Going to do my first fix and flip this year in PDX, advice on education and resources

Lender · MD · Member since 2025 · 260 posts · 97 votes

It sounds like you're taking the right approach by preparing before jumping into your first deal. If I could go back, I'd spend just as much time understanding the financing and holding costs as I would the rehab itself. A lot of first-time flippers focus on renovation budgets but underestimate carrying costs, interest, and what happens if the project takes longer or sells for less than expected.

I'd also run your numbers with a few different scenarios, not just the best-case outcome. If the deal still makes sense after adding a contingency for time, costs, and resale value, you'll probably sleep a lot better during the project. If you'd like to compare financing options or pressure-test the numbers on your first flip, I'd be happy to help.

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Arman AhmedPro Member

Real Estate Agent · Columbus Cleveland Dayton, OH · Member since 2024 · 2k+ posts · 969 votes

1mo

Quote from @Chris Matley:

Hey everyone — planning my first fix-and-flip and want to get as prepared as possible before I pull the trigger.

Some background on where I'm starting from: I already own a house-hack property here in Portland — I live in the main house and rent out the ADU on a 12-month lease, so I've got some landlord experience and have been through a purchase/financing/inspection process, just not a flip yet. I've got a friend who's an active developer walking me through underwriting and renovation budgeting fundamentals, which has helped, but I know there's a lot I still don't know.

I've run some numbers on what a realistic first deal looks like: targeting something in the $400k ARV range, and once I account for the down payment plus financing and holding costs through the rehab and resale, I'm estimating I'll need roughly $130k on hand to comfortably secure the loan and carry the project. I'd rather spend the next year getting genuinely competent than rush in and let inexperience eat into that capital.

What I'm hoping to get from this community:

What resources — books, courses, podcasts, local investor groups — actually moved the needle for you early on, versus what turned out to be a waste of time or money?

If you could go back to right before your first flip, what's the one thing you wish you'd nailed down first? Underwriting accuracy, contractor vetting, financing structure, something else entirely?

For a first deal around a $400k ARV, does ~$130k on hand sound like a reasonable cushion, or am I under- or over-shooting?

Appreciate any advice — happy to share more on the Portland market if it's useful for context.

You’re doing the right thing by learning before risking $ 130K. For a first flip, I’d put contractor vetting and accurate rehab estimates at the top of the list, because small misses can quickly eat into your profit. I’d also compare Portland with Midwest markets like Ohio if you’re open to going out of state. Lower acquisition costs can give a newer investor a little more room for mistakes while still creating upside through the rehab.

[email protected]614-418-6081

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Sruly Goldschmied

Lender · United States · Member since 2026 · 19 posts · 5 votes

1mo

Smart to take the year. From the lending side the first flips that go sideways almost never go wrong on the purchase, its the rehab budget and the timeline. Pad both more than you think you need

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Jarred Sleeth

Investor · Austin, TX · Member since 2014 · 144 posts · 86 votes

1mo

@Gregory Acs and @Sruly Goldschmied made good points about padding the rehab budget and timeline. The piece I would add is that a $400K ARV alone doesn't tell us whether $130K is enough.

Build a complete sources-and-uses sheet showing the purchase price, lender funding at closing, your required equity, points and closing costs, rehab funds held back, monthly carrying costs at both nine and twelve months, selling costs, and a rehab contingency. Then leave yourself an untouched reserve after all of that.

One thing first-time flippers sometimes miss is that many rehab lenders reimburse completed work. You may need enough liquidity to fund the first phase before receiving a draw.

I'd get an actual term sheet from a lender and model the deal around those terms. That will give you a much more useful answer than applying a general cash requirement to a $400K ARV.

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Drew SygitBusiness Member

Property Manager · Royal Oak, MI · Member since 2012 · 13k+ posts · 9k+ votes

1mo

You don't know what you don't know, so everything potentially helps you.

Find local investor groups to join.

Start looking NOW for a contractor and PAY them to walk listings that you might buy and generate SOW and bid as practice.

[email protected]248-209-6824

Logical Property Management4.9462 Reviews

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Brandon Hendrick

Portland Oregon · Member since 2021 · 14 posts · 1 vote

1mo

Chris, since you're buying in Portland, add two line items to every deal you underwrite before you even get to the rehab budget: a sewer scope and an oil tank sweep. A lot of older Portland houses still have clay sewer laterals and abandoned heating oil tanks. Both checks cost a few hundred bucks during your inspection period, while a lateral replacement out to the street or a leaking tank can easily run five figures and wipe out the profit on a $400k ARV flip by itself. I've done fix and flips myself, and around here those are the surprises that eat first-timers' margins. What purchase price and rehab budget are you penciling in to hit that $400k ARV?

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Chris Matley
OP
Member since 2023 · 2 posts · 1 vote
2w
Thanks Brandon, this is exactly the kind of local detail I was hoping for. Sewer scope and tank sweep are now standard line item on every deal I'll underwrite.
To answer your question: working backward from a $400k ARV with a 10% contingency, 7% selling costs, a hard-money loan and a 6-month hold, I'd need to buy around $230–250k with a $60–70k rehab to clear my profit target. I'm mostly looking at 97206, 97266 and 97218. Honestly, I'm not sure that purchase price exists for a house that only needs $60–70k. That's part of why I'm taking a year to practice before buying. Currently reading books, reaching out to lenders and studying to get my Real Estate License, primarily to just be better educated.

If you’re up for it, a few questions from someone who’s done this in Portland:
1. Sewer and tanks: what have you actually paid to repair or line a lateral versus replace it to the street? On tanks, have you decommissioned in place or removed them, and does the DEQ paperwork matter to buyers at resale?
2. ARV band: is a ~$400k ARV workable for a first flip in those ZIPs, or are the margins too thin and I should be looking higher?
3. Rehab costs: roughly what are you seeing per square foot right now/ when you were last active for a cosmetic refresh versus a kitchen-and-bath job?
4. Timeline: how long have Portland permits added to your holds?
5. Lenders and contractors: any local hard-money lenders whose draw process you’d recommend, or avoid? I’m also planning to pay a contractor to walk a few listings and write scopes as practice.
  
  I appreciate your response!
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Going to do my first fix and flip this year in PDX, advice on education and resources

Going to do my first fix and flip this year in PDX, advice on education and resources

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