So You Want to Start Flipping Houses: What You Need to Know

We’re guessing you’ve been watching some home improvement shows. Flipping houses has become increasingly popular thanks to a lot of shows gaining attention like Fixer Upper and Flip or Flop. And on TV, flipping houses seems like a cinch: find the ugly duck house, transform it into something beautiful, and make a profit. Easy enough, right?

The thing about flipping houses is that it can be an incredibly fun and rewarding project, with a profit at the end. But there’s also a lot that can go wrong with unforeseen challenges and, depending on the property, more time and work than you may have anticipated. If you’re new to the flipping business—or even if you’ve been here awhile—consider our advice to make every project you take on a success.

House Hunting and Buying Smart

Knowing how to research location, price, and potential deals are skills that will help immensely when it comes to house flipping. But if you’re new to the business, it can be hard to keep track of everything you need to be looking for. In those early stages, we can help guide you and strategize with you on which properties are worth flipping. The more information we can get a head of time, the better. We’ll take a look at the whole picture in terms of inventory, farm area, renovation improvements, and buying methods to ensure you’re selecting a property that you can profit from. Buying low increases your bet of making a profit. If you buy at full retail price and spend thousands on improvements, you won’t be making much.

Making a Plan and Anticipating Setbacks

Once you’ve found a good fixer upper, go in with a tentative plan that includes the work you’ll have to do, rough estimate of costs, and a timeline for how long it will take to complete. With flipping, the more prepared you are the easier it’ll be to stay on track.

However, there will most likely be some sort of setback either financially or design-wise during the rehab phase. While you can never fully predict what kind of challenges you’ll face, it’s a good idea to keep an eye out (and budget set aside) for common problems like water damage, old wiring, pipelines, etc.

Do What You Can On Your Own—Or Work with a Trusted Contractor

There’s something to be said about getting in there and doing the work on your own. This can make the finished result that much sweeter and logistically, it can save you quite a bit of money. But be realistic. If tearing down walls isn’t your specialty, hire a reliable contractor to do the work for you—even if it costs a little extra. Regardless, there’s nothing like bad renovations to put off future buyers, so calculate what the best route is for you.

And when it comes time to sell?

Let us help! After all your hard work, we can give our expertise and assistance to assure that the right people are viewing your property and likely to make an offer.