New Real Estate Investor Looking to Start with Flipping
Member since 2025 · 11 posts · 4 votes
Hey everyone!
Excited, and honestly a really nervous, to be diving into the flipping business!
I previously owned a long-term rental that I bought from a parent and rented to family for over three years (lesson learned!). When they finally moved out, after destroying everything), I flipped the property, doing most of the work myself and leveraging family with trades backgrounds. I ended up making a profit that paid for my wedding and honeymoon!
My first flip!
Now I’m looking to get serious about flipping. I still have a full-time job, but my goal is to start with 1-2 flips/year for the first couple of years, then ramp up to 5+/year.
Right now, I'm focused on learning as much as possible—market analysis, deal sourcing, estimating rehab costs, and raising capital. I'm also in the process of finalizing my business plan and setting up my LLC.
I'm excited to connect with the community and would love any insights or advice as I get started! Looking forward to learning from you all.
Having family with trades is a huge benefit, even if they don't do the work, utilize them as a resource. 1. Sourcing reputable contractors via your network 2. Not overpaying and getting great terms 3. multiple bids/ quotes 4. project management.
The link would be to capital, sourcing and analyzing deals: underwrite, underwrite, underwrite. Speak to lenders, have a nice package together: they will want an SREO, your background, your assets/ income etc, they will want your "business plan", your underwriting, your capex breakdown line by line.
Connect with local wholesalers and investor friendly agents and provide your criteria to start receiving deal flow.
Hey everyone!
Excited, and honestly a really nervous, to be diving into the flipping business!
I previously owned a long-term rental that I bought from a parent and rented to family for over three years (lesson learned!). When they finally moved out, after destroying everything), I flipped the property, doing most of the work myself and leveraging family with trades backgrounds. I ended up making a profit that paid for my wedding and honeymoon!
My first flip!
Now I’m looking to get serious about flipping. I still have a full-time job, but my goal is to start with 1-2 flips/year for the first couple of years, then ramp up to 5+/year.
Right now, I'm focused on learning as much as possible—market analysis, deal sourcing, estimating rehab costs, and raising capital. I'm also in the process of finalizing my business plan and setting up my LLC.
I'm excited to connect with the community and would love any insights or advice as I get started! Looking forward to learning from you all.
Hey @Eric Huntermark, welcome to the BP Forum! Nice first flip. Are you targeting the same type of house/area? Do you have your financing in place or are you using all your own money (or an investor)?
Thanks very much! Yes, I'm looking to start with single family homes (Purchase price ~<$150k, resale around $225k - $250k) in the Pittsburgh area. Do not have financing at this time. Looking to limit the amount of cash I need to put in (ideally under $10k) by leveraging different financing options
Hey everyone!
Excited, and honestly a really nervous, to be diving into the flipping business!
I previously owned a long-term rental that I bought from a parent and rented to family for over three years (lesson learned!). When they finally moved out, after destroying everything), I flipped the property, doing most of the work myself and leveraging family with trades backgrounds. I ended up making a profit that paid for my wedding and honeymoon!
My first flip!
Now I’m looking to get serious about flipping. I still have a full-time job, but my goal is to start with 1-2 flips/year for the first couple of years, then ramp up to 5+/year.
Right now, I'm focused on learning as much as possible—market analysis, deal sourcing, estimating rehab costs, and raising capital. I'm also in the process of finalizing my business plan and setting up my LLC.
I'm excited to connect with the community and would love any insights or advice as I get started! Looking forward to learning from you all.
Hey @Eric Huntermark, welcome to the BP Forum! Nice first flip. Are you targeting the same type of house/area? Do you have your financing in place or are you using all your own money (or an investor)?
Hey everyone!
Excited, and honestly a really nervous, to be diving into the flipping business!
I previously owned a long-term rental that I bought from a parent and rented to family for over three years (lesson learned!). When they finally moved out, after destroying everything), I flipped the property, doing most of the work myself and leveraging family with trades backgrounds. I ended up making a profit that paid for my wedding and honeymoon!
My first flip!
Now I’m looking to get serious about flipping. I still have a full-time job, but my goal is to start with 1-2 flips/year for the first couple of years, then ramp up to 5+/year.
Right now, I'm focused on learning as much as possible—market analysis, deal sourcing, estimating rehab costs, and raising capital. I'm also in the process of finalizing my business plan and setting up my LLC.
I'm excited to connect with the community and would love any insights or advice as I get started! Looking forward to learning from you all.
Hey @Eric Huntermark, welcome to the BP Forum! Nice first flip. Are you targeting the same type of house/area? Do you have your financing in place or are you using all your own money (or an investor)?
@Eric Huntermark I think less than $10k down on a purchase price of $150k is going to be hard to find. Most HMLs max out their loans at 75% of the ARV.
Additionally, as I'm thinking about conventional loan products as well. I need to better understand all impacts each option has for a smaller operation. It may be that a conventional loan product is better to start, but i just have to factor in the longer runway to getting funded (e.g., underwriting, etc.)
Let me know if there's a better way to think about this. Thanks again for the discussion!
Welcome, Eric! Under 10k might be hard to get into unless you partner up with someone who has capital or can find a private lender willing to work with you. A good way into it may be doing a house hack or live and flip then pulling the equity out in a refinance.
Tons of ways to make money in this game! If you need any help lets connect and talk. Maybe we can bounce some ideas off each-other and help one another.
Additionally, as I'm thinking about conventional loan products as well. I need to better understand all impacts each option has for a smaller operation. It may be that a conventional loan product is better to start, but i just have to factor in the longer runway to getting funded (e.g., underwriting, etc.)
Let me know if there's a better way to think about this. Thanks again for the discussion!
@Eric Huntermark Unless you're already independently wealthy, a conventional loan product (assuming this = bank/credit union loan), is going to probably be less attractive for you and most banks/credit unions don't lend to flippers.
Additionally, as I'm thinking about conventional loan products as well. I need to better understand all impacts each option has for a smaller operation. It may be that a conventional loan product is better to start, but i just have to factor in the longer runway to getting funded (e.g., underwriting, etc.)
Let me know if there's a better way to think about this. Thanks again for the discussion!
@Eric Huntermark Unless you're already independently wealthy, a conventional loan product (assuming this = bank/credit union loan), is going to probably be less attractive for you and most banks/credit unions don't lend to flippers.
It sounds like, I'll need to either pony up some more cash or find a private lender that is willing to invest in some of the deals with me
Welcome, Eric! Under 10k might be hard to get into unless you partner up with someone who has capital or can find a private lender willing to work with you. A good way into it may be doing a house hack or live and flip then pulling the equity out in a refinance.
Tons of ways to make money in this game! If you need any help lets connect and talk. Maybe we can bounce some ideas off each-other and help one another.
Unfortunately a house hack isn't likely an option. The wife and I just bought our first house about 6 months ago. Looks like your local to me. I'll reach out via email so we can connect.
Welcome to BP Eric and good luck flipping!
Hi Eric, welcome to BP and best of luck on your flipping journey!
Having family with trades is a huge benefit, even if they don't do the work, utilize them as a resource. 1. Sourcing reputable contractors via your network 2. Not overpaying and getting great terms 3. multiple bids/ quotes 4. project management.
The link would be to capital, sourcing and analyzing deals: underwrite, underwrite, underwrite. Speak to lenders, have a nice package together: they will want an SREO, your background, your assets/ income etc, they will want your "business plan", your underwriting, your capex breakdown line by line.
Connect with local wholesalers and investor friendly agents and provide your criteria to start receiving deal flow.
Having family with trades is a huge benefit, even if they don't do the work, utilize them as a resource. 1. Sourcing reputable contractors via your network 2. Not overpaying and getting great terms 3. multiple bids/ quotes 4. project management.
The link would be to capital, sourcing and analyzing deals: underwrite, underwrite, underwrite. Speak to lenders, have a nice package together: they will want an SREO, your background, your assets/ income etc, they will want your "business plan", your underwriting, your capex breakdown line by line.
Connect with local wholesalers and investor friendly agents and provide your criteria to start receiving deal flow.
Financing. Get to some local meetings. After talking with some folks, you will find someone out there will have a bunch of cash. They will lend you their IRA money.
My friends and family lend me 100% of the purchase price AND rehab money. I usually only have about 2k for closing costs out of pocket. Then I have monthly interest payments until sold. The thing to remember also is that I buy super duper priced houses. If I ever got foreclosed on, my lender would make a bunch of money finishing the house. They would not be upside down.
The key is finding VERY discounted houses.
Financing. Get to some local meetings. After talking with some folks, you will find someone out there will have a bunch of cash. They will lend you their IRA money.
My friends and family lend me 100% of the purchase price AND rehab money. I usually only have about 2k for closing costs out of pocket. Then I have monthly interest payments until sold. The thing to remember also is that I buy super duper priced houses. If I ever got foreclosed on, my lender would make a bunch of money finishing the house. They would not be upside down.
The key is finding VERY discounted houses.
Rick, thanks for the insight! That's exactly what I'm looking for in a capital structure. When looking for houses, do you leverage your network more than searching the open market? My next big gap in knowledge is finding homes
Welcome to BP!
Beautiful first flip. Wishing you the best in continuing to build out your portfolio.
Welcome to BP!
Beautiful first flip. Wishing you the best in continuing to build out your portfolio.
Thanks, Meghan!
@Eric Huntermark There are two big issues to be a real estate investor. Find the money and find the deals. They both are not solved overnight. It took me 5 or 6 years to find my first private lender. Then all of a sudden I have several. I gave out about 2000 business cards in the first few years. I wrote a letter to all my family and friends to let them know what I was doing. I have taken at least 100 people out to coffee, breakfast, lunch or dinner to let them know what I do. And a few of them are now my lenders. When I started there was no Facebook, but now I have a personal page, business page on Facebook, website, linked In, and they all say that I help people with their real estate issues. Go ahead and look me up. My name and personal cell come up easily.
Finding deals: I send letters to people behind on mortgage. I try to help people with their issues even if that means I dont buy the house. But guess what, sometimes I do. Right now I dont buy any MLS properties, nor have I since 2012 or 2013.
Hi Eric That’s a solid price range for flips, especially in Pittsburgh. Keeping your cash investment under $10K makes sense—you want to stay liquid for unexpected costs. Since you’re open to different financing options, here are a few strategies that might help:
Hard Money Lenders – These are the go-to for most flippers since they fund deals fast. The trade-off is higher interest rates and points. If you go this route, make sure the numbers work after factoring in carrying costs.
Private Lending – Some investors raise capital from private lenders (friends, family, or investor networks). The terms are usually more flexible than hard money, and you can negotiate interest-only payments until the flip sells.
Business Credit for Real Estate – A lot of investors use no doc 0% interest business credit to cover down payments, materials, and labor costs instead of tying up personal cash or taking on a loan and you . Since it's in a business entity, it doesn't show up on your personal credit report or affect your DTI, giving you more flexibility for future financing.
Jaedon,
Thanks for information and breakdown! Definitely going to consider everything including your last point about 0% interest credit to actually execute the flip and get materials/labor.
Hey Eric!
Welcome to BP! Looking forward to seeing many more of your flips!