You see a lot of articles and books about how to make money “real estate flipping.” Perhaps you’re heard radio or television news reports about the illegalities of flipping real estate. Maybe you’ve seen the late-night infomercials promising you easy overnight fortunes.

What’s the truth about making money flipping real estate?

First, real estate flipping isn’t illegal. Because some dishonest real estate investors conspired with deceitful mortgage brokers and property appraisers, their stories made “good news” for newscasters who love to grab attention with “Investors Scam Banks and Bilk Buyers out of Millions!” sound bites. True, some investors defraud mortgage lenders and/or desperate home buyers. Cheating investors hyped up property values, helped home buyers tell untruths on mortgage applications, and conned banks and buyers.

On the other hand, ethical real estate investors make a lot of money real estate flipping. There are many ways to make money flipping real estate:

1. You can help home sellers in foreclosure save their credit by arranging a sale of the property and never even take title. In other words, buy the property and double-escrow the property to a home buyer who wants to live in the home.

2. Find a seller under stress with a bargain property, secure a sales contract, and sell your contract for roughly $500 to $5,000 to a seasoned real estate investor without financing or taking title.

3. Buy a fixer for a bargain price, fix up the property, and sell for full market price.

You can make money flipping real estate without being dishonest or unethical. But first, you need to:

1. Get your credit in order to finance quickly.

2. Study your location so you know what properties sell for.

3. Learn how to negotiate with sellers under stress.

4. Find a good closing agent.

5. Learn how to fix houses or find good professional help.

6. Learn how to sell your property or find a great selling agent.

Before you jump into flipping real estate, do your homework. Copy other successful real estate investors who make money flipping the honest way.

Copyright © Jeanette J. Fisher

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There are two legal ways to increase your wealth.

1. Keep more of what you have (e.g., tax strategies, rehab efficiencies, cost savings)

2. Add value to something (e.g., a real estate investment, stocks, bonds)

Let’s focus on adding value to your rehab investments.

The most obvious is certainly bring it back up to standards. We HAVE to do the obvious things such as:

– Ensure there are no plumbing leaks and the entire plumbing system is in good working order, including potable water and sewage/septic and water heater.

– Ensure the electrical system is safe and working. This may require an upgrade. This includes all outlets, breakers, heat and AC.

– There can be no leaks in the roof! Obvious, but sometimes this is hard to determine if it isn’t a rainy season. You might have to take a garden hose to the roof to be sure. Station someone in the attic with a flashlight.

– Get rid of any rotted wood or termite damage, repair walls, etc.

Those items I’ve listed and others like it are no-brainers. But how do we really add value to the eye? We make it pretty!

– We paint all walls and ceilings (usually bright white)

– We replace flooring, or if there is acceptable carpet or tile, we professionally clean and restore it.

– We hang mini blinds on the windows.

- We trim trees and bushes, paint the outside make the exterior look fresh.

Now, to get the sale, or to get it rented immediately we do some of these things that really make a difference (notice the emphasis on kitchen and bathrooms!):

– Replace or refinish the kitchen cabinets, sink and countertop.

– Replace the toilet, vanity, and resurface or replace the tub.

What if we want to really make OUR property stand out on the market? What if we want there to be NO question as to what a great house this is in the buyer’s mind? What if want TOP DOLLAR? Try these inexpensive upgrades!

EXTERIOR

– Put a decorative fence in front. Plant some shrubs along the front of the house with attractive landscaping bark around it for color

– Replace the front windows with something more attractive.

– Install lighting along the walkway

– Plant a tree

– Install a new mailbox

– Build a deck in the back

– Increase the exterior lighting. Motion sensor lights are a nice touch.

INTERIOR

– Install a security system. Sometimes the system is installed free with a year’s monitoring. Make the first year of free monitoring (prepaid by you) a selling point.

– Install a garage door opener

– Install a used hot tub. You might be surprised the amount of folks who no longer want their hot tub!

– Include a microwave.

– Buy new appliances. Kind of expensive, but a deal maker. Try making this an incentive for a full price offer.

– Lay ceramic tile instead of vinyl.

– Go with snap-and-lock hardwood flooring instead of carpet especially in a great or living room.

– Upgrade the faucet to something sleek and modern. There are hundreds to choose from. Go with an extra large sink.

– Replace the cabinet and drawer hardware to something extra fancy. This can make an average kitchen POP for little extra cost!

– Add ceiling fans instead of just new overhead lighting fixtures.

– Add chair rail molding in the dining and living rooms.

– Buy the attractive switch and outlet covers instead of the basic contractor grade covers.

We, as investors, need to make the rehab fit our strategies. If we want to rent the property, you probably won’t add as many upgrades. If you are looking to sell, and you need to get that property noticed, you should add as many of the upgrades as possible within your budget, especially the visual upgrades.

I hope this list has got you thinking creatively about how to pump of the value of your next project!

If you are flipping a property, you need to find buyers fast in order to make money. You can find buyers quickly by meeting investors and other potential customers at local business events and auctions and by building online mailing lists that you can send to potential buyers.

House flipping is attractive because it allows you to start making money right away. You don’t have to rent out the property, take care of taxes and management costs for months or years, and you don’t have to wait around waiting for buyers. The idea behind flipping is that you buy distressed property, turn it around, and sell it quickly to someone as soon as the renovations are done. The trick, of course, is to find buyers who are willing to buy quickly. If you’re planning on flipping a house but cannot find a buyer quickly, the delay in selling will mean lost profits.

To sell your investment home quickly:

1) Visit auctions to meet other investors. Local foreclosure auctions are not only a great way to find your next investment property for refurbishing and reselling, but they’re also a great place to pass out your business cards to other investors. Collect the business cards of other investors at the auction in order to build an investor list that you can contact whenever you have a property to sell. This is especially important if you plan on house flipping fairly regularly.

2) Build an e-mail list. Once you have a number of business cards and e-mails of other investors, develop a mailing list and an e-mail list. This way, you can contact investors quickly whenever you are about to sell property. However, keep in mind that you cannot simply send unsolicited information to other people. Have investors sign up for your mail newsletter or your e-mail newsletter, and this way you can send information about your latest home in the latest issue of your newsletter. Use a double opt-in list for e-mail newsletters and e-mail discussion groups, especially, because anti-spam laws can be fairly strict. Also, be careful not to abuse your e-mail list or mailing list. If you send investors a lot of information that they are not interested in, they’ll not only opt out of the mailing lists and e-mail lists, but they will become annoyed and less likely to look carefully over your property opportunities. You may wish to divide your mailing lists into a few groups. For example, send your higher-end properties to those investors interested in higher-end homes, and send rental units to those investors interested in commercial properties. This way, each investor will get the information that they’re actually interested in using.

3) Join business groups in your area. Any meetings, events, or luncheons held by business groups in your area are a great networking opportunity that lets you meet potential investors and investors in your area. Plus, you will be meeting people who are not investors but are still interested in business. These people may still be interested in contacting you when they have a property that they need to sell quickly or hear of a property that is going up for sale. Just about anyone can refer business to you and can refer customers to you, so make friends with lots of business owners in your area.

4) Go online. The Internet has lots of discussion groups, message boards, and forums where you can meet other investors who might be interested in buying your properties. These are great resources if you are house flipping, since you can receive and send information fast.

To find buyers for your properties, get to know other investors who would be interested in buying from you. Do this by developing an identity, looking through title records to find other investors, developing a marketing strategy and contacting investors who advertise via street signs.

Finding buyers for investment properties does not have to be a complex marketing battle. In fact, successful real estate investors often find buyers and tenants for their properties before the even purchase a piece of real estate. They do this by focusing on other real estate investors. Other real estate investors are always looking for properties to buy, so if you can supply them with properties, you will have a steady stream of potential clients at your beck and call.

Developing a list of investor clients willing to buy your properties is as simple as:

1) Developing a brand. In order to have investors remember you, you need to develop a brand or identity that stands out. This can be as simple as wearing a distinctive style of clothing, having a polished image, being approachable and personable, or having a specific niche or focus that is intriguing. Even a memorable business name or business card can go a long way towards ensuring that people remember you.

2) Looking for title records. Visit a title company or get to know a local real estate broker to find local title records. Good investors who are interested in buying and selling lots of properties show up on these records very regularly, so when a few names show up in the records again and again, you know that those are contacts you want to make.

3) Marketing. When you eventually have your list of investors, you will have to do less marketing work in order to sell your investment properties. However, at the beginning, especially, you will need to market in order to generate a list of potential investors interested in your homes. To do this, hand out brochures, business cards, and other marketing materials to everyone you know. Try targeting your ads to places where you know investors visit. For example, sign up for the local investors club or advertise in a local publication that investors tend to read.

4) Look for street signs. Any signs that say “We Buy Houses” are generally from investors, and you generally want to get to know the people who are pasting around the signs in your area. You want to contact these people when you have investment properties you want to sell, and you want these people to call you when they come across business opportunities that they don’t want but which you might find intriguing.

Croatia is an Eastern European success story and a country quickly developing an incredibly exciting real estate market into which foreign investment is free flowing.

Since Croatia achieved independence from the former federal independent communist state of Yugoslavia in 1991 its democratically elected government has worked tirelessly to prove to its own people and the outside world that it is committed to creating an independent and successful country.

As a result, Croatia has joined the Partnership for Peace Program with NATO, the World Trade Organization and the European Free Trade Association and is now on track for full European Union membership by 2007.  All of these facts alone stand to prove the Croatian government’s commitment to creating a competitive country with a successful market economy, and all of these facts have resulted in many major multinational companies relocating European headquarters to competitive Croatia.

Now add to this positive data the fact that Croatia is a stunningly beautiful country with 6,000 km of unspoiled coastline, a Mediterranean climate, mountains, lakes, forests and wildlife in abundance and a rapidly developing tourism industry, and hopefully you can begin to smell the potential!

As a direct result of the foreign investment flowing into Croatia in both the business and tourism sectors the country is becoming more successful, more wealthy and more desirable as a place to live, work, invest and holiday.

It is because of this perfect combination of factors that Croatia is emerging as a European real estate hot spot with demand from holiday makers for hotel and villa accommodation, demand from second home hunters looking for everything from apartments in the major towns and cities to rural retreats in the stunning Croatian countryside and demand from expatriates and international executives for houses and apartments to let.

A real estate investor looking for a secure emerging market with masses of potential for profit should consider Croatia.

For property developers there are substantial opportunities available in the tourism sector with demand for hotel accommodation outstripping supply currently.  For those hoping to profit from maximum short term capital gains on real estate there’s the potential to purchase off plan properties and flip upon completion by reselling to the waiting holiday and second home market.  Alternatively for those hoping to derive an income from their overseas real estate investments there’s the chance to let out units to the tourism market, the local market and also the expatriate market.

Croatia offers every real estate investor the potential they seek from their property investment.