A Smaller project and a bigger profit
The last time I wrote about a flip project we had, it was probably the biggest project we had ever taken on. And while we definitely did make money on it, it was a very big learning experience. The first thing we learned was that no matter how nice you make a house, you can't control what kind of people will eventually move in to it. I say this because the house we flipped was on dirt road right off of a main country highway, and situated across the street from a campground of an international speedway for NASCAR races. While it is a fun area to live in, that is busy, and exciting through most of the summer, I suppose it might attract a certain kind of person. Before we did the flip, it was one the most disgusting houses I've ever been inside of. It was dirty and stinky and very, very neglected. The yard was always a huge mess, littered with trash, weeds, and junk on a regular basis. When we put in the work and got it cleaned up and fresh for a hopeful buyer that would be ready to take care of all the hard work and make it a nice place to live, we were not expecting for it to look almost the same way within one year of the sale. And it doesn't really matter in the money aspect of the home, but we were hoping to bring a new clean look to the area, and have it be a well kept home. But that is of course out of our control. So the lessen being: Just because you put alot of effort into something, doesn't mean the next person is going to care. So, we probably could have saved ourselves alot of time and energy had we known that regardless of what kind of extra steps we took, there is always going to be a certain demographic for a certain area. I realize that this might sound stereotypical and maybe a little harsh, but that is just what I took away from the whole process of this specific home. I'm also very glad we didn't go waaaay above and beyond spending thousands more on things like a concrete driveway, or backyard patio, or top of the line fixtures. Because in the end those things don't change the location of the house. So, I guess the main takeaway from this lesson was be very, very aware of where you are and what the area is like, after all you can't change that.