First fix and flip in Massachusetts

[Sean Sweeney]

Investment Info:

Single-family residence fix & flip investment.

Purchase price: $325,000
Cash invested: $110,000
Sale price: $481,000

Renovated home that hadn't been updated since the late 70's. Removed wallpaper, renovated kitchen, upgraded bathroom tile and refinished hardwood floors. Opened up space in basement to make it more functional.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

These homes have great potential if you can "add" more to the home. Unfortunately, the home was not confirming with current zoning so we couldn't add a 2nd floor without going through ZBA. We decided to renovate and improve the basement to increase the value in the home.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

This was purchased from a friend. He priced the home with a few auction companies and we agreed to a price based on what he thought he could get from going to auction.

How did you finance this deal?

We utilized a conventional loan for this property.

How did you add value to the deal?

We added value with new kitchen and expanding basement bathroom and living space.

What was the outcome?

Overall, very successful for our first flip. We have been doing renovations on our multi-family properties for years. We struggled with some decisions that we had to make for the flip.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Make sure you really understand costs and your timeline. We missed the spring market by a few weeks and that potentially hurt our profit a bit.