Diary of a Rehab, a mini series.

I have been working with investors more lately. Which, has been good and at times very challenging. I hadn't been doing much work with rehabbers at all until I started helping my broker, Christopher Thiemet find good deals. I almost looked at rehabbing as the antithesis of what my business model was. I specialize in historic and vintage in Saint Louis City and surrounding areas, not vanilla flips.


A poorly done rehab can ruin a perfectly good home. I can't tell you how many times I would walk into an architecturally awesome house in Tower Grove South (and other neighborhoods) and be saddened by the fact that an investor had laid beige carpet everywhere, painted the walls a slightly different beige and installed a cheap ready made kitchen. I understand that spending the least amount of money to maximize your profit is the name of the rehab game, but did it have to be so poorly done? I had watched my broker do some awesome rehabs. He would modernize the house while keeping original features. Buyers in turn would get the best of both worlds.

Could I find a rehabbing client that would work with me on preservation?. After all, saving some historic features while modernizing isn't always the most economical route to go. I truly believed if you spent a little more on the kitchen, bath and nice little touches you could generate a great product that was in demand.

My thoughts were...

1. Find a good rehab project in a neighborhood that was anchored by local businesses and other walkable attractions. Sure, you are going to pay a little bit more for this project due to location, but selling the property would be much easier on the "flip" side.

2. Help out the surrounding neighbors by buying up a potential "problem property" that was affecting the values of the homes around it.

3. Spend a little more on higher quality finishes and work.

4. Modernize while keeping as much historical finishes as possible.

Well, guess what? I stumbled into a client that would work with me on these things. So, I figured I would share with you all a lot about the process as we go along. I am having a blast working on these projects. It never ceases to amaze me what we uncover good and bad on a daily basis. Keep posted. All rehabbing posts will start with, "Diary of a Rehab".

I Have to Admit...

2009 was full of personal distractions, and all though I managed to increase my sales, a lot of things I liked to do suffered. One thing I really wanted to do was Blog about real estate and Saint Louis. In a mad scramble to keep up with work flow and newly arising personal issues, I didn't get much blogging done. So, here I am in 2010 starting this blog over. It has a new name, new topics to cover and more information to bring you. I really wanted to make this blog worth while for the reader. So, I kept a close eye on my friend Abby Hawkins' blog. Recently, she started http://www.southcitystl.com/ and has won over tons of readers. So, I am going to be stealing some of her very good ideas (hope you don't mind Abby). I hope I can bring useful information to everyone that is interested in Saint Louis and it's real estate! Also, check out Abby's blog...It has become a South City going out road map.

6525 West Park, 63139 | Dogtown Home for Sale | Leigh Maibes, REALTOR | Circa Properties, Saint Louis Real Estate, St. Louis City

6525 West Park, 63139 Dogtown Home for Sale Leigh Maibes, REALTOR Circa Properties, Saint Louis Real Estate, St. Louis City

Sugar LOaf Mound has found a new owner!

Sugar Loaf Mound in Saint Louis was sold to it's new owners on August 1, 2009. The Osage Nation Tribe has purchased the property for the purpose of historical preservation and possibly a cultural center. It was always the wish of the previous owners to pass this property on to someone that was interested in its preservation. The buyers and sellers were very cooperative with one another and sailed towards a smooth closing to benefit all. The mound sold for $235,000.

$7,500 tax credit for first time homebuyers can be used as downpayment

Many of you may have heard that there is a $7,500 dollar tax credit available to first time homebuyers. It is true! There are a couple restrictions that come with it. Here are the basics:

• You have to be a first time homebuyer. A first time homebuyer is someone that has not held ownership interest in a primary residence in the last 3 years.


• You cannot have an income exceeding $75, 000 for an individual and $150,00o for a couple.


• It must be re payed over the next 15 years.


• You must be closed on the property by July 01,09

Now, of course there are more details that aren't listed here. Also, there is a new program that allows you to borrow the amount in advance to use towards your down payment and closing costs. Once you get your tax return you must pay the loan back with the tax credit.

Here is some additional reading on the tax credit

http://www.realtor.org/gapublic.nsf/files/hbtaxcreditqa2008.pdf/$FILE/hbtaxcreditqa2008.pdf

Here is information on the tax credit advance

http://www.mhdc.com/homes/tca/index.htm

If you would like to take advantage of this call me 314-324-3322

Native American group has pipe ceremony at Sugar Loaf Mound.

A local chapter of the Native American Association held a pipe ceremony at Sugar Loaf Mound on Sunday. Out of respect for the religious nature of the ceremony no pictures were taken. We were so very honored to have this special group as guests on the property. The ceremony was to cleanse, bless and honor the ancestors of the mound. It was a beautiful ceremony to watch and participate in. Honor the past and look to the future

Loved so much, it was never lived in.

Circa has a new and interesting listing:

http://www.2204stephen.com/index.shtml

Almost everything in the house is original from 1955. Loving the house, and wanting to preserve it for the future the family resided in the unfinished lower level. Kitchy and cute, it takes a special eye to see value in a house like that with the "Update and Beige" culture that is now dominating real estate. While HGTV is helpful for keeping up with trends it tends to de-value vintage. If you were an agent and got called to this house would you suggest removing the furniture and putting in new kitchens and bathrooms? If you answered, "yes" you are in the majority. However, with as well put together and immaculate this home is, it turns out that virtually nothing was needed to be done to generate tons of buzz on this house. Kudos to the listing agent Christopher Thiemet for having an eye for style.

I am thrilled to work with a small group of people that thinks outside the box. We are encouraged to see the potential in the quirky and unusual. I am not ashamed to say, "I value vintage". Don't get me wrong I love a great gut rehab...but I also feel like preservation is important to our future.