To flip, or not to flip, that is the question

From A to Zombie House Flipping, it seems like the stream of house flipping shows is never ending. Flip or Flop, Flip This House, Flipping Vegas, Flipping Out, Flip Men, First Time Flippers, and other shows all depict the triumphs – and trials – of this risky, but rewarding pursuit. If you’re renovating a house with the goal of flipping it, it’s almost certain you’ll need a roll off dumpster rental. But what else will you need?

Flipping houses can be a very risky business.

If market conditions turn against you, or you run into unforeseen issues, you could end up living in the house you meant to flip – or worse, end up bankrupt. The most common mistake rookie house flippers make is biting off more than they can chew.

A story of flip failure

I once knew a man who fancied himself a house flipper. To avoid embarrassing anyone, we’ll call him Jerry. Jerry was a handy guy, and he had a lot of connections in the real estate and construction industries. Jerry figured he had what it takes to become a pro house flipper, so he got some money together and bought himself a project house. Now, this house was a real fixer-upper. It had been built offsite and moved to its current location, where it sat unoccupied (and apparently without any doors or windows) for a few decades, serving as a nest for several dozen generations of the local pigeon population. Jerry’s first step after securing his roll off dumpster rental was to scrape the bulk of the bird dung off the floor with a snow shovel.

Now, if you’ve watched enough HGTV, you probably know where this story is going. Jerry ended up going way over his budget, couldn’t sell the house for enough to cover what he’d put into it, and ended up living in the place. Now, fortunately for Jerry, he didn’t go bankrupt, and he had sunk so much cash into the place that it ended up being a pretty nice place to live. However, it is obviously impossible to call this a successful flip.

Check back soon for House Flipping – Part 2