Maybe you’re an HGTV addict. Perhaps you’ve attended a ‘teaser’ seminar, and don’t want to spend $30,000 on a training course. Or maybe you’ve always been interested in making old houses beautiful again… whatever the case, you’re ready to flip a house in Grand Rapids!
This is great. Fixing up house, increasing it’s value, and making the neighborhood more beautiful can be very satisfying. However, if you’ve never done this before, the process may feel overwhelming. There are a lot of steps to a successfully flipping a house, and it can be helpful to have some guides along the way.
Here are some great resource books to get you going. We have read each of these, and aren’t being paid to ‘shill’ these… they are just good resources to help you on your journey.
1. FLIP – By Rick Villani and Clay Davis
This is an excellent book, which will walk you through the entire house flipping process. There are solid sections on finding and analyzing properties, running the project, selling strategies, and more. Some sections are extremely detailed, while others have a wider focus.
This is a book you can read once front to back, and then refer to consistently. It has very nice diagrams, examples, bulleted lists, and more to make it digestible.
This is a thick book, and the sheer amount of information in it can feel overwhelming. However, don’t let that scare you! This book is built to be comprehensive, and you don’t have to learn everything in a week. Just take your learning (and your flips) one step at a time, and refer back to the book as necessary.
2. The Book on Estimating Rehab Costs – J Scott
Not sure what a roof replacement will cost? Contemplating different flooring options? Confused about repairing vs. replacing windows? This is the book for you.
The author goes into great depth on material types, benefits and drawbacks of types, relative costs, and much more. If you’re looking to flip houses in Grand Rapids, you’ll have to adjust a bit for the local market (which he recommends), but this is a fantastic guide to get you going.
3. The Millionaire Real Estate Agent – Gary Keller, Dave Jenks, and Jay Papasan
Wait a minute… why should you read a book about how to be a good real estate agent? What’s the point?
As you flip houses in Grand Rapids, you will interact with Realtors constantly. They may help you buy or sell your property, and you will certainly be hosting many of them as you show your finished house. They are a great source of information, leads, and more, and should be excellent partners on your journey. However, you need to be able to tell good ones from bad, and understand the mindset that successful Realtors share.
By picking up this book, you can start to understand the ‘business’ of being a Realtor. You will learn how to work with them more effectively, and become a partner they will appreciate.
Establishing good relationships with local Realtors will really speed up your journey… so it’s wise to learn as much as you can.
4. The Book on Flipping Houses – J Scott
This is another book by J Scott – we appreciate his approach and candor. In contrast to his book on Estimating Rehab Costs, this one takes a wide view of the process.
We have found it to be one of the most accurate books on house flipping. It has a real ‘boots on the ground’ feel, and gives a strong impression that the author has run many projects successfully. It covers a wide variety of topics, including financing, lead generation, project management, and more.
With these four volumes in hand, you should have a great start to flipping homes in Grand Rapids. Good luck!