Rent or buy: is flipping homes still lucrative?

When considering whether to rent or buy, flipping a home is not as easy as it was before the real estate bubble burst, but can still be profitable.

The housing market is a renter's market right now and you may be interested in buying a distressed home to live in, fix and rent or repair and resell for a profit. When considering whether to rent or buy, flipping a home is not as easy as it was before the real estate bubble burst, but can still be profitable.

Typically if you are debating whether to rent or buy for flipping, you are thinking about the home as an investment rather than a place to live. This can be risky, especially if you have never been a homeowner before. Homeownership comes with a lot of responsibility, even if you only plan to own for a short time.

Flipping a foreclosed home can potentially make you a lot of money, but it requires having capital to invest and a willingness to work hard. In order to successfully flip a home nowadays, it is necessary to add value to the property. This is done by making necessary repairs and adding things that people would want. You need to consider the cost of repairs even before you buy.

Consider how much money you plan to invest and the estimated property value of the home once repaired. If this value is greater than the home price and repairs, then it may be a profitable venture. In most cases, you will want the estimate to show a substantial profit. Typically, renovation costs end up being higher than you plan. Plus, you need to be sufficiently compensated for your work or prepared to pay someone else to do the renovations. When doing the repairs and improvements, scrutinize every choice and try to minimize costs. After considering all this, determine if you want to rent or buy; flipping a property can be difficult.

You can sufficiently increase your profit margin by doing as many repairs and improvements as possible by yourself. However, there will most likely be some tasks that need to be performed by contractors. If you do not want to expend a lot of effort fixing a property, think very carefully before deciding to rent or buy. Flipping a property is a challenging task that can reward you handsomely if you work hard and plan well. To look at foreclosed homes that may make good properties to flip, go to RealtyNow.