Rehabbing 101

Below are the major renovations I’ve done to my own properties in Salt Lake City over the last six years. Since I can’t even hammer a nail in straight, I have hired either General Contractors or specialized professionals (e.g., tilers, flooring installers, plumbers) to complete the work. Once I’m ready to begin a rehab, I go through the following steps:

  1. Choose an identity for the property
    Is it going to be Mediterranean Villa? Farmhouse? Industrial? I love Pinterest as a way to draw inspiration for the look and feel of the property.
  2. Create project tracker
    Keep track of everything that needs to be done, by whom, what materials are going to be used, cost of materials, cost of labor, and status. Create links to the materials (e.g., tile, countertop) and supplies (e.g., light fixture, vanity) so you can easily reference them later and remember where you got what.
  3. Choose the materials and create concept plan
    Once I’ve chosen the exact flooring, tiles, light fixtures, countertop, paint colors, appliances, vanities, hardware, etc., I make a link to each in the project tracker and then create a concept plan in PowerPoint that visualizes what goes where. (See the concept plans for Bathroom 1 and Kitchen 2.) I then share this with my GC so he is super clear on everything that needs to happen.
  4. Purchase the materials
    Now it’s time to purchase everything and have it all shipped directly to the rehab site! For many of these items, I first need the measurements taken by my GC. For tiles, I recommend purchasing 50% more than you think you need. I’ve been in situations where despite getting 20% more as a buffer, I still ran out due to the way tiles needed to be cut, and then had to wait another 2 weeks to get more tiles, or had to choose completely different tiles to complete the project.
  5. Check in on progress
    Ensuring everything is done right requires constant communication with my GC. We text almost every day and/or have a quick video call so I can see how things are going. Seemingly minor decisions can really change the look and/or functionality of a remodel (for example, the grout color, the tile pattern/orientation, the location of the toilet paper holder) so it’s important that the contractors check with me for everything before installing something.

Here is a diagram depicting the high-level steps in renovation that you can download:

renovation-stepsDownload

Below are some examples of the updates I’ve done.

Carport to garage conversion

Converting this ugly street-facing carport into a garage and redoing the driveway significantly increased curbside appeal! It’s also more functional: this property is a duplex, so I created two private one-car garages, one for each unit. The exterior is stucco and the gorgeous garage doors are from Craft Doors USA. They also created matching side doors.

Bathrooms

This shower is everything. The top right glass panel pivots to allow steam to escape or capture it inside. Below are more pics of this bathroom.
Who doesn’t love a modern soaking tub? I chose to put the accent tiles around the entire tub to make the tub more of a focal piece.
“After” pic was taken before an oval-shaped shower curtain was installed. Because the tub is such a focal piece, I chose to use white grout in the subway tiles as I didn’t feel that tile accent was needed. The concept plan for this bathroom renovation are shown below.
This bathroom is in a basement unit. As such, I went for the industrial look throughout the unit (see Kitchen 3 below).
New shower tiles, floor tiles, toilet, vanity, bathroom hardware, shower system, and paint. Accents are brushed gold. Since this photo was taken, I’ve also installed a glass shower door.
After pic is a little blurry (got from contractor). Opposite the accent wall is a shower with a sliding glass door. The middle shower wall (directly across from this accent wall) has the same tiles. The floor has the same grey tiles as the wall behind the vanity. The entire bathroom is tiny, maybe around 20 sqft.

Kitchens

The new kitchen has hardwood floors that match the rest of the house, a cristallo countertop, marble backsplash, new sink, faucet, and flange, and painted cabinets with new cabinet knobs and handles.
I replaced the manufactured wood countertops with quartz countertops, did a new backsplash, brushed gold accents (faucet, handles), new cabinets, and new LVT flooring.
Isn’t it amazing what a transformation you can do by simply painting cabinets and giving them new handles?! My timeline would’ve been set back several months if we had ordered new cabinets to be made, so I opted to just give these a facelift. I also chose soapstone countertops, matte black accents, and did new LTV flooring throughout the house. Below is the concept plan.
For this industrial kitchen, I covered one wall with brick tiles and did a concrete countertop. I repainted the cabinets and installed matte black handles.

Bedroom

Planning on a renovation and need some ideas? I would love to see your place and help design the home of your dreams (for free)! We can discuss the look and feel you want, pick out materials according to your budget, and find a good contractor to help you. Just get in touch below!

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