What Should You Look For When Buying A Renovated Home ?

The weather has finally warmed up and the real estate market has too ! We are seeing a lot of renovated homes come onto the market, and most people are a bit hesitant to make a purchase because they do carry a large amount of "what ifs" so to speak. This blog will give you some tips on how to critique a renovated home, and what you should be looking for !

Tip 1: Buyer Broker

• You should always be using a buyers broker, since you pay for one regardless it is always my advice for every buyer to take advantage of this.  It is extremely important in this situation because you truly need someone who is going to do the homework that is necessary when purchasing a renovation.  
• Your buyers broker will be able to find out information for you like when they purchased the property and how much.  They will also be able to pull the current assessed value of the home to make sure if your property is re-assessed after your purchase at its new value that your taxes will still be reasonable and you will not have any surprises.  

Tip 2: Its All About The Numbers 

• Buying a property that was an investment has a great benefit that these investors do not have the emotional investment in the home, it is all about numbers for them.  They want these properties to move so they can move onto their next one.  You should speak with your agent to find out how much they purchased it for initially and keep in mind depending on the length of time you should add in the taxes they have been paying.  
• After you know what they paid including the taxes you and your agent should of course run the comparable homes in the area keeping in mind their is an increased value since the items would be consider new rather than updated.  You will want to take into account some very specific items being new or original to the home such as electric, plumbing and heating.  

Tip 3: It All Looks New What Should You Be Looking For 

• Electrical: Some investors may opt to not change out the electric in a home, they simply may update the panel and put in newer electrical boxes.  Your agent should be able to tell you what the ampage of the home is by looking at the box, but you should always be sure to have an inspector actually take off the panel to make sure it was wired correctly.  If the home has the original box as well as original wiring you may want to consider the cost for you to do this upgrade if you plan on adding things like central air or a central vac system.  
• Plumbing: Most homes built on Long Island will still contain original plumbing, but when we refer to it we are actually referring to the bones of the plumbing not necessarily the copper which you may think.  When homes are upgraded they are changed over to PVC piping which is easy to spot if the basement or crawl space is unfinished.  The original piping is not a safety issue but a matter a functionality over time it gets build up and may result in lower water pressure.  
• Heating: This is a big one, many investors will upgrade a home to a gas heating system when they can.  If it has not been your agent can call the gas company and see if there is already gas lines ran on the street.  What you should be looking for is the age and condition of the boiler and the hot water heater in the home.  Just because it is older does not mean it needed to be upgraded, if it is nearing the end of its days a good investor will put in a new one.  For those which don't need the upgrade most investors will at least get it checked and serviced before putting the home back onto the market.  
• Timeframe: You will want to take into consideration not only for price but quality of workmanship by looking at how long it took them.  Most investors will have crews ready to begin the repairs immediately upon closing, and may choose to put it onto the market before some work is complete to give the buyers options regarding cabinetry and colors.  If the home was flipped too quickly you may want to consider what quality of work was put into it.   Regardless of this time frame ALWAYS be sure to have a good home inspector ! 

These are just some of the tips that are important when your purchasing a renovated home, each home will be unique so make sure you have open communication with your buyers brokers about both your wants and needs of now and in the future to make sure the home is right for you ! Many renovated homes will be aggressively priced and highly marketed, which means they often receive multiple offers so you will want to have all your "ducks in a row" in order to purchase one, including your mortgage pre-approval, down payment, and attorney information available to move along quickly once you have gotten your accepted offer !