5 qualities of a successful renovator

1. Value for teamwork

Successful renovators understand that they are “one in a team”, according to Ms Findlay.

Several professionals and tradies will make up the renovation team, and each of them will be necessary for the success of the project as much as the investor.

“They should avoid being control freaks. They have to, without doubt, understand that very little of it is about them except their end position,” she highlighted.

2. Humility

By understanding the value of teamwork, successful renovators are also innately humble.

Ms Findlay said: “They must be able to see validity and amazingness in people of all levels of education and trade, because my team is worth so much more to me than I could ever imagine.”

As simple as it seems, it’s vital that investors are comfortable with being the “least intelligent person in the team”, according to her.

3. Vision

Successful renovators also have vision and, at the same time, the willingness to follow a process.

Regardless of the complexity of the renovation project, being organised will help the renovation team maximise the resources available and ultimately deliver a high-quality product.

“There is a process and there is a formula, and if you follow it, then it will fruit for you wherever you are,” Ms Findlay said.

4. Decisiveness

In order to facilitate an efficient process, successful renovators must be decisive, according to the property expert.

Every decision must be backed by thorough market research, which is why Ms Findlay strongly encouraged investors to do their due diligence before starting any renovation project, regardless of the scale and complexity.

Decisiveness will also allow investors to maximise the profit that they could gain through the renovation since they can get the property back into the market sooner than later, she said.

5. Willingness to learn

Finally, successful renovators are always willing to learn, Ms Findlay highlighted.

“They are good students. Wherever they get their information from, they will always have to be willing to learn.”

Renovations gone wrong

On the other hand, Ms Findlay laid out five factors that successful renovators always look out for:

1. Emotions

“Renovations go wrong when people fall in love with the property,” she said.

Simply, as in buying an investment property, being emotionally involved is also a red flag when renovating a property.

2. Trust issues

A good renovator trusts and values their team so, naturally, those who fail to trust the people they work with may come out on the other side with a subpar finished product.

The inability to trust may also result in the lengthening of the time off market, which may affect the existing budget of the investor and ultimately hamper the wealth creation potential of the property.

3. Miscalculating the budget

Ms Findlay also reminded investors to be careful about going over the budget, which is more common than most people would think.

“One common mistake is only looking at your budget every week rather than every day.”

5. Not knowing the numbers

Similarly, a renovator must also be aware of all the other numbers that make up the property and the project — from the budget to the projected profit.

5. Dodgy tradespeople

Finally, the property expert warned investors against dealing with dodgy tradespeople.

While good tradespeople are worth their weight in gold, dodgy ones could spell the difference between success and failure.

According to Ms Findlay: “I literally would get in a pub brawl to save a good tradie…That’s why you need to select and manage your team…It’s about leadership.”

“You've got a team of people — tradespeople, suppliers and a whole raft of talented people — who are all trying to work together, so it’s really about the relationship that you can create. It’s critical to any renovation.”

Tune in to Naomi Findlay's episode on The Smart Property Investment Show to know more about the secrets to a successful renovation in today’s property market.