@Richard Helppie-Schmieder , you are one of the top 1% outliers. It's not even so much what you do, it's the amount of initiative and energy you bring to the table. This is a trait that I see with successful investors: they are trying 100 different things and immediately double down on the things that work for them. This is such a stark difference to the many posts you read here from a person who is trying to flip one house and asking for advice on BP on why is my cost so high etc..

As an agent, I can tell you there is a magic ingredient and that is amazing design. 

Every time I see a home that stands out from the average, we see offers going well above ARV. I am not talking about white cabinets and grey walls, that's not amazing design, that's is really just average (and on the way out BTW). I think this is true across most price ranges, but the effect is the strongest in the middle and upper price range. At least that's what I see here in Milwaukee.

Exceptional design is hard to find, but not very expensive to install. Shadowboxes are a classic example of low cost - high impact. Playing around with lighting is also huge. Hidden light edges work well with modern or more rustic approaches.  

The cool thing is AI can now do the design work for you.