OK, let’s get back to basics.
If you are just getting into flipping houses for profit, there’s much to learn, no doubt.
Is it as easy as people say? No way. But there are ways you can shorten your learning curve, avoid the major pitfalls, and still come out with a nice profit. And of course, the more you do it, just like anything in life, the better you get at it. Experience, after all, is the greatest teacher.
When people refer to “flipping houses”, many are referring to the process of buying deeply distressed properties at auction, from foreclosure or bank short sales at a deep discount, then quickly “flipping” (selling) that property to a homeowner without much in the way of renovations. Although this kind of house flipping is popular and potentially lucrative, this not the kind of house flipping we are referring to here.
That kind of “flipping” relies on quick sales and even quicker profits. Unfortunately at the same time, this kind of “flipping” has given the real estate investing industry a bit of a black eye in the process. Not only is that kind of flipping oftentimes irresponsible (reason #1 not to do it), but there is also less profit in it than traditional buy, renovate and flip style of house flipping.
So whether you are just starting out flipping houses or are thinking about getting into it, whether on a part-time or a full-time basis, there are some beginner’s steps that will help to shorten your learning curve and get you flipping houses profitably in a short period of time. Here they are:
Step #1: Assess Your Cash Situation
When first learning all about flipping houses for profit; you need to take stock of your own financial resources. You need to know how much money you have to invest on your own, or whether you’ll need to find investors. Finding investors is an art unto itself, but knowing how much cash you have to invest before you begin is the logical first step. If you have money to invest in real estate, this is certainly a bonus. However if you don’t, there are a myriad of ways to flip houses with no money of your own using banks, private money lenders and other means.
Step #2: Start Building Your House Flipping Team
As soon as you finalize your cash situation, the next step is to start building your house flipping team. This team will help you to find, fix and sell the property – and the collective wisdom and expertise will surely help you reach your house flip goals that much faster. No matter your level of experience, you simply will not be able to do everything on your own, so enlisting your own mastermind group will not only help you be more productive, but will help you work through the inevitable problems and challenges that you’ll face.
READ ALSO: In Lagos and Akwa-ibom, Sadiya Umar Farouq raises the sceptre for Conditional Cash Transfer
Your team at the very least should be composed of real estate brokers, contractors, architects, insurance specialists, accountants and money lenders. All these professionals can help you shorten your learning curve and get you making money flipping houses faster than you would have been able to do on your own.
Step #3: Find A Good House to Flip
Finding a suitable property to flip is certainly a challenge. This is especially true if you have decided to look in a specific geographic area you’ve both fully researched and is situated in an area which interests you. Ideally, you should be able to buy the house for a low price, eyeball it to be able to rehab it quickly and relatively cheaply, so you can sell it at a higher price…and obviously make a profit. Knowing all these aspects in order to make the profit, you’ll need to rely heavily on your house flip team from Step #2 above.
Step #4: Do the House Flipping Math
When doing your initial house flipping analysis, you can do a little “napkin math” to estimate if the house is a winner. The first thing you need to do is determine the potential selling price of the house when it’s all fixed up – this is what’s known as After Repair Value (or ARV). Then simply subtract the purchase price, repairs and all your monthly carrying costs. What you have left over is your profit.
If all this initial math point to profitability, then you may have an excellent house flip on your hands and you should consider purchasing it.
Step #5: Manage the Rehab Tightly
Once you do purchase the house, don’t just solely rely on your contractor to handle and supervise all the repairs. Make sure you manage this process tightly if you are doing the management on your own, but better yet, hire a professional contractor to oversee all the rehabilitation, especially if the rehab is extensive. Make sure you personally supervise the repairs to ensure that they are being carried out properly and on budget.
In the end, your profit largely depends on what you pay for the house initially, but making sure that the repair costs stay within your budget is equally if not more important. Likewise, overextending yourself by doing more than your budget allows on the rehab or taking your eye off the ball and allowing your contractor to run free are two of the quickest ways to ensure that your make profits will go up in smoke.
Step #6: Work Fast, Make Profit
Time is of the essence when flipping houses for profit. It’s a race against the clock because the longer the rehab takes or the longer the house sits on the market once it’s done, the less profit you make. Soft costs such as financing payments, insurance payments, town taxes, utilities and any and all other carrying costs, all which have to be paid at regular intervals, add up to diminish your profits, the longer you own the house.
It’s simple, the shorter the time you hold onto your investors’ money, the better your profits will be. So make your improvements fast. Do the job well, but do it fast. Make sure your contractors do the job on budget and on time and hire good real estate agents who help you price the final product so it sells quickly. In all of our house flips, we estimate six months from purchase to sale, but factor in a few additional months of expenses to make sure we profit on each and every flip we do.
Michael LaCava