Starting on the property ladder
Bondi buddies, Gavin and Tracy have bought in Blacktown, in Sydney’s west, to get their foot on the property ladder.
With Cherie’s help all is going well until their neighbour throws a spanner in the works. They learn he’s decided to put in a new fence that goes against their modern scheme. Then to make matters worse new plants are stolen straight out of the garden blowing their budget out! Will Gav and Tracey overcome these hurdles and make a profit on their first investment?
RENOVATION STRATEGY:
Low budget cosmetic renovation comprising:
Complete internal refurbishment including painting of all rooms, new skirting boards and architraves, new down lights throughout, cosmetically refresh the existing kitchen, complete new bathroom, install timber privacy screen in front of lounge room, new front door, new door handles throughout, new wardrobes, new blinds, floor sanding & polishing throughout.
Complete external refurbishment including cement rendering of all exterior walls, exterior painting of all external trims and walls, erect large timber feature screen on the front verandah, installation of new garden beds and plants, new front fence and letterbox.
COST OUTLINE:
Property Value Before Renovation: $319,000
Renovation Spend: $32,418
Renovation Timeframe: 10 Days
Property Breakeven Point: $351,418
Property Value – Post Renovation: $400,000
Property Sold For: $435,000
Profit Margin (After Reno Costs): $83,582
Please Note: Profit Margin does not account for owners other costs prior to the renovation (eg: stamp duty, legal fee’s & holding costs – estimated to be $20,000 approximately).
RENO COST BREAKDOWN
$5,500.00 Cement rendering external of property
$3,300.00 Internal & enternal painting
$2,247.50 Electrical works including downlights & fans
$1,950.00 Plumbing works including new bathroom
$1,900.00 New front fence
$2,100.00 Landscaping works to front & rear yard
$1,250.00 Floor sanding
$437.00 Cosmetic refresh of kitchen including new sink, tap & range hood
$5,195.00 New bathroom including all fixtures, tiling & labour
$995.00 New wardrobes for 3 bedrooms & Laundry cupboard
$810.00 New Blinds
$1,164.75 New timber for skirting boards, architraves & screens
$800.00 Asbestos removal
$2,800.00 Carpentry labour
$140.00 Plastering labour
$593.76 Temporary fence & port-a-loo hire
$695.00 Rubbish removal
$540.00 Miscellaneous hardware
TOTAL VALUE OF WORKS $32,418.01
Hi Cherie,
Love your FB site and what you do, just wish this sort of thing was around in my younger days when I had more stamina, as I would have loved to have done it like you do, as a career.
My husband and I are in our late 60’s and retired and bought a very cheap house in an over 50’s, which was affordable for us at the time because of the state it was in. After working on it as much as we could handle, and having professionals where required, our money tree isn’t doing too well, along with our health, and we still have a bathroom to do.
Our dream of course was to shell it out and put in new floor and wall tiles, remove the bath to make way for a bigger vanity and mirror and of course shower, but we are now counting our penies so to speak and will have to cut many corners to get it done. I saw somewhere that it is possible to paint over existing tiles both floor and wall…is this possible, and what would you suggest…really need your advice on this as my husband isn’t doing too well in the health department, and it is starting to stress him.
Look forward to hearing from you.
Thanks
Barbara Brush
Hi there Barbara,
There are some ways to renovate a bathroom on a budget and Tile Paint is a great way to extend the life of your bathroom for 5-10 years. But it isn’t a great long-term solution. For this reason, I don’t recommend painting the floor – as it gets the most wear and tear. You will find that if you update your vanity, fixtures & fittings, paint the walls, and resurface your wall tiles with Tile Paint and Tile Primer (or have it professionally sprayed if you’re not up to the DIY) it will make a huge difference. and you won’t notice the floor tiles as much as you do now. Remeber if you replace floor tiles, you will need to re-waterproof your bathroom which will push your costs up. I hope that advice helps! There are some great bathroom transformations to inspire you on my blog, so make sure you dig around and get inspired! C x