Every real estate pitch uses the phrase “value-add.” Very few show you what it means.
So here’s ours, with the dust still settling. In September, Unit 6 at 228 Main St in Decatur went from an apartment nobody would choose to one that was rented before the work was finished. No spin, no stock photos — just what we did and why it matters to the people who invest with us.
The Choice: Patch It or Fix It
Unit 6 had the usual signs of a tired rental: worn carpet, dated appliances, and kitchen cabinets past saving — one base cabinet was falling apart.
There were two ways to handle it.
The cheap way: paint over it, list it, and deal with the repair calls later. It looks fine in a listing photo. It also means a tenant who leaves in a year and a unit that needs the same work all over again.
The right way: take it back to the basics and rebuild it. That’s the one we picked.
What Went Into It
Over about four weeks, a local Decatur crew:
- Cleared the unit — old flooring, carpet, cabinets, countertops, fixtures, and appliances all removed and hauled off
- Built a new kitchen — new cabinets, countertops cut on site and stained twice, a new oven, refrigerator, and dishwasher, new sink plumbing, and an overhead vent
- Redid the bathroom — new tile floor, new toilet and faucet, fresh grout and caulk
- Laid new floors — new flooring and underlayment throughout, with the kitchen entry and the back landing and stairs leveled first
- Updated electrical and safety — breakers, outlets, light fixtures, a ceiling fan, and new smoke/fire alarms
- Finished it properly — drywall repair, fresh paint on walls and ceilings, new baseboards and trim, rehung doors, and new door knobs
Want to see it room by room? Quality Home Locator, which manages the property, posted the full Unit 6 before-and-after.
The Payoff: Four Things Investors Should Notice
1. It rented right away. A tenant was secured as the work wrapped up. An empty unit earns nothing; a finished one starts earning the day it’s done.
2. The expensive surprises are behind it. New plumbing, electrical, appliances, and floors mean far fewer emergency calls over the next several years.
3. Good units keep good tenants. People take care of homes that have been taken care of — and they stay longer. Turnover is one of the quietest costs in rental real estate.
4. Every bit of it is on the books. Each purchase and every day of labor on Unit 6 was logged as it happened. It’s the same discipline behind our monthly accounting for every property, and it’s why our investors can see exactly where money goes.
The Part That Doesn’t Show Up in a Spreadsheet
Unit 6 is now a better home for the person living in it, and 228 Main is a better building for the block it sits on. That matters to us. It sits on the same stretch as the commercial spaces at 240 & 242 Main St, where new businesses will have new neighbors upstairs. Our founder wrote about why 228 Main matters to Decatur and the wider Main Street revitalization around it.
Want In on the Next One?
You don’t have to hire a crew or screen a tenant to own a piece of a project like this. See how passive real estate investing with BACH works. And if you’re a local investor with a project of your own that needs capital, read about real estate funding in Decatur.
Ready to talk? Contact us HERE to learn more.
