The House Truth Field Notes

How to Build an SFR Rehab Budget Before You Buy

By Ben Vinson (Bennett Vinson)

To build a single-family rental rehab budget before buying, walk the house in a fixed order, call out each repair by room and trade, and price each line before rolling up the property total. Keep confirmed repairs, allowances, and the rent impact of delays separate.

Walk the exterior for the bid

Start at the curb with an overview of the front, lot access, driveway, and visible drainage. Then make three counterclockwise passes around the home. Keep the same elevation labels throughout the walk and bid. Use Front, Right, Rear, and Left as viewed from the curb facing the house.

1. Wide pass. Capture each elevation as a whole. Look at the roofline, gutters, downspouts, fascia, and soffits. Note visible grading and drainage concerns and where water discharges.
2. Mid pass. Record siding or masonry, exterior paint and trim, windows, exterior doors, and visible penetrations. Call out the affected elevation, material, and extent of work.
3. Close pass. Document and measure defects at siding, trim, visible foundation, decks, porches, steps, rails, walks, fences, and gates. Photograph the condition and its location. Flag any area or measurement you cannot verify from an accessible location.

Finish with close-ups of accessible equipment data plates, meter IDs, and product labels. Record the model and serial where visible. If roof quantities or concealed conditions need a separate measurement or specialist review, give that follow-up its own open line.

Call out one exterior bid line per item and trade. Use the elevation or site area in place of the interior room tag. Keep the line ID, location, trade, measured quantity, unit, pricing source, and evidence together. A gutter repair, a downspout extension, and siding repair each get their own line, even when the same water problem connects them.

Follow Feet and always walk right

1. Start at the interior front entry and tag the starting room by type. If there is no defined entry, start in the living room and tag it Living Room.
2. Turn right and follow your feet. Tag each room as you enter it, walk it to the right, call out its items, and continue to the next room on the right-hand route. Circle the entire floor before taking the stairs.
3. Go upstairs or downstairs after finishing the current floor. Turn right and repeat the same pattern on that level. Use the same room labels on the scope, bid, and final walk.
4. Number bedrooms and bathrooms in the order you encounter them. List the Master Bedroom and Master Bath separately. A connected bath typically identifies the master bedroom. If there is no connected bath, use the largest bedroom. If there are two suites, the first suite walked is the master.

Apply the Three Scope Checks along the route. Check water first, put systems before finishes, and scope for the worst condition you can document. Record untested or inaccessible items and what would resolve them.

Why the walk pattern matters

A fixed route and consistent labels give every project the same starting point for documenting condition. From one house to 1,000, the same rule tells the walker, estimator, contractor, and field verifier how each room or exterior area was named and where to find its evidence.

• Consistent baseline. Record the original condition in the same order every time and mark any area you could not verify. The next person can follow the route and see what was documented.
• Clear scope and bid. Use the same room or elevation label and line ID on the walk, scope, and bid. Everyone prices the same item in the same location.
• Easy verification. On the final walk, return to the same location, pull up the original photo and scope line, and record whether the finished work meets the standard.

For example, Bedroom 2 · B-01 stays with the flooring repair from the first walk through the bid and final check. The contractor and reviewer can both find the same room and confirm the same work.

Write and price each scope line

Give each repair a line ID and room tag. Record the trade, exact location, observed condition, requested work, quantity, unit, photo or video reference, and how the work will be verified. Split work across trades into separate lines and record the order in which they need to happen.

Match the line to the applicable master services agreement (MSA) rate, API-linked rate where available, or approved pricebook. Check that the rate matches the market, unit, and work included. Record the source, line code, and date or version. Follow the client’s pricing rules where rates overlap. Flag unmatched items for a quote or review.

Illustrative Phoenix purchase

Prices and codes are fictional.

The four confirmed lines shown account for $1,240 of an illustrative $18,000 confirmed repair budget. With the separate $6,000 HVAC allowance, Acquisitions evaluates $24,000 in rehab exposure. It can require a test before closing or carry the documented allowance into the decision. If the purchase proceeds, Closing hands activation and testing to named owners with due dates. If the hold threatens lease-ready, show estimated rent exposure separately.

Require contractor bids in the same line-item format

Contractors can use their own pricebook. Require the bid back in the same format as the scope, with the original room or exterior area tag and line ID. Each line shows the trade, work, quantity, unit, unit price, and extended price. Flag differences on the affected line so they can be resolved before award.

A single lump-sum bid is flawed for reporting. It hides the price assigned to each item and leaves the field reviewer without priced lines to match to verified work. In the kitchen example, the strainer can pass while the cabinet panel remains open. A bid total works as a summary when the priced lines are attached.

Keep the same line ID from walk through bid, award, and verification. The 5 A.M. Report uses those statuses to show what is open, what is holding the job, and whether verified progress supports the projected lease-ready date. The Wednesday scorecard uses the same evidence to show what passed the first walk, what reopened, and what needs follow-up.

Start with the pre-close property walk checklist and carry unresolved items into the Closing Handoff Checklist.

Use the bid comparison and change-order RFQ guide to compare prices and track changes after award.