Doing Flips With the Professionals

Here’s how flip artists do their thing:

* “Don’t buy until you’ve looked at 100 houses, at least. I go on caravan every single Tuesday and Thursday, progressive lunches Wednesdays and open houses on weekends.”--Christine Callahan

* Look for motivated sellers. “You always look for the dog in the neighborhood. I purchased a house that had been on the market a year, and nobody had ever made them an offer. I said, ‘If you don’t mind taking this amount of money, I’ll buy your house.’ He literally paid me to buy his house.”--Christine Crossley

* Write your budget before you buy. “You aim to get $2 to $3 back for every remodeling dollar you put in.”--Christine Callahan

* Keep a close eye on workers. “Even if you are working full-time, you still have to go to the house every day. And if somebody’s 15 minutes late, you’re on the phone, finding out where he is and why he’s not here.”--Christine Callahan

* Hire labor for a flat rate, a set period of time, or by the job, instead of paying hourly rates. “I say, ‘Put the toilet on, change the seal and fix the faucets, I’ll give you $50,’ “--David DeShay

* Tap the Southland’s pool of unemployed creative people. “There’s a lot of musicians and actors in this town that need jobs. They need to pay bills, and they’re very talented.”--David DeShay

* Network to find tradesmen, and check references. “I get on the phone and call all the people I know.”--Larry Blachman

* Get several estimates, then ask questions. “If they tell me it’s going to cost ‘blank,’ I ask why.”--David DeShay

* Check salvage yards for materials. “I’ll go to a junkyard and find good doors. I bought some French doors for $50.”--David DeShay

* Buy remainder materials. “Andy would go on Thursday mornings to the Recycler shop and get all five issues.”--Dana Cook

* Don’t buy items custom made. It’s too expensive, and the items are unreturnable. “When you have something custom made, you’re stuck with it.”--Larry Blachman

* Look into creative financing, both when selling and buying property. “I carry back paper, and I do a lot of equity shares.”--Christine Crossley

* Don’t waste money on items that don’t increase a home’s value. “Don’t ever put in a pool for profit.”--Christine Crossley