In the last couple of years, fixing and flipping houses has become much less popular.
So many people who tried to make money this way lost a lot or gained very little; some of them gave up altogether.
You have to be either very lucky or really know about flipping houses to succeed.
If you ask me, I wouldn't hope for luck, I would do research & take any & all advice to get some help. It can be very confusing & frustrating to make all these different decisions.
What I saw was that people got very carried away with things & tried to make the home very presentable by spending too much money on small things that added up very quickly.
You need to find the balance between your dreams & your wallet. I created this page to give you some ideas on how you can plan going forward. Planning is the most important thing.
Of course, the unexpected will probably happen, but by planning, you will reduce the chance to be too unpleasantly surprised.
Before you spend a dime, set a budget that you can spend on the home.
Also,
1. Inspection:
Make sure your home does not have major structural problems. You can lose everything if you aren't careful.
2. Don't get crazy spending!
See what are the most important things that you have to fix in the home, and only fix what is absolutely necessary.
3. Next, set a budget for each room.
I think it is much easier to clearly see the project that you are working on without getting too tangled up in it.
4. Always do your research, shop around.
It’s better to spend your time rather than your money. Even Lowe's & Home Depot's prices can be widely different. Don't forget you are not planning to live there; you are planning to flip this house. The best thing to do is to buy things that look nice but are in the perfect price range for your budget.
5. Open up a store credit card.
Usually there is no interest rate for the first 6 months or so & the good news is that you get 10% off of your 1st purchase. The best thing to do is to put a list together & buy all your items the 1st time, so you can save more.
**Check out "Entertainment.com"
They have lots of coupons from different companies - for example, you can save on light fixtures.
**You can find coupons for different services that may apply to your flipping houses project at: Valpack.com
6. Do you want to save more money? Are you handy? If you can fix things around the house, that's great! Are you willing to learn more? There are free classes in your local Lowe's & Home Depot. Check out the class schedules. They are very helpful & will answer all your questions that you have about the subject.
7. Hire a home stager before you start the project. Ask for a one time consultation. You will spend around $150 but you can gain a lot of new ideas. Home stagers are professionals who know how to prepare a home for the market & will help you succeed in flipping the house.
