When operating a fixer-upper rental house business we must constantly be on the look out for short cuts to reduce our costs.
For example, a good way to buy a home furnace is to keep your eyes open for good-looking used one at yard sales. I came across one for $30 at a yard sale. There were actually two for sale, and I bought the newer, better-looking one. I offered $25 dollars, and when the lady wouldn’t take it I drove off thinking she was too inflexible. But, as I drove away, I came my senses as I asked myself, “where else am I going to get a good-looking furnace for $30?” I immediately turned my truck around and bought the furnace.
I knew I would need one soon for one of my rental houses. Looking back, I probably should have bought them both and kept one for the next time I needed one.
A friend of mine and I installed the furnace ourselves. Its a pretty simple matter to hook up the gas pipe and thermostat wiring. The major cost was about $40 for a guy to make a tin hood that connected the furnace to the duct work in the ceiling. Other parts, connectors, screws, etc., were about $30-40. I had a professional check out the work when we finished and viola! I had a working furnace for a fraction of what it could have cost though normal channels.
Of course, in buying used, you always take the chance of getting a furnace that doesn’t work But, in my experience, it’s worth taking a chance, and many times you hit the jackpot and can save hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars. Keep your eyes open at those yard sales!
The lessons are, in order to maximize profits with your rental properties, to buy things as cheaply as possible, and to install them yourself. You can save a lot of money by buying ahead of time, when things are on sale. Don’t wait until the day the furnace breaks or the toilet kicks the bucket. You can usually see signs of these things sputtering before they finally go out. Take advantage of that knowledge to make a preemptive strike, and to purchase ahead.
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