Best Investments for House Flippers

It has to be said that when it comes to making property improvements, investors and home owners have completely different mindsets.Home owners look to make renovations; they want to make their spaces feel more authentic to them.They want their space to be functional for their families and they also want it to match their personal tastes.This is why home owners often put quite a bit of money into renovating and actually recoup little back when/if they sell their homes.

On the other hand, investors look to rehab properties.They know that that in order to make a profit, they need to stick to a budget when they make property improvements.Therefore, they are very careful about what renovations they choose to make and learn to be very efficient with their time and costs.

With that said, if you are a house flipping investor, there are certain renovations experts feel make the most sense when trying to achieve ROI.When rehabbing, most experts agree that the first place to start is the kitchen.There is a saying that goes “kitchens sell houses” and that happens to be very true.People spend a great deal of their time in the kitchen and it is the epicenter of their social activity.

That being said, a kitchen remodel could cost between $18,500 (minor tweaks) to $54,000 (major redo).When rehabbing a kitchen, investors should consider the layout of the home first.Today’s buyers really desire open kitchens and free flowing spaces.With a good contractor on-hand, removing walls is not too much of a problem and can create the open concept design that most buyers want.

The next thing to address in the kitchen would be cabinets and countertops.Often times, investors can get away with resurfacing or refinishing cabinets instead of replacing them and if you save some money here, you can apply it toward higher-end countertops.Speaking of countertops, there are literally options (colors, materials, styles) for all budgets.However, it has been reported by the NKBA that 88% of professional kitchen designers decided opted for quartz countertops.

The second place to pay attention to is the bathroom.Many people think they need to throw a lot of money into bathrooms, but that’s not always the case.When it comes to this area of the house, buyers are looking for clean and modern spaces.Therefore, replacing the toilet is number one on the list followed by the vanity and sink.You’ll also want to examine the shower and bath, not just the enclosures, but the walls.If buyers walk into a home with an updated kitchen, but see 1950s tile on the bathroom walls, they will lose interest pretty fast.Therefore, it’s always advantageous to update the tile so it looks modern and neat.

Finally, something worth noting is that today’s buyers are looking to save money over time and are interested in green technology.According to the Environmental Protection Agency, 60 million homes in the U.S. have old refrigerators that cost $4.4 billion a year to operate.If you can replace old appliances with new, energy efficient models, it will definitely appeal to buyers who are more eco-conscious than ever before and possibly result in a quicker sale.