PLEASE NOTE we are now brokered by eXp Realty. Call or text Alisha Collins, eXp Realty at 307-247-1806 or email at alisha@casperpowerhouse.com We are excited to talk with you!
How do you even make money flipping a house? We’ve all heard about massive success stories. And yes, about also massive money losses with people flipping or fixing up houses and selling them.
How do you even make money flipping a house? We’ve all heard about massive success stories. And yes, about also massive money losses with people flipping or fixing up houses and selling them. I do think that shows like HGTV, Flip or Flop, A&E’s, Flipping Vegas and similar types of shows do make it look so easy. After 18 years working with flippers and flipping many houses of my own over the years, I have seen it all.
Hi, I’m Alisha Collins with RE/MAX The Group and the Alisha Collins Real Estate Team. Thanks for watching. Make sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for all things real estate and all things Wyoming. Here are my six tips to flipping a house.
Number one, buy it right and have a budget. Profit is made in the purchase of the home. Know the comps in the area for the house you want to buy both as is and fixed up. Is there a massive range at resale determined by the finishes or are they all around the same? Especially in the market we are in right now, you want to make sure you have a great idea what you will get if you sold it today and in the future. Will the market change in the three to six months it takes you to sell it? All of my successful flippers know approximately what a house will take to fix up after they look at the house. And after they find a home, they want, they all write down a budget before they make an offer. Sometimes writing it down and adding up what each item will cost shows you that it really isn’t the good investment you thought it was initially. They also account for unknowns on every single deal. You don’t want to do all this work only to breakeven or make very little money.
Number two, use finishes that make financial sense, not what you would put into your personal house. Now I’m not suggesting that you buy junk and put that in your remodel. You are making a name for yourself as a flipper with every single home you fix up. There are things that I spend a little more money on. Every time we fix house, but I don’t buy high-end everything. I had a flipper that moved here from a high-end golf resort area on the East Coast. I will never forget the first time she flipped a house here and bought a $3,500 refrigerator. She learned that you can buy something nice without spending $3,500. What are finishes that look high-end, but aren’t? Lots of extra, such as tile instead of linoleum. Lots of tile, inexpensive tile options exist. And when installed in bathtubs surrounds bathroom, kitchen floors, and backsplash and kitchen, it adds elegance. Stainless steel appliances. Appliances can be bought in a suite of appliances and add elegance. There are lots of other ideas as well. Reach out to us and we’ve been loved to tell you which products we love using in our flips.
Number three, plan your time. I can tell you that every single one of us tells ourselves and others we will be done in three months. And then nine months later, we are still working on that house. This really cuts into your profit. Like I said previously, the market can change and this can be for the better or it can be for the worst. I always suggest writing out your weekly goals such as what you are going to get done every week and a couple of extra things you could do if you get those priority items done. This has really helped my husband and I get the homes done on time.
Number four, stage it before you sell it. Here is my real estate agent and inner decorator coming out. Okay. Let’s be honest. I’m really not a professional stager or a decorator, but I can stage a house when needed and it looks pretty darn good for not being a professional. Side note: at the Alisha Collins Real Estate Team, we provide staging for our listings at no additional fee and it helps. Even though the house looks amazing and has lots of new features, we know we can hit the real estate market with a bang. Light staging in the living room, dining room, kitchen, and bathrooms helps potential buyers envision what it would be like to live there.
Number five, buy a home warranty. Sometimes buyers especially first-time home buyers view these remodeled houses as new homes even though they are not. Let’s face it, if something works in the home when you buy it to fix it up, you’re most likely going to keep it. If the water heater works when you buy the flip house, you will most likely leave it. Same with a furnace. If something happens after closing to an appliance or mechanical item, a home warranty helps prevent all havoc for breaking out. The buyer calls the home warranty company instead of you.
Number six, give yourself some grace. You’ll be learning as you go. Like the $3,500 refrigerator, that only happened once. There will be other things you will use that buyers don’t like and you will hear about it, and you’ll never use it again. Another example, a flipper put a laundry room in the dining area and it turned out horrible so he moved it. It costs over 2,500 bucks to put it in there and then move it. Another costly mistake. But now that flipper will plan the layout better and we’ll do more measuring before they act.
We would love to help you with all of your investing needs. Remember, we work in this market every day and we would love to assist you as well. Please reach out to us and we will schedule an appointment.