Successful House Flipping in Las Vegas: “Buy Low, Renovate Fast; Relist on Market Soon as Humanly Possible”

LAS VEGAS, NV – Before the housing bubble burst (mid-2000’s), the idea of flipping a property, especially in markets such as Las Vegas,  was as appealing to real estate investors as the gold rush to old-time prospectors heading to America’s frontier in the 1800’s. Both groups saw their respective purpose as a way to potentially get rich quick, but much like the prospector who struck out to the west – and failed to strike gold, more often than not, the recession dashed the hopes of more than one prospective house flipper looking to turn a fast buck.

However, as the Vegas housing market experiences resurgence in the past year – homes and rental properties have been growing exponentially in both demand and price when compared to 2016, and this trend shows no signs of slowing down – it appears that flipping has come back into vogue, as housing options for families in the Southern Nevada region are sorely outstripped by the number available on the open market, experts say. Therefore, an industrious investor with little money and some elbow grease is in position to swoop in on property which might be considered “less desirable,” – fix it up, and find that it is suddenly a hot ticket.

Flipping in Las Vegas has jumped in terms of profitability in the first quarter of 2017; when judged against 2016’s first quarter, experts report a 29 percent increase, which equates to approximately $51,000 in additional profit from flipping; this is also the single biggest increase in profitability since 2005, the period just before the mid-2000’s housing bubble burst. With the jump in prices, competition for lower-priced homes – especially fixer-uppers – has risen to near ecstatic levels.

But it’s not just the resurrection of the housing market that has real estate entrepreneurs racing to renovate; entertainment media has drawn attention to the benefits of investing in Las Vegas homes as well, and when Hollywood takes notice, so does the public. For example, HGTV recently announced the renewal of its breakout hit television show “Flip or Flop Las Vegas” for a second season after its first season displayed very strong ratings. The show, which debuted in April and chronicles the exploits of real estate agents/designers Bristol and Aubrey Marunde as they buy, rehab, and sell off local area properties, has attracted a whopping 12.5 million viewers, according to HGTV.

These factors have contributed in no small part to Las Vegas being currently ranked as the number two place in America to flip properties, according to yet another real estate reality star- Scott Yancey of the reality show “Flipping Vegas,” who says that the goal of any successful flip is to buy low, renovate fast, and get the property back on the market as soon as humanly possible. He cites RealtyTrac, a real estate information company and online marketplace, as evidence of how Vegas is currently a hotbed of flipping activity in terms of gross profits, noting that average home in the region typically sells for $134,000, and upon being successfully flipped that same home brings in an average of approximately $204,000, a gain of 53 percent; that certainly represents a significant return for an investor.

Flipping has been around for decades, and after a period of dormancy in the Southern Nevada area, it’s set to rear its head once again for ambitious real estate investors willing to sink in some dough and some hard work; the payoff promises to be more than worth the effort.