How Can a Real Estate Agent Help House Flippers

There’s a good reason why so many real estate agents also flip houses on the side. Rehabbing homes can generate exceptional income, but it isn’t something you can learn how to do overnight. The best house flippers have specialty knowledge of the housing market, construction, and budgeting OR they have teams of people that they can trust to help them make informed decisions about all of those things. That team might include a contractor, an accountant, and – you guessed it -- a real estate agent.

Whether you are considering your first flip or whether you’re an old pro at rehabbing houses, here are three reasons to consider adding a real estate agent to your team.

1. Real estate agents have insider access.

Many flippers are under the impression that because they can access the MLS directly now, real estate agents aren’t necessary anymore. It’s true that sites like Zillow and Trulia make finding new home listings much easier than before, but the information on such sites is inevitably delayed. While you – and every other house flipper – can set up endless alerts for specific home searches, housing websites can never reliably tell you when someone is thinking about selling a home.

Real estate agents are in the business of networking. They keep in contact with all of their past clients and thrive on referrals. By partnering with an experienced realtor, you’ll be more likely to hear about possible investment opportunities before your competition.

2. Real estate agents have great memories.

Those same websites that tell you which homes are on the market are also a great place to start researching buying trends and comparing preferred amenities in different neighborhoods. And while that sort of information is all incredibly helpful, the available information on a particular neighborhood can sometimes leave out factors you might be interested in, or it might only go back a few years. When you want to know what the buying trends have been like in a neighborhood for the last decade, an experienced realtor can be invaluable. Realtors also have information about less readily available data, like how residents feel about their neighborhood or what companies are going to be opening new offices and which ones are rumored to be leaving town. That kind of on-the-ground information is vital to house flippers.

3. Real estate agents are jacks of all trades.

Real estate agents are bottomless troves of helpful insights. By virtue of their position within the housing market, great real estate agents need to have at least some knowledge of budgeting, the costs and labor for a variety of renovations, the best firms offering house flipping loans, reliable contractors, housing inspection red flags, etc. And all of that is on top of any good agent’s in-depth knowledge of home closing costs, expected market trends, property taxes, and insurance.

As in any profession, not all real estate agents are made equally, so when you find a real estate agent that you get along with, someone with experience that you trust and a wealth of positive recommendations, don’t let him or her get away. You’ll benefit from their services in countless ways while flipping houses.