Category Archives: real estate

Of course you are… everyone is.  Maybe not everyone, but there are a lot of people that are looking for good deals in real estate in Gwinnett County, GA, during a buyer’s market… which is basically what we are in right now.

While looking for something semi-related, I ran across some interesting and possibly good deals out there for the right buyer.  These are basically unfinished, brand-new homes.  The builder apparently didn’t make it, and the bank has these things on their hands.

The ones I concentrated on are all finished on the exterior… except for landscaping and final doors… and a couple need replacement windows.  Possibly some other exterior repair on some as well…

The interiors are a different matter.  At the very least all of them need flooring, cabinetry, paint, fixtures and appliances.  Some also need HVAC, electrical and plumbing finish work and drywall repair. In each case, I would expect to see $75k or so to get these done and ready to live in.

Since the builder is no longer viable, I would assume that these are without any sort of warranty.  And just to be clear, these are NOT move-in ready.  In fact, as a very inexperienced construction estimator, I would guess that it would take 60 days to get into one of these after getting the work started.

On the flip side, the prices for some of the larger homes are around $250k.  Keep in mind that the ARV (After Renovation Value) of the homes should be in the $400k to $500k range.  So, one could expect that in a couple of years their $350k investment ($250k house + $75k renovation + $25k in stuff that always comes up) could yield $50k or more in profit.

That isn’t to say there aren’t challenges… the subdivision is not very built out and I don’t think the amenities are in.  The HOA doesn’t exist.

Another interesting point… all of the homes I went in had very tall garages.  With the right changes to the garage doors, I think that lifts could be installed in at least one spot of each garage.  One of the plans also had an unfinished bonus room over the garage… Interesting!

And my buddy Ken Cook at Novation is working up some special financing plans for these properties.
I noticed that several of the homes had gone under contract in the last few days…. don’t wait too long.