Rental Restoration LLC- Intro Part I
I haven’t updated the blog in so long because I’ve been working on another project— Rental Restoration LLC!
Rental Restoration LLC is a general contracting firm that focuses solely on rental properties in the Seattle area. To fully introduce you to the company, I’ve prepared a little Q&A- which I’ll publish in shorter chunks for your blog-reading pleasure:
Wait, I thought you were a property manager!
Yes, I worked with Seattle Management Group Real Estate for a little under a year. The brokerage is owned by some old friends who needed help with marketing and business development. Prior to working with them, I was involved with residential and capital construction, an active landlord, and real estate investor. While working with them, I realized how much time PMs spend managing vendors instead of managing properties! I started Rental Restoration while still working at SMGRE and continued to learn more about what property managers need in a reliable contractor. In the spring, I left SMGRE to focus full-time on Rental Restoration. I no longer manage properties (except my own!) or hang my real estate license with any brokerage.
What exactly does Rental Restoration do?
Rental Restoration is the only general contracting firm in the area that focuses strictly on rentals. We understand the need for speed, affordability, excellent communication and quality. I created this company with a crystal clear vision of providing services that would make the lives of property managers easier! Rental Restoration offers affordable maintenance, repair and renovation of rental properties. We do everything from simple handyman service calls to major updates to rental properties.
Do you do the work in-house or do you subcontract?
Right now, we have 8 employees with varying specialties. We’re able to handle most services in-house. However, we also have negotiated special rates with journey-level plumbers and electricians to offer our clients an affordable solution when the nature of the service exceeds our on-staff crew. My business partner and I have been in the construction and real estate field in Seattle for many years and we have an extensive network of specialty subcontractors such as roofers and appliance repair.
Do you have a website?
Of course! You can find Rental Restoration at www.rental-restoration.com. We’re adding some new functionalities to the site such as client log-in, so you can place work orders, check the status of work and look at the billing.
MORE Q&A TO COME!
Are you excited about having your very own reliable contractor or what?!!?!?!?
All best,
Eleanor
What our clients say?
Hello,
I am installing a new tub enclosure and I need to tear out the wall first. I am concerned that the green board and deeper may be rotted. How much would this cost? My house is a small rambler.
Thank you,
Sue
Hi, Sue.
Although many builders used green board for shower enclosures, if you are replacing the shower enclosure you absolutely should get rid of the green board in favor of a cement board such as Hardibacker. The only difference between green board and regular drywall is the water/mold resistant paper covering– that’s right PAPER covering. You can use green board for the walls but not the ceilings (it’s known to sag over time) in a bathroom, but many people believe that you can get just as much mold/moisture protection from using regular drywall with a good primer.
When you have the green board off, you’ll want to inspect the studs for water damage and mold. Poke something sharp into the stud where you see water stains. If the pen/pencil/screwdriver you used to poke it goes into the wood easily, then you should have it evaluated. If the studs still have plenty of integrity, then don’t worry about water stains– as long as you know how the water got there and make sure that more water won’t be intruding!
If there’s a little bit of mold, you can treat it easily with products from your local hardware or lumber store. If there’s a lot of mold, you might want to have it evaluated.
If the stud cavity looks good, then talk to the installer of the new tub enclosure about how best to prepare the wall for the install. If this is a DIY project, refer to the manual that comes with your tub enclosure.
It’s hard for me to say how much it will cost without looking at the project. The materials and tools/fasteners are slightly more expensive than drywall. A licensed/insured/bonded installer in my area (Seattle) will cost around $50-70 per hour.
You’ll definitely be disturbing more that 6 square feet of wall surface, so if this is a rental property built before 1978 a new federal law REQUIRES you to use a contractor that is certified by the EPA. If you are doing the work yourself and this is a rental property, then this law requires YOU to be certified. (Yes, really! And the penalties for not following this law are severe.)
Let me know if this response only brings up more questions because I’ll be happy to answer them.
Cheers,
Eleanor