Which improvements are worth it when house flipping?

Question

And which improvements are NOT worth it?

JD Martin · Answer

Depends on your price point for the house and your individual area - the expectations where you are.

My experience: making sure houses have all basic amenities (Central HVAC, dishwasher, etc), non-carpeted floors, new (or lots of life left) roof & windows, good kitchens. I wouldn't waste money on upgraded cabinets (unless you're talking high dollar housing) or virtually anything behind walls. I built a house and used upgraded subfloors, thicker walls for greater insulation, etc. and lost my ass on the build. No one was willing to pay for the upgrades that they couldn't see.

Eudith Vacio · Answer

I would definitely focus on things that people see when they first walk in to the property. Kitchen, floors, and bathrooms. I would also make sure the electricity / plumbing are good to go because most homebuyers get freaked out if something is wrong with that.

Evan Polaski · Answer

@Galit Garsiel, my take is design/finishes get houses under contract and mechanicals/systems kill deals.  My second take, which came from my much smarter wife: wives pick houses, so cater to a female clientele.

As JD and Brock note, there is no one size fits all.  I have replaced roofs, and not replaced roofs.  Although, I will say we have NEVER done smart home features, and never had an issue selling a house, often times in multiple offers, so I guess smart home stuff.  Generally, smart home stuff are things men want, and as noted, women are typically making the home buying decision in most couples.

Brock Dowis · Answer

You or your realtor really gotta do your homework on this one. Look at what comps in your desired price point are looking like. What do they all have in common. What do they all not have. It seems simple but really combing through similarities like this on what is selling will tell you a lot. Short answer, kitchens and bathrooms.

Eliott Elias · Answer

Study your area. There’s are thing you can do to directly add value and things that don’t add value. Ex: convert my garage to a 4th bedroom because rents increase and people hold no value to a garage

Which improvements are worth it when house flipping?

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