When Does it Make Sense to Tear Down a House? With 2 Case Studies

I have many people telling me I should tear down the houses I buy. I know many of them are a little rough. However, we almost never tear a property down. It does not make financial sense in most cases to tear a house down.
We have torn one house down but that was a property that was on a commercial lot where the lot was worth more without the house than with it. Even then it took quite a bit of money just to tear it down.
Not only do you have to pay to tear a house down but it usually costs much more to build a house from scratch than to repair a house that is already there. There may be some cases where it makes sense to tear a house down but it usually is in areas that have very high prices and you can build much larger homes to replace the old house.
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Mark has been a real estate investor and real estate agent since 2001, after graduating from the University of Colorado. Mark has flipped over 200 houses and routinely flips 15 to 25 houses a year. Mark owns 190,000 square feet of rentals and is the managing broker and owner of Blue Steel Real Estate. Mark has also written 9 books that you can find on Amazon amzn.to/2VGI6a9
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Пікірлер: 105

  • @andysuber941
    @andysuber9412 жыл бұрын

    660 sq ft seems bigger than I would have thought. This turned out pretty nice.

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    Not huge that is for sure!

  • @amarillogator
    @amarillogator2 жыл бұрын

    Great content. I would love to hear the pros and cons and when it would make sense to fully gut a house vs. working with an odd layout. Thanks for all you do!

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    Basically the same. Gutting brings in so many unknowns and costs

  • @NikkiVelazquez
    @NikkiVelazquez2 жыл бұрын

    This makes sense. I think tearing down and starting new is appealing for psychological reasons.

  • @fredericrike5974

    @fredericrike5974

    2 жыл бұрын

    I'm thinking that is a plan that can work too- if your banker or bank account agrees! FR

  • @donahays7996
    @donahays79962 жыл бұрын

    Great starter home for a couple, or a single person, has all the basics! Sure beats an apt. Or rental. Thanks Mark for all the info, always something New to learn!

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    No problem!

  • @lindsey679
    @lindsey679 Жыл бұрын

    Great video!! Very informative and not boring - you're great to listen to.

  • @lambchop206
    @lambchop2062 жыл бұрын

    Thank you for the thought process! makes total sense. always great to get the numbers tho. always enjoy your content. take care !

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    👍👍

  • @nathanielaranda8407
    @nathanielaranda8407 Жыл бұрын

    my rule of thumb is to keep buildings standing as long as possible. and if they are are severally damaged structurally then I am ok with rebuilding. but it seems extremely wasteful to throw all that material away that's perfectly good.

  • @bradysg
    @bradysg2 жыл бұрын

    Looks awesome!

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    thanks!

  • @fredericrike5974
    @fredericrike59742 жыл бұрын

    Great case explication, Mark! The numbers and proportions of the funds and fees are very similar here in the Dallas area. And why we have a section near down down full of "mini mansions"- mostly originally two bedroom, one bath bungalows built in the late '40s either added to and updated as three bed rooms, two baths- the rougher ones were torn down and way too many were rebuilt as new as two story in these same neighborhoods. But that is Texas style "free zoning" at it's best. Great knowledge piece- Thanks , Mark! FR

  • @valeriesmith3388
    @valeriesmith33882 жыл бұрын

    Good information. Thank you

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    thanks!

  • @TommysTanks
    @TommysTanks2 жыл бұрын

    You did a great job Mark.

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    Thanks!

  • @lilyrose7082
    @lilyrose70822 жыл бұрын

    Looks awesome 👏 Mark! Glad you didn’t demo it! I watch a lot of your videos on utube TV 📺 but occasionally watch on my iPad as well! 👍👍👏👏😎

  • @abutts02
    @abutts022 жыл бұрын

    Very educational

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    Thanks!

  • @chadhorton4053
    @chadhorton40532 жыл бұрын

    Good decision making Mark totally rational explanation and nice job on the remodel

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    Thanks!

  • @lilaccity5115

    @lilaccity5115

    2 жыл бұрын

    I agree:) That is one cutie of a house! Cannot wait to see what you do with the church and the 7-unit compound.

  • @alexanderivanov8185
    @alexanderivanov81852 жыл бұрын

    Can you pls tell the paint code you used for this project? Liked the color

  • @mojcam50
    @mojcam502 жыл бұрын

    Great outcome. Stil not an OK house but the best it could become. Love the explanations.

  • @jillianleda6732
    @jillianleda67322 жыл бұрын

    You did a great job!

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    Thank you

  • @mzilg
    @mzilg2 жыл бұрын

    Thanks for the interesting/entertaining education! 🤓👍

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    My pleasure!

  • @JaTon
    @JaTon2 жыл бұрын

    Great video

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    Thanks!

  • @wkjeom
    @wkjeom2 жыл бұрын

    Great video. Reality!

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    Thanks!

  • @seekertosecrets7618
    @seekertosecrets76186 ай бұрын

    I'm living in a house that was made in the 1950's. I want to rebuild it so bad, but the processing for lead, asbestos, and possible radon will cost me a fortune. I won't be able to pull that off for the next 20 years at this rate.

  • @johnburris7449
    @johnburris74492 жыл бұрын

    It's still amazes me how much properties are worth in Colorado. I'm not sure they're worth that but that's what they're selling for. Because you could buy houses like you're buying in Nebraska and small towns for about 10,000 $12,000 pretty darn good condition. Just boggles my mind that those houses are worth that much money. I guess that's what happens when you live in a state the people smoke a lot of wacky weed. It's good for investors though

  • @hr106
    @hr1062 жыл бұрын

    Thanks for the great info Mark about knocking down homes also I know I can always count on your videos having either a dog barking or a murder room/ house 😆

  • @BenKlassen1
    @BenKlassen12 жыл бұрын

    Makes financial sense just to fix the existing house.

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    yes

  • @davida113
    @davida1132 жыл бұрын

    Hi Mark, How about making a dedicated video on the top 5 things in your career that you would have done differently looking in hindsight. Also, video about hiring a real estate attorney and their cost, video of salvage items that can be reused for cost savings, how you survived rental payment insecurity during pandemic shutdown and lastly, what to do when you realize a property is going to be a money pit. Thanks for the education.

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    GOod ideas!

  • @tylerowens2192
    @tylerowens21922 жыл бұрын

    Do you think Boxabl brand pop up/modular housing would appreciate?

  • @marybethduke3263
    @marybethduke32632 жыл бұрын

    whenever my clients want to tear down a house I tell them to call the fire department and see if they want to 'practice' on that house...set it on fire and put it out.

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    True but its very rare they will do that and then I believe you still need to do the same testing for hazardous materials

  • @marybethduke3263

    @marybethduke3263

    2 жыл бұрын

    @@investfourmore Guess so...maybe a liability issue these days.

  • @RedBaroness
    @RedBaroness2 жыл бұрын

    I can't believe that's the same house!

  • @loro9385
    @loro93852 жыл бұрын

    Where i live the foundation/basement has to be completely removed.

  • @stayer69
    @stayer692 жыл бұрын

    What if it’s your old 1000 sqft house that needs every system updated and your going to replace it with a 2 story 2.5 x the sqft home?

  • @infillvaluecreation
    @infillvaluecreation2 жыл бұрын

    If you are a home builder it makes sense to tear down and subdivide almost always. If you are a renovator then less so.

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    Subdivide is an entirely different thing. That is not as easy to do either

  • @infillvaluecreation

    @infillvaluecreation

    2 жыл бұрын

    @@investfourmore yes it does appear your jurisdiction isn’t particularly friendly to my way of doing business. I subdivide every 50 ft lot that is the bread and butter of my infill building business and it happens hundreds of times per year and is now ultra competitive. Hardly any homes get renovated they go in the trash, also fairly easy to do just typical red tape and you go ahead and demo

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    @@infillvaluecreation where is that at?

  • @infillvaluecreation

    @infillvaluecreation

    2 жыл бұрын

    @@investfourmore calgary ab. Market is fairly similar to a place like Austin or Denver or any spaced out mid tier city. Pay about 600 k for a lot and build two semi detached homes that sell for 800 k plus each. Also you can take that same lot and build 4 townhomes on it and rent them or even 4 townhomes with suites in certain areas. That’s a good rental model where cap rate exceeds a lot of other options.

  • @mc9226
    @mc92262 жыл бұрын

    A question I have doesn’t pertain to this video but is in loop with other videos you have. What is the process when a buyer like yourself buys a property from a wholesaler. What steps does the new buyer have to do to acquire the property from the wholesaler

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    I do have a few video's on wholesalers

  • @MrScottie68
    @MrScottie682 жыл бұрын

    One problem….the kitchen stove is smack up against a painted Sheetrock wall. Give it a few months of cooking and frying and the wall will be a messy, greasy disaster.

  • @wjthehomebuilder
    @wjthehomebuilder2 жыл бұрын

    I mainly buy lots with run down mobile homes on them. (So mainly teardowns.) One of the loop holes I learned in my jurisdiction is that the home owner can legally abate any asbestos. I know that's not everyone's cup of tea, but I've never spent any more than about $400 to abate a project. The bags just need to be clearly marked and tied off and go in a separate spot at the dump. There's still the cost to have an asbestos guy take some samples, and that costs another $350-$450. The worst part is the stupid "clean air" permit that also needs to be filled for $65. If you're caught without that, it's a $15K fine!

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    Nice

  • @digital1937
    @digital19372 жыл бұрын

    Isn't the roof sagging down towards the middle? It looks like room additions were added to the right and left of the main structure? Were those additions permitted and up to code with those low ceilings and roofs? This flip looks like a cosmetic update? No doubt someone will buy it who might be desperate to buy a house and isn't too picky?

  • @juanitavaldez1907

    @juanitavaldez1907

    Жыл бұрын

    It's sagging a bit!

  • @Mumumama205
    @Mumumama2059 ай бұрын

    What about a concrete block 50’s bungalow of 575 sq ft with asbestos and prob lead based paint. It’s too small for us, it’s 1 bed 1 bath. Would you say remodeling that just enough to rent it out (costing 50k and getting $1500month) add a 2 story shipping container addition (or site built/modular) on the back for us to live, would be a good way to go? I’m also pondering gutting it and change floor plan so the addition can be smaller, but no rental income.. I though about tear down, but you’re changing my mind here quickly..

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    9 ай бұрын

    I would say make minimal changes

  • @denisebennett3144
    @denisebennett31442 жыл бұрын

    Looks great. Might want to do the staging with better bedroom furniture and manchester. Thanks for giving the numbers on tear down. I’ve never thought it would cost that much.

  • @fredericrike5974

    @fredericrike5974

    2 жыл бұрын

    And Greely is a small town government with relatively low fees! Thirty years ago, you could contract a "house removal" that size for $5-6 K and the operator make a profit; the price of permits have gone up some, the cost of disposal has way more that tripled, the engineers, abatement services, "all that good stuff" have truly ballooned- his Greely prices are about 75% what the came job done in Dallas County would be. FR

  • @melindalee8659
    @melindalee86592 жыл бұрын

    Great info Mark, your videos are always informative. Great work on the house.

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    Thanks 👍

  • @kickandblock
    @kickandblock2 жыл бұрын

    Would adding a small addition on the house impact margins? I’d imagine it’d be able to sell for more

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    It can but usually is not worth it

  • @fredericrike5974

    @fredericrike5974

    2 жыл бұрын

    @@investfourmore From your talk, any such additions would have needed to go up- your talk seemed to indicate the exist house was already to the allowable development lines. Another of the 359 things you have to balance n such a plan. You do all that knotty planning and still have a really nice attitude and your hair-I'm jealous! FR

  • @maryfox925
    @maryfox9252 жыл бұрын

    What happened to the rest of the baseboard by the stove in the kitchen?

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    Dishwasher opens there

  • @hoffmannrubin
    @hoffmannrubin2 жыл бұрын

    I guess it depends where you are. I tore down 2 homes already and its way cheaper here than where you are.

  • @TL-wy1nk
    @TL-wy1nk2 жыл бұрын

    It takes a bit of brain work to get the numbers right ,to make sense , no matter what you do.

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    for sure

  • @wscorners
    @wscorners2 жыл бұрын

    ASBESTOS SIDING?¡! I'm sure that seemed like a great idea in the 1950's, if I were a pro cable installer, I'd second guess drilling into random buildings with that potentially lurking around the corner.

  • @onetuliptree

    @onetuliptree

    2 жыл бұрын

    I live in a historic neighborhood and every house is wired for cable, so yep, somebody drilled thru the abestos siding many of them have.

  • @MrCarlyMS
    @MrCarlyMS2 жыл бұрын

    I like the way your flip house turned out. Great point about cost of replacement. The furnishings looked dated and out of place. Who puts a love seat so close to the front door. The furnishings should have been slick and modern. I would have gone more out of the box on that. I really like what you do. Thanks.

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    Thank you!

  • @patrickpatrick9132
    @patrickpatrick91322 жыл бұрын

    People also forget if there is hazmat in a building, you’re responsible. For ever.

  • @hamidullaha.saahir9144
    @hamidullaha.saahir91442 жыл бұрын

    A bathroom in the kitchen isn't a good fit, because of the traffic not to mention the odor, and that commonly used room should have been placed somewhere else in that house.

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    Where else?

  • @shannahmiller

    @shannahmiller

    2 жыл бұрын

    In a previous video, he talked about a variety of options, and based on how tiny this house is, this was the best choice available. I'd just close the bathroom door when cooking, if needed.

  • @hamidullaha.saahir9144

    @hamidullaha.saahir9144

    2 жыл бұрын

    @@investfourmore: Please excuse me, I'm just a fan who's on the outside looking in with just an opinion, that doesn't suggest knowledge of the matter at hand.

  • @Stoffmonster467

    @Stoffmonster467

    2 жыл бұрын

    But he has the pipes there, usually kitchen and bathroom are placed next to each other because of that. In this case he had not much choice.

  • @mr.p2007
    @mr.p20072 жыл бұрын

    What if the existing house is old, say 1939, likely needs to be condemned, and sits on a lot big enough to split into two lots for two separate houses?

  • @targetedfordeath359
    @targetedfordeath3592 жыл бұрын

    WHAT IS SHEETROCK ?

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    drywall, the stuff on the walls

  • @targetedfordeath359

    @targetedfordeath359

    2 жыл бұрын

    @@investfourmore Oh Thanks Man, i never heard of that before !!

  • @Spazbo4
    @Spazbo42 жыл бұрын

    why is such a tiny place so expensive?

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    land costs, utility costs, water costs, building costs,

  • @onetuliptree

    @onetuliptree

    2 жыл бұрын

    He's in Colorado, a fairly expensive market.

  • @kennethiman2691
    @kennethiman26912 жыл бұрын

    Oh, darn. Somebody set my dump on fire.

  • @Megatron995
    @Megatron9952 жыл бұрын

    Wooowww, those outrageous teardown prices make me glad I'm in Florida! I've checked it out, and for a piece of fairly common Florida housing (aka, a singlewide), $5,000 clears it out for your upgrade. Double that if it's a doublewide. I believe that DOES include the permitting. You also CAN just take a sledgehammer to the place, mobile or site-built, in my area. Permitting is needed, and trash removal (if you're in an incorporated area, they may make you use the city pickup service), but the trash removal doesn't involve any special abatements or...mold checks?!? LOLOL everything in Florida is moldy if it's more than 2 seconds old; in a humid climate like this, that's just how things are! It all goes to the same dump. Better wear a respirator if you go to the dump yourself to drop anything off! I watched an old landlord take down a place, and it was a matter of obtaining a demolition permit and getting some brawny guys who needed work. Of course, he did it backwards, which is to say that the place was about 1/3 demolished when the city found out and demanded that he fork up for a permit! After that, they just threw everything into a series of roll-offs, and within a couple of weeks, boom. Vacant lot. The prices in your area are so out of this world it's like it's from a dystopian novel, and that's not even getting into the massive amount of unnecessary bureaucratic hassle that you seem to accept as "normal."

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    A couple weeks of labor and roll offs adds up!

  • @onetuliptree

    @onetuliptree

    2 жыл бұрын

    I lived next to an abandoned house in Florida (no air conditioning running), it looked like a big black mushroom. I thought about buying it to tear down, so Mark's video is really interesting, a couple of costs I didn't consider.

  • @sherrifft770
    @sherrifft7705 ай бұрын

    Your in it to make money, I get it. And the system caters to people like you. But I absolutely hate this house. It should have been demolished. Stuccoing over asbestos is a shady move! This house is just lipstick on a pig. I would be devastated if I bought this house from you and watched this video after.

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    5 ай бұрын

    How is it shady? It was permitted and approved by the city. Demolishing the house would be the most dangerous thing to do

  • @Best74260
    @Best7426011 ай бұрын

    Mine should be torn down

  • @tammystebbins7083
    @tammystebbins70832 жыл бұрын

    Don't like where that bathroom is at all

  • @ssamirye7259
    @ssamirye72592 жыл бұрын

    What happening with tear down property? I believe your initial plan was turned down. Here I saw a 15mil amazing house bought to tear down for a tennis court.

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    Still trying to build something

  • @Careful3890
    @Careful38902 жыл бұрын

    Would be very nice of you talk a little bit slower. I miss half of the content because you are talking so damn fast!

  • @investfourmore

    @investfourmore

    2 жыл бұрын

    watch again!