If You Want to Flip, Do It Now
DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | MONDAY, FEBRUARY 03, 2014
In 2013, home flips snagged sellers a tidy profit. But the trend may not continue.
RealtyTrac's Home Flipping Report for the fourth quarter of 2013 showed single-family home flips were up 16 percent from 2012 and up 114 percent from 2011. The average gross profit for a home flip—defined as a home being purchased and subsequently sold again within six months—was $58,081 for all U.S. homes flipped in 2013, up from an average gross profit of $45,759 in 2012. The average gross profit for homes flipped in the fourth quarter was even greater, at $62,761.
But while profits are strong in flipping right now, according to Housingwire, "the market may be peaking." Flips accounted for 3.8 percent of all sales in the fourth quarter, down slightly from the third quarter and down from 7.1 percent year-over-year. Housingwire reports that the diminishing availability of foreclosures may make it difficult for investors to find properties to flip in the coming year.
Major markets with big year-over-year decreases in home flipping included Philadelphia (down 43 percent) and Phoenix (down 32 percent).
Source: "Flip now if you plan to flip that house at all," Housingwire (Jan. 30, 2014)
