Richard David asked:


There are many different ways to make money in this world. One of the more popular has been real estate. Real estate can always be depended on for a long term good investment.

Today there is a term called Flip a House. That means to basically buy a house, fix any repairs and restage it for the market. Its a good term to describe this process because you are flipping the house for profit. Armando Montelongo has a show about Flip and Grow Rich and real estate and offers coaching.

The ability to flip a house and get it sold again in a fast manner can be the difference between profit and loss. The profit will grow if you continue to have success buying and selling and flipping houses.

The reason real estate has been good to allot of people is the value and price of real estate usually increases over time and that ensures a safer investment. If you can learn to buy and sell properties and maybe obtain a level of wealth that you can grow. Buying and selling housing has always been a good venture.

Although there are many ways that a person can make money, real estate will always be a sure bet. Its a good idea to ask for advice. There are actual real estate agents to talk with, real estate coaching, books, online resources such as blogs and forums.

To sum it up, real estate is still a good investment. Flip a house and grow profit. Real estate is a secure investment and it normally brings long term results. Make a good plan and do the best you can to buy the house and sell it and make it a profit in a time range that is good for you. Real estate is and always has been a good idea.



Caffeinated Content

Jeanette Fisher asked:


Many real estate investors make $5,000 to $10,000 or more by flipping houses. These investors buy a home from a distressed seller and resell it quickly for a profit. Just because a seller has serious problems like a pending foreclosure or divorce doesn't mean the house is a fixer. Many distressed sellers offer prime houses in perfect condition discounted for a quick sale.

Distressed sellers jump at the chance to get out from under their overwhelming problems with an offer to close in ten days. To purchase a home quickly, you need to be prepared to offer cash or a have secure loan in place with a reliable mortgage lender.

Other real estate investors prefer to buy fixers from distressed sellers. Distressed fixers present the best investment to make the highest return on your money. For instance, if you put 5% down on a $200,000 home, spend $5,000 fixing the house up, and another $3,000 in payments, your cash investment totals $18,000. If you sell the home for a $70,000 profit like many real estate fixers, you can see that your return on your investment of $18,000 for two months exceeds most other types of investments.

This investment plan assumes that you have the knowledge and skills, time to work on your fixer, and that you sell the house as soon as its finished to a qualified buyer. Home improvement centers help you with how-to classes, brochures, and advice. You need to give up your free time--TV, parties, leisure activities and work on your fixer. You could hire workers, but contractors and laborers work slowly and eat up your profits.

The last part of the equation, selling your house quickly to a qualified buyer means you need to do your homework. Many investors seek free help from a loan officer to price the house right and to qualify their buyers. These investors earn the sales commission by selling their houses by owner.

The most important issue, how you fix up your house, ensures that you quickly attract a buyer willing to pay top dollar for your transformed property. Investors using Design Psychology strategies for fixing houses sell their homes, for more than the asking price, three hours after putting the yard sign out.

Whether you want to make money investing in real estate by flipping or fixing houses, you need to understand your market. To get started in your real estate business, go house shopping. You'll soon learn how to pick up a flip or a fixer and be on your way to making a high return on your investment capital.

Copyright (C) 2005 Jeanette J. Fisher. All rights reserved



Website content

Aaron Benson asked:


Do you want to make more money in two or three months than most people make in a year? You can do just that by flipping houses.

What Does it Mean to "Flip a House?"

House flipping is buying a house below market price, fixing it up and selling it for a significant profit. The goal is to get in and get out as fast as possible. You want to avoid as much of the carrying costs as you can. Depending on the price of the house, the monthly payments can eat up your capital rather quickly.

Finding The Right House

You can't make a profit if you are paying retail for a house, so you need to find a house that quite obviously is in need of repair. This makes it easier to negotiate with the seller since they weren't willing to pay to keep the home maintained, it only makes sense that they will have to give that up in equity. The nose is a powerful negotiating tool. The worse a house smells, the lower you can get the price. Even if it is cat poop or a kid with a bed wetting problem whose smell permeates the house, since no one wants to move into a stinky house, the problem will have to be addressed.

You can find the right kind of investment houses by looking into foreclosures, probate, or just driving through the neighborhood and finding a house that appears unkempt and/or abandoned. It's really quite easy if you're willing to do the legwork.

Buying The House

There are many ways to finance a house, but the best way is owner financing, but getting a regular mortgage or working with a hard money lender (since you won't have the home very long anyway) is also a possibility. Dip into your 401K or borrow from your family. Since you are buying a hard asset with real value, if you've done your homework then you'll be able to recoup your money and it's not a high risk venture.

What to Fix

When it comes to preparing the home for resale, you want to spend your money so you are getting the most bang for the buck. While it's tempting to decorate according to your personal tastes, this is not the time to get emotionally involved in a homes appeal. Make your decisions based on what will give you the best dollar return for your investment in the particular neighborhood your house is in. The conventional wisdom is to buy the worst house in the best neighborhood. I've yet to see any evidence that contradicts that advice.

Kitchens and bathrooms are the two top home areas where you will get two to three times your investment back. Kitchens sell houses, so it is important that you use materials that appeal to your potential buyer. For lower end neighborhoods a Pergo floor will add a lot of value, while in a higher end neighborhood you'll have to put in a more expensive tile or hardwood floor in order to sell the home.

Never reduce the bedroom count in a home. That is a sure money loser. Conversely, adding another bedroom to your home or upgrading the Master bedroom can add a lot of value and allow you to increase your resale price.

Take the time to make the outside of the home nice. While your kitchen may be what sells the house, the curb appeal is what draws them in. Plant new sod, add flowers in appropriate areas and give the outside a splash of color. Put in fences and walkways where it will add value. Create a nice backyard living area by adding a deck or patio. When the buyers come around and ooh and ahh, you won't be sorry that you took the time. You'll want to start the outside landscaping and repair early on in the project so it has time to grow and look nice in time for your open house and subsequent sale.

Keeping to Your Timeline

One of the most critical things you must do besides managing your materials budget, is to manage your labor costs by hiring reliable, reputable contractors to do the work you can't do or don't have time to do. Bad contractors can put you far behind schedule and end up costing you much more than they were worth (especially if you thought you got yourself a bargain—you generally get what you pay for). For a $350,000 home every month you hold on to that house your carrying cost of $2,500 each month you are working on a project could have helped pay for getting the house done quicker and with better quality workmanship. Manage this aspect of your project wisely

Selling the House

The sweetest feeling you can imagine comes on the day you've completed all the work and you bring your realtor in to look at the home and pull the comps on homes of comparative value in your neighborhood. After calculating your purchase price, your remodeling costs, your carrying costs and your realtor's commission you should be able to price the home at a price two to three percent below the market (because you'll sell the home much faster and likely get multiple offers) and still bring in a minimum of $50,000 profit. Sometimes I've seen the profits as high as $300,000 on a home that sold for over $1 million. Not bad for two to three months of work

And On To The Next

The decision to flip again often depends on the level of pain one experienced during the flip versus the amount of profit gained on the home. Usually, the profit easily offsets the hassle factor and most people decide to flip again. Some even choose to make it their primary business and build a team to facilitate and support that. Whatever you decide to do, the potential profits are quite high if you do it right and don't get emotionally involved in your purchase.



Caffeinated Content

Robert asked:


A lot of people these days are preaching about the buying and holding method of gaining wealth with real estate. There indeed may come a time in your life or business when you'll want to hang onto a piece of property, although you'll only be interested in keeping certain types of property. If you're just starting out, flipping a house may be an ideal way to get started.

Basically, there are three ways that you can flip a house, although each one has it's own terms, motivation, and type of property. The first method is known as retailing. What this means, is that you buy a house in bad shape, do the repairs to fix it up, then turn around and sell it. There are a variety of houses in need of repairs out there, and several ways that you can quickly flip a house to net profit. All you need to know are the techniques that will get you the most money in the least amount of time.

The second way you can flip a house is though wholesaling. Wholesaling involves finding a home for sale then flipping it to an investor for a fast, yet small profit. To do this, you'll need to know the real estate investors in your area, the types of homes that flip the best, and how to fund your property so you can flip it to them. If you live in a big area or a city, you'll find that using the wholesaling method of flipping houses is actually easier to accomplish.

The third way to flip a house is by assigning the purchase. Using this method, you'll commit to buy the house. Instead of closing the deal yourself, you'll assign it to a real estate investor - of course for a small fee. The investor will take the contract over and close the purchase themselves - flipping the house. This can be very profitable, especially if you invest in the right home. You don't need to have your contract worded any special way to be legal, although you will need to determine the assignment fee.

If you're looking to break into the real estate market and make big bucks, you'll need to learn all about flipping houses. Flipping houses is very profitable, especially once you have learned the basics. The first and third methods are the best, although they will both take quite a bit of work on your part. Restoring homes isn't easy, and you'll need to have a team qualified to handle any repairs. Assigning the purchase may be difficult when you first start out, although it will get easier with time. If you stay at it and do your best to make a profit - you'll be an expert at flipping homes in no time at all.



Create a video blog...instantly.

Gerald Mason asked:


You may already be aware of the benefits that can be had by flipping real estate.

Not only can it be a lot of fun, but flipping houses can also be quite profitable and if you want to make a whole lot of money, flipping houses can be right up your alley.

But to go along with all of the benefits of flipping houses, there are also a few drawbacks that you should be aware of as well.

It is best to be aware of the following to avoid any problems:

One of the first things to look out for when flipping houses is the overall condition of the property that you are going to buy. Of course when you are flipping houses you cannot expect the property to be perfect, but at the same time it must also be in decent condition.

In other words, homes with major damage may not be right for flipping. Things such as damage to the foundation will make it very difficult to resell the home even if you do make it look great.

Another thing to look for when flipping houses is how much potential a property has. In other words, how much money can you expect to make when you flip the house.

You will not be able to make an exact determination before you start, but all in all you should be able to get a good idea as to what you can expect. At the very least you should write up a plan that details how much money you think you can make on a particular flip. This way you will know what your budget is, as well as how to stay on track.

Also, look out for reasons that you may not be able to sell a home. Every buyer wants to see the good in a home that they are going to flip, but not looking for the bad is a sure fire way to get off track from the beginning.

Basically, you need to honestly assess the home; both from a positive and negative point of view. This way you will know what you are dealing with, and then be able to give yourself a chance to move forward with the best knowledge available.

There are many things that you should look out for when flipping houses. You may not know about all of the small details when you first start. But as you become more familiar with flipping houses you will begin to pick up on every last detail. And when you start to do this, you will notice that you become much better at making large profits.



Website content

James Klobasa asked:


If you are a beginner who wants to be part of the thriving business of flipping houses then you need to know certain things such as the ones listed below in order to make the most of the situation. It is all about planning the correct procedures.

Ensure that you have plenty of credit or cash available to complete a project - rehab financing is an option used by many investors for flipping houses. This covers the costs for purchase or remodeling.

Making a spreadsheet of many houses in a locality is the best way to determine which house will make money. Therefore, you should be prepared to do research and understand your chosen real estate market. You will not get any success unless you actually do this.

Find out how much it will cost to do the repairs and upgrades on a house. You need to know how to make estimates on the cost of materials and labor. A visit to the local home improvement store can come in quite handy in order to know the prices of materials.

Flipping houses means that you must be adept at comparing the purchase price, labor, materials, expected sales price etc. You must not forget to include closing costs, holding cost and unexpected costs funds to this total. Only after this can you determine which houses offer the best profit and accordingly you should make your offers.

Take into account the best financing for your situation. Try to figure out that whether you will use your own money, rehab financing or an investment property loan. In fact you must talk to a loan officer in order to explore the options that will make for the best deal for flipping houses.

You must know who to hire for making the repairs. Another factor to keep in mind is that you have to make changes according to the desires of your future buyers. Learn which patterns, colors and features bring top dollars without spending any extra money. You should have a plan of action that has already been formulated before your buyer sees anything. This will ensure that you can immediately start to make repairs. A house that sees no activity after closing costs more money daily for the utilities and mortgages. When you initially get into the business of flipping houses, you should look for houses that need only cosmetic work such as painting, cleaning up, new flooring, etc. When you view these houses you should use some imagination to visualize how the finished house will look.

Flipping houses is more than just a way to make money. You can also help improve neighborhoods or turn a shabby house into a buyers dream. Flipping houses can be made to a fun activity.



Kansieo.com

James Klobasa asked:


Flipping houses is one of the most tried-tested-true methods of making money in the business of real estate. However how can a person know the correct method of how to flip a house in order to make more gains? Let us look at some of these factors that are the secret to making maximum profits.

Invest in pre owned homes

Homes that are pre owned do not have clauses restricting their selling time unlike homes that are brand new. Therefore these homes can be disposed off quickly. Brand new homes generally come with a clause which needs the house to hang in the market for some time. You most definitely do not want to purchase these kinds of properties because they will bring in no great profits and you will unnecessarily lose money.

Do not keep the house vacant for more than a certain period of time

The value of a flipped house keeps on depreciating with time. You should most definitely try to sell your house latest in six months from the time you put it on the market. Selling after this time will yield low returns. There are many reasons for this. Another factor that contributes to this is new flipped houses. Buyers will always be interested in the most recent additions to the market. So you must ensure that you are not left behind in the race and that your investment does not fall on its face. You will indeed lose a lot of money if this happens. So at the very initial stages do not try to accumulate a long list of buyers. Instead you should make the deal with the first prospective buyers. Many have experienced a major plunge when they waited for the next better deal.

Do not spend too much on repairs

Be smart by not spending too much on repairs. In fact you should invest in houses that need only cosmetic uplifts. This is because you have to shell very nominal amounts on them. Stay away from houses that are completely falling apart. They will need more investment for repair and maintenance and the final profit too will be lower. Before hiring workers for your job see if there are certain things that you can do yourself. Things like cleaning floor surfaces of stains, removing stains from old carpets, cleaning sinks and tubs in the bathrooms or walls in the kitchen can be done by you. All you need are home cleaning kits that are quite conveniently found in local home improvement stores. In fact you can find cheaper replacements for even these materials by using ingredients that are easily available in your house. You can search online for some of these home cleansing ingredients.

These factors will surely help you not only to know how to flip a house successfully but also bring in heavy profits. So do not ignore them.



Caffeinated Content - Members-Only Content for WordPress

Everyone has heard about house flipping. There is even a reality show called flip that house. A lot of news headlines and real estate people talk about illegal house flipping. But if this process is illegal, then how is everyone doing it and talking about how to do it?

The fact of the matter is that house flipping is not illegal if it is done properly and ethically. Anyone who has ever bought real estate for a primary home and then sold it for a profit later has successfully flipped a house. That is the basic idea behind house flipping. The real estate investment is purchased, and then resold later for a higher price. The length of ownership time may be months or decades, and that does not matter for this purpose. Sometimes this may involve renovating or repairing the real estate before selling it, to increase the value of the investment.

What everyone has been calling illegal house flipping is actually real estate fraud. These cases generally involve people who have lied or misled about significant facts to wrongly inflate the value of the real estate investment. This includes payments or bribes to get the property appraised at a value higher than what the real estate is actually worth, falsifying down payments or any other information like tax receipts and check stubs to get a loan that is not qualified for, and more. One type of real estate fraud is lying or covering up obvious or serious problems with the house to lenders, as well as to buyers who are not sophisticated. Another fraud type is to back date any documents that are needed for the loan, such as lease agreements, to give the impression of a longer length of time.

Unfortunately, the news media has confused house flipping with the types of fraud mentioned above. Many escrow and title companies refuse to do double closings, and many lenders have something that is called seasoning requirements on the ownership by the seller. This generally means that if you have not owned the real estate investment for at least half a year most lenders will assume there is something funny. This means that these lenders will not loan to a buyer who is trying to buy your house under these circumstances.

Flipping houses is not illegal as long as there are no misleading or fraudulent statements made or signed. If you are investing in real estate, make sure that you read all the paperwork and contracts very closely. The contract is the statement of facts that you are providing to the lender. This contract should not contain any deceptions or false statements. This process only becomes illegal when fraud is committed, usually in the form of deceptive or misleading statements made in the lending contract. As long as you act honestly and ethically, there is nothing illegal about making money by doing honest business.

Copyright © 2007 Joel Teo. All rights reserved. (You may publish this article in its entirety with the following author's information with live links only.)

Flipping houses has become a very popular activity in the housing market, this can be very financially rewarding; however, if not done right, it could turn out in catastrophe and cost more on the property than you  make on it.  House flipping is not for everyone, it takes much more work than it may look. Choosing the right house is key; the house isn’t the most important factor, but the area that the house is located in. Find an uncared for home in a nice area, maybe it was a rental that wasn’t properly maintained, an older owner/s who weren’t capable of keeping up with the house, maybe it’s just an out-dated house, or it could be an eye sore, over-grown and “ugly” to look at. All of these things are repairable, but if the house is in a bad neighborhood, whether it be high crime rate, low income, or near a freeway or airport you can not hide or change these undesirable features.

Now that you’ve found the right house, it’s time for inspections; this is a very important step that you do not want to skip. The main areas to focus on would be:

1. the foundation, if you find any cracks make sure to get an estimate on them, this could turn out to be a very expensive repair.

2. The roof, you need to check for water damage and carpenter ants, especially in an older home.

3. Plumbing and electrical, check in and around the kitchen and bathrooms for uneven flooring and water marks, you may also want to check the water pressure by flushing toilets and turning on taps. If these three areas look good then you’re ready to plan your flip.

There are many ways you can save yourself money, keep in mind painting or replacing kitchen cabinet fronts, rather than replacing the whole unit, If the yard needs work, don’t be afraid to get dirty, doing these tasks yourself can save you a lot of money. The biggest money saver; however, is to keep the job simple, keep the original floor plan as alike as possible, knocking down walls and other like jobs are very time consuming and can become quite costly.

Once you find the right house, now it’s time to set up a budget, making sure to put extra money in a reserve just in case of any unplanned disasters or mishaps. It’s very important to be reasonable when setting up a budget, don’t underestimate costs.

Keep in mind the most important selling features of a home; see our “Top 10” list which tells the top ten upgrades needed for a successful flip and some tips on how to make it happen.

Top 10 Focus Points for a Successful Flip

10. Fixtures – By fixtures we mean sinks, faucets, shower heads, toilet paper holders, towel holders, etc… the first choice for most home owners is chrome, or you may want to go a little different and a bit more elegant, maybe try brushed aluminum or antiqued materials.

9. Lighting – This covers the ambience that the lighting you’ve chosen is right and the lighting fixture itself is attractive. Too often a time when shopping for new lighting, people just choose whatever looks nice, but it’s important to keep in mind what room the lighting is for, and the purpose the lighting will serve.

8. Extras – This is product that has been added to the home that is above and beyond the necessary. These extras would include items such as: a Jacuzzi tub, stainless steel appliances, dimmer switches, a garborator, skylight, maybe even a theme wall somewhere, anything that adds extra flare to the home, if your budget allows, I would recommend putting extras in the home, for a small original cost it can make a huge difference on selling day.

7. Finishing’s – You would be surprised as to how many people do notice finishes, such as the baseboard in a house, the casing around doors, and the basic ensuring that closets and doors open and close properly, a lot of times in older homes, after it settles with time, door frames can become crooked making the doors close improperly.

6. Entrance – First impressions are often peoples deciding factors when buying a home, make sure it’s clean, effective, you don’t want too much furniture in the way, keep it simple and open.

5. Bedrooms – Bedrooms are easy rooms to upgrade, they only really require some carpet, paint, and sometimes new light fixtures, etc… if you’re planning on staging the home for a sale, you’ll want to really focus on this area, since they are such simple rooms make sure to furnish them nicely.

4. Flooring – New flooring is mandatory when flipping a home, tile is nice for kitchens, front entrance, bathrooms, and laundry rooms, keep the tiles simple with little or no pattern. Carpet is what you want in bedrooms to keep them cozy and warm, and think of using hardwood or laminate in your living area.

3. Kitchen – As we all know the kitchen is like a hub of our house, we spend much of our time in there, preparing meals, entertaining, and of course cleaning. You want to ensure there are plenty of cupboards, as well as counter space. Make it look new, bright, and spacious. If your budget allows room for those extras, this is where you’ll want to use them.

2. Bathrooms – Some of you may be surprised to see bathrooms ahead of kitchens on our top ten list, but studies have shown that bathrooms can make or break a flip, or a sale of any kind. This is a room where people go to perform many personal tasks and often to unwind in a bath, you need to put lots of proper planning into the bathrooms, and they need to feel inviting and comfortable.

1. Curb Appeal – You may have guessed it, or not but curb appeal has made it to number one on our list, reason for this is that not everyone, but many people won’t even enter a home if it doesn’t look maintained from the outside. You can’t sell a house if you can’t get people into it.

For more Information on this topic visit www.buildwish.com a free Online Home Renovation & Design Directory for North America, Featuring Free Real Estate Classifieds, Helpful Articles, Contests, Hot Products, Qualified Trades, Forums and Much More!