Buyers buying land or glamour?

[Alex Kouramanis]

Hey again all,

Just sold my home and looking to do another live-in flip in Toronto. I've noticed a lot of semi detached properties have been flipped in good areas in the city but I'm more of a detached guy. 

My question is, and it probably heavily depends on the buyer market in my area, is there a better return for me if I flip a semi or a detached property? In the same area, semis are going to be cheaper than detached and assuming of course lot sizes and sqaure footage are equal, I wonder if buyers of high priced, fully renoed properties prefer design over actual dirt/lot size which requires maintenance, gardening etc. I suppose the type of buyer who is looking for a high end finished product is not looking for yard work, but then again, maybe buyers want privacy with the option to do gardening when they retire etc...

Any thoughts based on experience in the area would be a big help! 

Thanks!!

[Phil Gardner]

I would say if you're looking at the next purchase as a flip don't get too hung up on whatever you like semis or detached.

But the question is very market specific, even within the city there are so many different niches, and you need to know what buyers in that specific area are expecting to get out of a house.

For example, properties in Leslieville are typically expected to be detached 30 footers with quite a traditional exterior with a modern transitional interior. Full blown modern looking houses in that area tend to sit longer.

We're currently doing two properties on Trinity Bellwoods and they are transitional modern semis.

However regardless of what you're building, everyone is expecting a high quality of finish with a well designed layout. Buyers have become so educated in this city, and there are so many high quality properties being turned (and poor quality) buyers really know what to look for nowadays.