Vetting House Flippers

[Daniel Harnsberger]

I have a friend in upstate New York who is interested in funding an experienced investor's house flips for a 12 - 15% ROI. Passive investing, as some call it.

My recommendations to him in order to find these individuals or groups to partner with in these type of ventures was to attend local REIAs, join BP and read and post in the forums and to contact real estate attorneys in the area for recommendations.

My question: How would you recommend "vetting" house flippers before funding their projects?  I told him to look for someone who provides an itemized, detailed breakdown of their project with documentation to back up the numbers; ask for a portfolio of their previous flips with itemized breakdowns of the financials; to contact other people who have funded said investor's projects.  And to make sure he uses a good RE attorney before entering in to any agreement.

What would you add to that?  

[Tom V.]

Maybe you should have your friend be prepared to define what he brings to the table for his 12-15%.    Any flipper who's head over heels to borrow money at 15% may not be the sharpest tack in the box, unless your friend can offer some other expertise to to along with it.