Renovating For Profit

Steve Tolle, 35, and Cherie Barber, 38, didn’t set out to swap being a mortgage broker and marketing manager for a renovating business eight years ago. But when they took on a one-off renovating project and made $270,000 after four months of working just weekends, they realised they’d be crazy not to.

They began slowly doing one project at a time, which meant inspecting up to 40 properties each weekend and lots of labour on their building sites. Now they’re able to work on up to three projects at once and the rewards are everything they’d hoped for. ‘We can live life as we please, work when we want and where we want,’ says Cherie, although she acknowledges that working together puts pressure on their relationship.

Secrets to Success
Cherie and Steve have worked out a formula for selecting houses and renovating for maximum profit, making an average of $300,000 per house.

They say the secret is knowing the market, keeping the building costs down, working to tight timelines, and driving hard bargains with tradespeople and suppliers.

While they’re still on site every day, the couple can now afford to pay labourers to do most of the hands-on work. Off-site, they build on their renovating expertise by regularly going to property seminars, and are both studying construction via correspondence, which will earn them formal building qualifications.

Reno for Riches
Part of Steve and Cherie’s business is to teach others how to make money out of reno and they hold Renovation Riches workshops nationally.

The two-day courses show people how to identify money-making suburbs and properties with potential. It costs $1980, including a DVD study kit, workshop manuals, discounts and after-sales support.

Renovations Riches Workshop
The 2009 workshops are on in Sydney from February 7, Brisbane March 7, Melbourne April 4, Perth June 6, and Adelaide September 5. Sign up at www.renovatingforprofit.com.au.

Learn at Home
with Steve and Cherie’s renovating CDs all about construction, financial feasibility and practical renovating, available from their website.