Florida Flippers: How Are You Adjusting Your Numbers for Insurance and Holding Costs
Hi all,
I'm curious what active Florida investors are doing right now, particularly in markets like Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville, and surrounding areas.
My background is in asset management and property operations, and one thing I've noticed over the last few years is the increased scrutiny from insurance carriers, especially around:
- Roof age
- Water damage claims
- Wind mitigation
- Older plumbing and electrical systems
- Vacant property coverage
It seems like insurance costs and underwriting requirements continue to tighten, which can significantly impact project profitability.
For those actively flipping in Florida:
- Are you increasing your required profit margins?
- Are you lowering your maximum allowable offers (MAO)?
- Are you holding properties longer due to market conditions?
- Are you seeing buyers push back on pricing?
- Has insurance become a meaningful factor in your acquisition criteria?
I recently started sourcing more opportunities in Florida and I'm trying to understand how experienced flippers are adjusting their numbers in today's environment.
Would love to hear from investors actively buying in Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville, St. Petersburg, Sarasota, or Southwest Florida.
What's changed in your underwriting compared to 2–3 years ago?
Looking forward to hearing everyone's perspective!
-Ana Ruiz
Most Popular Reply
Ana, the biggest shift I'd flag is on the sourcing side, not just the underwriting side. If insurance and holding costs are eating margin, the cushion has to come from acquisition price, and retail-adjacent MLS deals don't leave much room once you bake in a higher reserve. Tax delinquent and vacant or absentee-owner properties tend to trade at a real discount because the seller's motivation isn't tied to market pricing, so that discount can offset a chunk of the insurance hit before you even touch the MAO formula. Worth weighting acquisition channel as heavily as the margin percentage itself right now.