Who hasn’t sat back and watched ‘The Block’ or ‘House Rules’ and thought renovating a house looks easy enough? The popularity of these reality TV shows has turned renovating into a business beast of its own. It has become way more than a simple hobby or side hustle these days, but it’s one thing to renovate and another making a profit from it.
One of the fastest growing trends is House Flipping. For those who know little about this term, house flipping is when a real estate investor buys a house and then sells them for a profit. In order for a house to be considered a flip, it must be bought with the intention of quickly reselling. The time between the purchase and the sale often ranges from a couple of months up to a year.
There are so many factors to take into consideration when flipping a house, like buying from the right agent, selling with the right agent, where and what to invest your budget on for the best possible return, suburbs and suburb demographics to styling the property for resale. We spoke to Brisbane house flipping guru and strategic renovation consultant, Kate Cleary, who has renovated and flipped dozens of properties over the years, and her hobby is now a flourishing business.
According to Kate: “The art of flipping is 90% data analysis and 10% renovating”!
Here are Kate’s top tips to house flipping for a profit:
Tip 1: Know who the biggest pool of Owner-occupier buyers are. – At the end of a renovation, you should be aiming to sell to an owner-occupier. Why? THEY PAY MORE! Because they get emotionally attached to the property. You don’t necessarily want to be selling to investors, as they tend to be more pragmatic and are “all about the numbers” and say things like “does it stack?” VS. “I could totally live here”!
Tip 2: FLIP IN SUBURBS THAT ARE MAINLY OWNER OCCUPIER SUBURBS…. To find this data go to realestate.com.au or the ABS census data.
Tip 3: Surround yourself with positive people…. You will need support. Flipping can be an exhaustive emotional, financial and physical roller-coaster!
Tip 4: The front of your house is your Tinder Profile…. Give that home some street appeal!!!!! Make it sexy so your buyers swipe right. Street appeal is crucial. How it works is that most buyers’ first point of contact with your home is the online photos… then they do a drive-by. First impressions count!
Tip 5: Kitchens, bathrooms, and living areas sell houses! Target these areas if you are unable to afford to do the rest!
ABOUT KATE
Kate is a Brisbane-based strategic renovation consultant; blending her love of professional property ‘flipping’ and interior design.
Kate transitioned to full-time ‘flipping’ after a ten-year career as an anaesthetic nurse, pursuing her love of transforming property and unleashing her creativity. Her passion is in the art of transforming houses on a budget, and she is very hands-on with her projects from start to sale; painting, gardening, doing the demolition and fluffing the cushions.
Kate now spends a large portion of her time assisting her clients, which range from first-time renovators to mum and dads decorating, to experienced property developers – helping them all achieve maximum value on their projects.