens can be had cheap from Bunnings - they sell their own brand which is solid mesh - OK for units & keeps most mossies out

Paint the front door white or cream & BRAND NEW big brass number to off set.

new cistern & seat for toilet. Perhaps new Mirror for vanity too.

New handles on cupboards & paint inside of cupboards with white - even wall paint.

Paint outside with tile paint.


Good luck!

Don't forget to post your blow by blow account with before & after vals & maybe some pics so we can all be inspired

 

[Sleeper]

Thanks for the ideas.

Change of plan to take the easy option.

Have removed the black lining (skirting) which was easy enough but instead of removing the remains of the contact cement I will just fix new skirting boards over the top of it. Will save a lot of time.

alwayscurious - You must have seen inside this place because you've hit the nail on the head with regard to what else needs to be done.

 

[Pablo]

Sleeper,

You just gave me shivers down my spine when I read about the glue.

When I bought my PPOR it had a feature wall of cork tiles it was only approx 2mx2m but it took about 5 days to get the wall prepared for painting by the time I removed the cork tiles, tried every glue remover on the market, and finally resorted to the heat gun and scraper.

You are definitely doing the right thing just covering it up.

 

[Sleeper]

Today was spent removing the 30 year old vinyl tiles.

Well almost, still 2 rooms to go.

 

[alwayscurious]

Yikes! Vinyl Tiles

Wear A mask. A really really good one.

I read somewhere:
Vinyl tiles can contain - you guessed it. ASBESTOS.

So wear a mask.

Good luck - please post photos when you are done.

I am currently investigating a few deals and seeing which one is the best for me.

Cheers
AC

 

[Sleeper]

Finished (for now)

Finished about 10th December. Tenanted 14th. Vacant for 10 weeks Rental increase from $190 to $210PW. Boy what a job!

Total cost $5449. This included about $250 worth of tools.

Included
new vinyl tiles throughout
new bullnose pine skirting boards
painted ceilings walls and skirting boards
new light fittings
new toilet pan and cistern
new laundry tub
various patchups and repairs

Still would have liked to do more but with the Christmas lull fast approaching decided to call it quits until the next vacancy.

Lessons learn't
Not much more then I already knew about the time factor but it is amazing what you can do. This whole job was done around my standard 60 hour 6 day a week job. I don't know if I'd attempt it again under those conditions though. The risk of accidents becomes too high with both jobs.

Plumbing jobs can become a real challenge. No new item is going to line up with plumbing installed 30-40 years ago.

Painting takes forever! Especially if you have to do multiple coats. Refer to some of the other posts in this section. I'll definately be doing more research into the air gun area before the next adventure.

If you are like me you'll continue to find things you'd like to do but you have to draw the line somewhere from an economic point of view, not to mention time.

It is satisfying to do it yourself


alwayscurious, tried to post some pics but they didn't work. I'll put that on my list of things of to learn to do.

 

[duncan_m]

Finished about 10th December. Tenanted 14th. Vacant for 10 weeks Rental increase from $190 to $210PW.

How much of the rental increase do you attribute to the spruce up and how much was a realignment of the property with market rent.. perhaps after a long tenancy?

 

[Sleeper]

How much of the rental increase do you attribute to the spruce up and how much was a realignment of the property with market rent.. perhaps after a long tenancy?

The rental rate before the vacancy would have been pretty much at market rate for the location, type of property and it's condition. The condition was the biggest factor. I wanted to do the floor before the last tenants moved in but they were happy how it was.

The last tenants were there 18 months and had 2 $10 rent rises during that period.

The property was advertised at $230 to start with. Had a lot of looks while work was still in progress. I believe we could have got $220 towards the end of this month but am happy for now.


Do you remember which thread your 'application the residential tenancy' is in? I can't find it with a search. Thanks

 

[duncan_m]

Do you remember which thread your 'application the residential tenancy' is in? I can't find it with a search. Thanks

http://www.somersoft.com/forums/showthread.php?t=18673

 

[Sleeper]

http://www.somersoft.com/forums/showthread.php?t=18673

Thanks Mate

 

[geoffw]

It seems there's a bit of a difference between a spruce up and a spruce down

 

[kathryn d]

Finished about 10th December. Tenanted 14th. Vacant for 10 weeks Rental increase from $190 to $210PW. Boy what a job!

Total cost $5449. This included about $250 worth of tools.

Hi Sleeper,
Just wondering if the total cost included the $190x10 weeks=$1900.
I'm glad you're happy with the results.
By my calculations it will take you 5.24 years to recoup the costs OR 7.06 years if the loss rental income wasn't included in that cost.

Then you say you want to do more after the next vacancy.
For me, that wouldn't be considered cost effective.

 

[kathryn d]

$6336 was to reno for an 11 unit building of which 3 units hadn't been livable for the last 3 years. (we just bought it las July) That is what I use to base my opinion on.

But I wish you the best of luck.

 

[The Y-man]

Hi Sleeper,
Just wondering if the total cost included the $190x10 weeks=$1900.
I'm glad you're happy with the results.
By my calculations it will take you 5.24 years to recoup the costs OR 7.06 years if the loss rental income wasn't included in that cost.

Then you say you want to do more after the next vacancy.
For me, that wouldn't be considered cost effective.

.... plus any tax advantages (depending on structure).

Also remember that, other than a pure cash flow perspective, there might be (significant) capital appreciation due to the reno/rent rise, which can be accessed thru refinancing.

Cheers,

The Y-man

 

[Sleeper]

Hi Sleeper,
Just wondering if the total cost included the $190x10 weeks=$1900.
I'm glad you're happy with the results.
By my calculations it will take you 5.24 years to recoup the costs OR 7.06 years if the loss rental income wasn't included in that cost.

Then you say you want to do more after the next vacancy.
For me, that wouldn't be considered cost effective.

I had already worked out a similar timeframe to recoup the costs. But, this to me is not particularly relevant as the work had to be done due to the deterioration in the condition of the property.

Values have risen fairly well recently and to capture that full increase the standard condition of the property had to be brought up to scratch. The "spruce up" would have added a minimum of 10K to 15K to the value of the property above a rise in general valuations.

The floor was the most expensive. $3300. This couldn't be done any cheaper as I did all the preperation so the tiler just had to do the laying.
The painting alone would have more than covered the lost rent.



But, the Y-man has hit the nail on the head, the real value with the work is the additional value in the property which can now be drawn down.

Thanks for your input

 

[plumtree]

Kathryn D makes a very compeling point, one that many investors seem to ignore! The most expensive part of any reno is the time it takes to get it finished and rented again. The compounding effect of lost rental income and renovation costs has to be considered. We all like to think we are great renovators but unless we can get it done quickly it may often be better to call in the professionals. I have an IP that sits next door to a DIY investment property. The owner is doing a great job but this place has not had a tenant for almost a year! He has a mortgage to cover, rates to pay, rents and property values in this area have ceiling. It will take years to recover his losses via rental income.

 

[kathryn d]

Thanks Plumtree, I was starting to think I had a strange way of looking at the situation.
I think you should get in,do whats needed, get out. People here seem to talk about getting their IPs valuated again, but it seems its with a drive by? Maybe I'm wrong and they actually walk thru the property?
Unless you're going to sell the place really soon , personally I wouldn't have put all that time and expense into it for an extra $20 a week.