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Buying and Selling Homes Bathrooms Remodeling

Considering a Flipped Home

3 years ago

Hi everyone! My husband and I have been house shopping in the Northern VA area and saw a home in Dumfries yesterday that appears to have been a flip. It's currently vacant. It has had some upgrades done, some of which are questionable in terms of actual quality or more just wow factor. I've attached some photos but I'd love to hear anyone's opinion on what to look out for in a possible Flip. Some items to note: Floor appears to be painted, and doesn't match in Kitchen so that is an immediate need. The kitchen needs an island and the materials for cabinet and sink are probably on the lower end? They also didn't use the space above the oven for the double oven. Upstairs carpet is mediocre but not horrible... but the Master Bath is unfinished. The tub has some tile that doesn't seem to be done? Are the edges being that sharp normal? They also didn't finish putting glass up for the shower.

These are just our observations, the home is priced as such that we could do some of the upgrades ourselves and potentially talk down the price... but I've always heard horror stories of homes that were flipped. Thoughts?

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Comments (10)

rrah
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
My thought: if they've done such a poor job trying to make it look good, what didn't they do that really matters? HVAC, plumbing, structural issues?

No, that's not how finished tile should look. Even if one elects to not purchase the matching bull nose tiles to finish edges, there are other ways to finish that don't result in sharp, unfinished edges.

Have a good inspector and be prepared to walk away based on that inspection.

I'd also guess that given the unfinished items and cheap materials the seller is not going to negotiate too much on price. They probably ran out of money to finish it and didn't have the funds to do things properly, like the missing oven.
Seabornman
3 years ago
From the few pictures I see some questionable finish work which makes one think there could be questionable hidden work, like electrical, waterproofing, etc. I'd also question why it's not 100% complete. If you were to entertain buying, check the codes office to see what permits were pulled and if they are finalized.
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Brianna Elenes
Original Author
3 years ago
HVAC And Water heater appear to be new for what it's worth.
User
3 years ago
Buy the ugly house and remodel it yourself. No way would I buy someone’s badly designed and badly done idea of popular appeal at the lowest cost.
Lars
3 years ago
I pretty much avoided all flipped homes in Palm Springs and Cathedral City because none of them were done the way I wanted, and I did not want to pay for an "upgrade" that I did not like. I finally found a house in Cathedral City that had had no upgrades (except perhaps appliances) since it was built in 1991, and all that it needed was to have the bathrooms renovated. I renovated the bathrooms exactly the way I wanted them and am very happy with the house.

I saw some houses in Palm Springs that had laminate floors, and I ruled those out pretty quickly, and that is something I could not live with. I would not want a painted floor either.
PRO
Creative Tile Eastern CT
3 years ago
Better to buy a house and see the damage instead of wondering what is behind the band-aid.

Keep in mind the things that you see were acceptable to the flipper. Now imagine what they got away with where you can't see!!!
PRO
Joseph Corlett, LLC
3 years ago
There is no reason to evaluate a flipped home any differently than any other. Buyer beware and you'll be fine.
debbie1000
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
I would check out zillow or realtor.com as to when the house last sold. If it was sold about 3-6 months before and for a much lower price, I would think it was a flip. Also look on the property appraiser's site to see when and what permits were pulled.
Denita
3 years ago
I suspect that you can't determine which permits were pulled on the property appraisers website. Check the building department website for the city/county in which the property is located. I agree with the previous posters, particularly the one that mentioned it sounds like the flipper ran out of money. Be aware that many flippers take shortcuts. Far better to buy something that you can rehab if you have the resources. If you buy a flip, be prepared to fix major systems in the house very quickly. Many flippers concentrate on the cosmetics and bandaid the systems to work just until closing.
Brianna Elenes
Original Author
3 years ago
Thank you for all the feedback everyone! We decided to walk away

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