How can I learn about flipping houses?

DestinyGamer

I've been considering this for many years but now both my fiancé and I are disheartened with our jobs and are really considering this as a way to make extra income and eventually go full-time.

We live in Norfolk, and rent.
We have £20k savings.
We've been looking at houses up north. Some as cheap as £10k at auction.
We'd like a fixer upper and to buy with the intention of adding value to then sell on. 

If you have any experience of this or know how we can learn more about it please lete know

[Deleted User]

First port of call - watch a months worth of Homes Under The Hammer !

This programme gives an insight into basic do's and don'ts, and not at your own expense - there are many pitfalls and before you dive into doing this for a living see how others experience it.

Money and experience are your best friends, not enough of both will be hard lessons learned.

Ramouth

The problem with homes under the hammer is that the often don’t calculate the figures correctly.  Or show an actual sale price following survey.  You need to make sure you include your borrowing costs and selling fees.  You need to make sure the work you do is properly certified and has planning / building regs approval.  

It can be difficult to make a profit on very cheap houses as the ceiling price for the street can be very low, and materials cost the same wherever you are.  Tradesmen might be slightly cheaper but if it is a long way from home you will need to include the costs involved in visiting the site to check the work and answer queries.

I’m not saying don’t do it, just think very carefully and don’t underestimate your costs. 

p00hsticks

DestinyGamer said:

We've been looking at houses up north. Some as cheap as £10k at auction.

They're as cheap as £10k for a reason though. My home is in one of the areas often featured in Homes Under the Hammer. It cost just over £30k 30 years ago and I don't expect to get any more for it if I sell it now.

On a very cheap house you can easily spend more doing it up than the house originally cost just with a basic new bathroom, kitchen, central heating boiler and redecorating, and it's not going to double the price of the house. 

strawb_shortcake

The great house giveaway with Simon O'Brien was an interesting programme that showed just how difficult it was to turn a profit on flipping houses. You might still  be able to watch on 4OD?

K_S

@destinygamer Whatever you do, don't shell out a penny for any of the many charlatans who peddle their "training" on the internet on how to get rich quick using buy-refurb-sell.

The most difficult part is actually getting a property that is truly "below market value".

Have a look at this video from Mike Winnet to get a very high level idea of the steps involved. https://youtu.be/ryTx_r5vgUs

DestinyGamer

K_S said:

@destinygamer Whatever you do, don't shell out a penny for any of the many charlatans who peddle their "training" on the internet on how to get rich quick using buy-refurb-sell.

The most difficult part is actually getting a property that is truly "below market value".

Have a look at this video from Mike Winnet to get a very high level idea of the steps involved. https://youtu.be/ryTx_r5vgUs

That was a really interesting watch! Tysm 🙂 There's so much I don't know about house flipping so it's great to watch things like this. 

I've been caught out by peddlers of lessons online before - people selling a dream that, more than often, they were born into and never had to strive for in their life! Annoys the heck out of me that people can fake others out of their money selling dreams that aren't achievable to the average person. 

DestinyGamer

[Deleted User] said:

First port of call - watch a months worth of Homes Under The Hammer !

This programme gives an insight into basic do's and don'ts, and not at your own expense - there are many pitfalls and before you dive into doing this for a living see how others experience it.

Money and experience are your best friends, not enough of both will be hard lessons learned.

I love that program, the music choices always make me laugh 😆

DestinyGamer

Ramouth said:

The problem with homes under the hammer is that the often don’t calculate the figures correctly.  Or show an actual sale price following survey.  You need to make sure you include your borrowing costs and selling fees.  You need to make sure the work you do is properly certified and has planning / building regs approval.  

It can be difficult to make a profit on very cheap houses as the ceiling price for the street can be very low, and materials cost the same wherever you are.  Tradesmen might be slightly cheaper but if it is a long way from home you will need to include the costs involved in visiting the site to check the work and answer queries.

I’m not saying don’t do it, just think very carefully and don’t underestimate your costs. 

I agree with you. If it was easy everyone would do it. I would like to learn about it but I have no intention of jumping in feet first 👍

Doozergirl

[Deleted User] said:

First port of call - watch a months worth of Homes Under The Hammer !

This programme gives an insight into basic do's and don'ts, and not at your own expense - there are many pitfalls and before you dive into doing this for a living see how others experience it.

Money and experience are your best friends, not enough of both will be hard lessons learned.

HUTH doesn't even start to cover it.  Often they talk complete rubbish.  Presenters and purchasers alike.  I feel sorry for the people that end up buying these properties from the many charlatans that flip them.   

As someone who has made a living doing it, I cannot watch HUTH as it is the only program on TV that makes me feel violent.  So many people with zero integrity on that program.  

Doozergirl

p00hsticks said:

DestinyGamer said:

We've been looking at houses up north. Some as cheap as £10k at auction.

They're as cheap as £10k for a reason though. My home is in one of the areas often featured in Homes Under the Hammer. It cost just over £30k 30 years ago and I don't expect to get any more for it if I sell it now.

On a very cheap house you can easily spend more doing it up than the house originally cost just with a basic new bathroom, kitchen, central heating boiler and redecorating, and it's not going to double the price of the house. 

This.  All day long.