Home values are on the rise & Property Flippers are Coming Back

Villa Rivera Long Beach CA by Amir Zee

Facts are as follows:

1. Home values are on the rise, with a year-over-year price increase of 11.6 percent, according to the National Association of Realtors. Inventory has cratered to levels not seen since 2005.

2. Today's flippers have learned some hard lessons. This time, homebuyers are being more selective - putting more money down and making calculated bets on smart renovations.

3.   The one-year average price increase their stands at 13.4 percent, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, 2 percent above the national average. 

4. The best places to flip in 2012 included Orlando, Florida; Richmond, Virginia; Tucson, Arizona; and Charlotte, North Carolina, according to RealtyTrac.


5. Cash is king, Bank have tight restrictions, and that means real estate investors coming in with all-cash deals have the upper hand. 


6.  Renovations matter, but stick to a budget. In today's market, you will likely only get a bargain if the house is in truly rough condition. 


7. Be prepared to hold Back, in 2003 the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) instituted anti-flipping regulations, prohibiting insuring a mortgage on a property owned by the seller for less than 90 days.


8. Do not expect to flip the property within days and realize lightning-quick profits. You may want to rent it out for a while as the housing market continues to recover, says Heller, in order to cover some costs and eventually secure an even higher resale price.