This Guy Transformed a Dirt Cheap Apartment into an Airbnb Gem

There are so many of us who are only too happy to spend a Sunday afternoon lazily watching a marathon of Flip This House on HGTV. But have you ever thought, how hard could it be to actually buy a house and renovate for a profit? Well, reddit user, Drisco, not only considered it, he followed through.

A DIY renovation can create an unbelievable return on investment. The original duplex apartment cost $160,000. The cost of the DIY reno was $40,000. Final appraisal of the finished home? $300,000 Airbnb gem. By investing $200,000, he got a sure $100,000 profit, before he began even using the finished apartment’s money making potential!

How did he do it? Here’s the breakdown on how he got from Point A to Point Amazing. The transformation is incredible!

One Man’s Trash is Another Man’s Treasure, Literally

When Drisco bought the property for 160k, he wasn’t just getting a fixer-upper. The place had been thoroughly trashed by its previous owners, and before he could go from a disgraceful dump to high-class retreat, he needed to take out the trash.

Half a Ton of Trash, Actually

Even after selling what was salvageable, there was still massive amounts of furniture broken beyond repair, building materials that couldn’t be used, and all sorts of other flotsam and debris. All told, the total haul of trash came in at 1,000 pounds.

More Junk

This was the sorry state of things throughout the house. While DIY real estate renovations can let you reap astronomical returns while keeping costs low, it’s vital to make a thorough budget beforehand. You won’t see a dime until all of the work is completed, and you want to make sure that you have enough funds to get there.

The Before Shot of the Bathroom

You’d think that in an apartment that had been thoroughly trashed, the bathroom would provide the most unpleasant “before shot.” While hardly inviting, this was far from the room in the worst shape. That honor goes to the room pictured in the next slide.