Fixing Broken Properties

Last summer my family and my friends bought a former industrial property in Muskoka.  It was purchased out of receivership and it was a mess.  I help manage the property and it has been a challenging fourteen months.

After a lot of hard work and a few sleepless nights we are just now starting to see the building stabilize and the cash flow turn positive.  One of the best ways we have found to increase the building's value has been to invest money in building out commercial spaces for our tenants to their specifications.  In exchange, they sign five year leases with us to guarantee an income stream for the building going forward.  Although the build-outs require capital which is expensive because it comes from owner's equity, every dollar the owners have invested in build outs has been money well spent.

I have found that if you are prepared to spend the time and money doing the build out yourself or supervising someone to do the build out for you, the money is well spent in the long run.

One of the prettiest build outs was for a Muskoka Yarn Store.  Her space is just gorgeous, a shining jewel box in this big industrial building.  The high ceilings and industrial-style loft space really suit her products, and her clients love the ample parking.

She signed a five year lease and the income from her each year will permit us to pay back the cost of the build out within about 18 months.