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Articles and Advice

What to Consider Before You Begin House Flipping

With reduced inventory in the current market, there's great potential to buy a home and quickly resell it for a profit. But buying a house isn't an investment that should be taken lightly. 

A quick glance at all the house-flipping shows on TV proves just how popular the idea of flipping a house for profit has become. But a 30-minute TV segment misses many important details, so if you want to kill it in the flipping game, consider a few things first.  

1. Money is Made on the Buy, Not the Sell

It might sound counter-intuitive, but the price you purchase a house — not the price you sell it for — determines how much money you make on it. At least, that's a helpful way to look at it. Many inexperienced flippers buy homes for far too much money and are shocked to find that reselling at a profit is impossible after the renovations are complete.

2. Know What You Can't Afford to Fix

The key to flipping is buying a house that needs only cosmetic repairs. The home could need new carpets, cabinetry, a fresh paint job, better fixtures, and so on, but it has to be structurally sound. Homes that need a new roof, plumbing, or electrical system or have a crack in the foundation can be far too costly to renovate. Always have a full inspection before buying a house so you know exactly what needs fixing.

3. Don't Do Everything Yourself

Flipping a house is a team effort, so knowing a home inspector, accountant, lawyer, and especially a contractor is helpful. Hiring a contractor (or a team of subcontractors) to make the necessary repairs and renovations is essential. Even if you have the construction know-how to do this work yourself, hiring a professional gets the job done quickly and frees you up to focus on reselling this house and finding the next one. 

4. Location is Everything

Buying a house to flip can be futile if the location or market isn't good. You need to locate areas where you can resell houses at a profit margin of at least 10% to 20% (although more than that is ideal). A real estate agent can help you identify good cities to flip houses in and find the best neighborhoods within each city.

5. Use a Real Estate Agent

A real estate agent is a great resource if you're just getting into flipping houses. But even if you've been at it for a while, a skilled agent can help take your flipping business to the next level, giving you access to more homes on which you can turn a profit.

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Disclaimer: All information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. All properties are subject to prior sale, change or withdrawal. Neither listing broker(s) or information provider(s) shall be responsible for any typographical errors, misinformation, misprints and shall be held totally harmless. Listing(s) information is provided for consumers personal, non-commercial use and may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties consumers may be interested in purchasing. Information on this site was last updated 03/03/2026. The listing information on this page last changed on 03/03/2026. The data relating to real estate for sale on this website comes in part from the Internet Data Exchange program of Bright MLS (last updated Tue 03/03/2026 12:37:29 AM EST) or (last updated Tue 03/03/2026 3:28:36 AM EST). Real estate listings held by brokerage firms other than Delta Agent Sites may be marked with the Internet Data Exchange logo and detailed information about those properties will include the name of the listing broker(s) when required by the MLS. All rights reserved.
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