Fix-to-sell Jobs - Good Or Bad?

karma_carpentry

I've gotten a couple calls lately from people who have a punchlist for selling their home. I got burned last year on one such job. I have the feeling that there is a market for this kind of service, but it's a specialized one of how can you make it look good for the least money. I don't really think that's an attitude I want to live with very often, so I don't think I'll try to go into this niche, but I was wondering other people's experiences with this.

I guess realtors sometimes hand off a "to do" list to clients if they want to get more for their homes. Beyond a new coat of paint, that is. Maybe fixing some of the worst spots on the siding. Replace the iron pipe handrail on the front steps with a better-looking wood rail with balusters. Replace the most devastated trim boards with primed pine, etc...

I can think of one advantage to this sort of work: if the customer doesn't pay (and in your contract you should probably have a very short time period for payment) then a property lien would be very convincing to them.

Does anyone here get a lot of this kind of work?

pdh2100

In this case you need to have the customer give your money to the title company, or some other third party agent. We have done this on several projects and have agreed to apply our standard warranty to the new homeowner in exchange for this way of handling things. It seems to work for everyone.

paul

ricpacer69

PDH is correct that is the best way of doing it. The only thing I hate about these jobs is they just want it to look good to the buyer, but they want it done cheaply. Every once in a while you find someone that wants it done right, those are the ones that you want to do. Personally, if they want it done like those shows on TV, I tell them to call them and see if they will come out and do a show about them. I just can not lower myself to do it that way.

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theworx

My uncle is a real estate agent and calls me all the time to do some fix ups on his clients houses before they hit the market. Mostly just cosmetic stuff (patching and painting, new baseboards in a room or two, some exterior paint, etc...). Usually not big jobs, but do them in my spare time and get paid cash and works out fine for me.

I give them a top quality job (not a one coat make it fresh thing). If you're talking about lowering the quality of your work where something really needs replaced or there are structural issues you are being asked to hide cosmetically I'd be very careful in that case. I turn down loads of work when people are asking me to just make it look nice when what they actually need is something replaced or rebuilt properly or if they have a structural issue they want to mask. I refuse to do work if it's not done right. I wish that was everyone's policy!!!

ron schenker

The problem with not lowering your standards is that if you turn down the job on "principle" the HO will just find someone else. If times are lean and I need the money, heck I'll do the job, why give it away to some other Joe!

karma_carpentry

I see the wisdom in both the opinions above. I think my policy may be - if times are lean, take them - if times are good, thank them and move on.

Hopefully times won't be lean too often.

ron schenker

From your lips to God's ears

scottstef

this is my bread and butter. i work almost exclusively with real estate investors and agents. The job i am working on now started as a 5 item punch out list and has now rolled into a 6 day job. The realtor knows my quality and tells the owner seller how to listen to me. One of the better parts of this is i am starting to meet with the homeowners to do the final walk thru. for the house i am working on now trying to get finished up i have gotten 3 jobs from the buyers as soon as they buy the house, plus the buyer's agent has hired me to add a dryer vent to the house.

i have also been hired by the agents that i work for to put out fires and fix stuff that their other clients contractors screwed up and to get the house more marketable. You want to talk about an easy close: go to a house with someone whose house is sitting on a market, meet with the owner and their agent, and then give a price. The agent doesn't care about my price- its not out of their pocket. The seller just wants teh house to go. The realtor points out the problems, i give MY price, and the realtor does most of the selling.

i do zero advertising, just got started on my own this summer and am booked out 2 months already at my price.

One othe rpoint, my clients know i won't patch a problem. they also know that if they won't fix it the right way, that i won't work for them.

Downeast

Why would you not demand payment upon completion of work,or even some jing up front ?

People selling and realtors involved seems like a recipe for trouble.

With all the money that will be flying around it seems strange that payment would be put off.

Chris G

I do a few of these. They're actually quite fun. If they don't take my price, it's no biggie. I don't get any referrals from these jobs because the owners usually move to a new city, so keep that in mind. Just becasue your doing a couple days work in a million dollar neighbourhood, don't think your going to get more work from it, because your clients won't be around long enough to sing your praises to their neighbours.

It's mostly new baseboards, a little paint, maybe some new door hardware, thresholds or reducers on floors, hang a few lights.

Where there are no safety, structural, "falling apart" issues, i use basic materials. The truth is, the new owners are probably going to pull out those lights, change the baseboards, repaint, change the door hardware, and redo the flooring after they move in. Seriously. Everyone wants to make their new home their own.

Peladu

I used to do this kind of work, years ago. For me, it was to 'far and few between' to make a difference, but I would still do them.

Then came a point to where I would give a bid, and my bid number would be used by the seller and buyers to negotiate the final sale price of the home and I would not even get the work. This is around the time I started pulling away from bidding them.

But, there were times that I pulled the selling agent out of a bind and fixed the property up in lightning speed, therefore he sold the house within the first week of it being on the market. I would be there the week before it actually hit the listings. With this guy, a good guy, I had him give the buyers my business card and state that I was familiar with the house, and have done work there before and should they need anything to please consider me.

Wow, that's when I found out who the real customers were, the new homeowners. Then for a while I would only solicit a new homeowner and did fairly well with it. So, all that being said, don't just pin yourself in with the seller, but also try to get your foot in with the buyer if you have the chance. I have never been stiffed on a job (yet).

karma_carpentry

Oh, I'm definitely getting all materials up front and payment is due on substantial completion. What made you think it was otherwise?

I'm actually getting a good feeling on this job, because she's switched some choices to mahogany, and quality rather than quick fixes.

karma_carpentry

Peladu, thanks for the advice. This is gold. Yes, I will find a way to get in with the new homeowners.

Chris, thanks for your experiences, too. I'm mostly putting in outdoor stair balusters and fixing outdoor trim, so it's things that probably will be standing there 50 years from now. But I'll keep that in mind about interior lighting and things like that.