Learnings from our first property

After a couple rounds of renovations (we ended up using 2 contractors as the first firm couldn't finish the job up to the standards we required so we had to hire another firm to complete the job) and tens of showing, we finally rent out both units of our duplex in the downtown.

Several learnings throughout the whole process

1. Be a better negotiator - we bid on this house with $34K below the listing price. We were the only bidder but was "pressured" to up our offer by $2K at the end in fear of losing such a "good" opportunity. Looking back, we could have take more money from the table by going back with an even lower offer (there were opportunities or excuses we could use, such as the seller didn't proivde us certain documentation or bills). Of course, the seller could have decided not to sell too.

2. Inspection report only cover the basic - We have used one of the most famous / most popular firm for the inspection. While the report came back with generally positive comments, there were many qualifiers in what an inspector had done or could comment. A qualified opinion on the wet wall should be intrepreted as a red flag of potentially a mould issue and require further due dilignece.

3. Manage your renovation budget - we originally budgeted for $5K, received quotes adding up $20K and ended up spending ~$15K. Granted, the house is old, no onsuite laundry facilities and dish washer, plus many other things that require potential upgrade. However, we learnt that we have to prioritize our spending, much more so than our home house. At the end of the day, what you want to do is to provide a safe, comfortable living space that looks attractive enough and leave a good first impression with the potential tenants. With that in mind, we crossed out items that are nice to have, but not must have (such as laundry, dish washer, yard), but focus on things that address the safety, comfort and first impression (such as humidifier, kitchen vent, stair, front porch). Plus, you can always leave some of the renovation item when the lease is up for renewal to appeal the tenants to stay for longer.

4. Beware of newly renovated unit - there is always a good or bad reason why the previous owner would spend $$ to upgrade the unit / house. It could be the owner hoping to make a significant premium, or even worse, hoping to cover up issue by some quick fix.

5. Try to get to know the neighbor before you buy - if you can. They are very good sources of due diligence of the current owner