Foreclosure Field Report

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Ok, this two bedroom one bath, and one bedroom one bath duplex with a detached three car garage hit the market on Thursday of this week, I finally got a chance to preview it today; on the mls sheet it looks pretty good, but then you get there and discover that while it’s still a good price to own something in the Mission Hills/ Hillcrest area, this thing is going to be a project and a half.

I talked to the agent on the phone prior to seeing this and unlike most reo agents, she actually answers her phone. She was great and filled me in that this property will need a lot of termite remediation and the windows likely need to be replaced. My assessment after walking through both units is that this may need about $20,000-$35,000 to get up to snuff.

The termite damage was extensive throughout, and the windows weren’t too bad but perhaps could use replacing. Foundation needed definite leveling and perhaps replacement/ augmentation, at least through the middle of the structure. The outside part of the house that contacted the ground was cinderblock construction, but if I had to guess, and I am, I’d say the middle was a post and pier construction-pretty common on a 1920’s house that this needs fixing ninety years later.

Landscaping needed serious help, but you run into that all the time with reo’s. The previous owner claimed that he was getting $3,000 per month for the property. I don’t know about that…it does have an awesome garage out back that is cinderblock construction and has three spaces that could be rented for $150-$200 per space, but $2,000 for the front and $1,000 for the back unit seems high. If this thing was fixed up, I would probably go $1,500-$1,700 for the front unit and $850-$950 for the back unit. You could rent out the garages with, or separate, but if it were me, I would throw in two spaces for the existing tenants on both houses and rent out the bigger one for $200 per month to someone else entirely.

My final comments are that this property is for someone looking to take on a serious project and maybe specializes in fixing up these types of properties. I don’t think it will sell too far over the asking price of $347,900. Maybe up to $370,000, but not too far over that.

Pros:

It’s bank owned and still cheap for what you get

Mission Hills/ Hillcrest location = high rents and better appreciation over the long term

Three car garage = extra income or throw them in with the units and choose from better tenants from the increased demand

Cons:

Serious amount of work, large cash outlay at time of purchase, only for the bold

Only three bedrooms vs. other properties for the same price having four

Video of the outside:

Video of the front unit:

Video of the back unit:

Video of the garage: