I bought a townhome in 2012 - dirt cheap. It was a short sale. It was actually in good condition. The previous owner had replaced the windows, painted, carpeted, etc. Well, he wan't a good painter so I had to repaint it. Honestly, he was a reaaaaly poor painter.
And the carpet had to go as it was pulled up in many areas. I learned after having new carpet installed why it was pulled everywhere. The subfloor was really hard and regular nails to hold in the tack strips wouldn't stay in. So $2200 wasted on carpet I didn't really need (just new, better nails).
Anyway, the place gave off a minimum 30% net return (yes, 30%. Cost was very low and I am good at getting high rents). The exterior was all replaced by the HOA thanks to a nice storm and big insurance settlement. That, combined with a roaring economy, has quadrupled the price!
So I decided to sell. I had someone repaint it as my skills are not that good - and I am busy with other stuff.
The offers are pouring in. And all are just at 4X what I have in it.
Plus I cleared a lot on the rentals over 7 years. My total net return - net rent and net gain from sale - will be 500% over the seven years.
Now if a guy could replicate that...