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House flipping is a popular strategy many real estate investors use to build wealth. Many investors are drawn to the ability to make a fairly large payday in a relatively short amount of time. With the chance of a high reward, comes slightly higher risk than other real estate strategies so it is important to do your research before you dive in. Below are nine of the best books on flipping houses. Each book provides a comprehensive look into flipping houses while providing a unique spin on the topic. Read through the overview of each below to decide which one is best to aid in your own real estate investing journey.
The Book on Flipping Houses by J. Scott
The Book on Flipping Houses by J. Scott is a complete and comprehensive guide to house flipping. The book walks you through every aspect of the strategy, from understanding what to look for in a potential house to the ins and outs of rehabbing to getting the deal closed. Scott covers topics on preparing your finances, finding agents, what to look for in a house, finding deals, creating a budget and schedule, managing the rehab, and selling your renovated house. The Book on Flipping Houses is a great launching point for starting your house flipping career and is highly recommended within the real estate investing community.
Best for…
The Book on Flipping Houses is perfect for anyone that is getting started in flipping houses and wants an in-depth overview of the process. Scott walks you through every aspect of the process and gives examples so the reader can relate the information to their own situation.
The Book on Estimating Rehab Costs by J. Scott
The Book on Estimating Rehab Costs is a great companion to Scott’s The Book on Flipping Houses. If you are ready to begin your real estate flipping journey but don’t have a good idea of the cost magnitude for different types of flips- this book is for you. Scott goes in-depth giving estimates and expectations for just about every type of repair. From external renovations like roofs, landscaping, and decks to detailed internal work like electrical, septic systems, and insulation, The Book on Estimating Rehab Costs has it all. Estimates for labor and materials are also provided in every section to give the reader an idea of what to budget. Scott also provides inspection tips for every section so you can understand what to look for when you are surveying a potential property.
Best for…
The Book on Estimating Rehab Costs is good for investors that may be new to budgeting flips and need insight into typical costs. Every successful flip starts with a plan and a budget, and this book is critical to getting those steps right.
The Millionaire Real Estate Investor by Gary Keller
The Millionaire Real Estate Investor is a great foundational real estate investing book. It aims to set the reader up to have a successful investing mindset. Keller walks the reader through multiple investing strategies gathered from more than 100 million investors. The book is broken up into three sections: charting the course, the four stages, and staying on top. Each section walks the reader through different investing mindsets, providing real life data to support the book’s claims. Keller also provides the reader with tangible paths toward financial independence through real estate investing with examples of how to make it happen.
Best for…
The Millionaire Real Estate Investor is a great book for getting yourself into the right investing mindset. The book explores many different strategies which can help pave your own road map towards financial independence through real estate investing.
FLIP: How to Find, Fix, and Sell Houses for Profit by Rick Villani
FLIP: How to Find, Fix, and Sell Houses is exactly what the title advertises. The book is laid out in five sections including: how to find houses with investment potential, how to make an offer that rewards you for your risk, how to finance, make an offer, and close on an investment house, how to plan and manage the construction process, and how to prepare and market an investment house for sale. From there, Villani goes into detail about each stage giving the reader examples to relate to their own investing ventures. After providing all of the necessary pieces, Villani helps the reader put them together so an investor can follow through on every step of the journey.
Best for…
FLIP: How to Find, Fix, and Sell Houses for Profit is a good book for beginner flippers who could use a useful outline for the flipping process. Villani does a good job of breaking down each stage into digestible segments for first time investors to explore.
The Flipping Blueprint by Luke Weber
The Flipping Blueprint is another great overview book on flipping houses. The distinction with this book is that it was written relatively recently. Some of the books on this list have been around for decades whereas Weber helps speak to investing in recent times addressing considerations like the effects of social networking through investing. Weber provides insight into every step of the flipping process, providing mindset tips and tangible examples every step of the way.
Best for…
The Flipping Blueprint is good for a real estate investor that is interested in a different flipping perspective as Weber gives his spin on every aspect of the house flipping journey. He also speaks to turning your real estate investments into a business that has longevity and the potential to grow.
Fix and Flip Your Way to Financial Freedom: Finding, Financing, Repairing, and Selling Investment Properties by Mark Ferguson
Mark Ferguson is heralded as a real estate investing guru who has been in the game for decades and has flipped over 120 houses. In his book, Fix and Flip Your Way to Financial Freedom, Ferguson details every aspect of the process through his own investing journey. Ferguson breaks down essential flipping components like evaluating the risks and rewards of flipping, determining which houses can be flipped, financing fix and flips, repairing flips, and selling flips to maximize returns. Ferguson does a great job of providing monetary examples as well as detailing decisions and strategies he actually pursues.
Best for…
Fix and Flip Your Way to Financial Freedom is a great book for an investor that needs clarity on certain aspects of the process told through real life examples. As Ferguson walks through decision points and investments he has made, the reader can use these examples in their own investing day to day ventures.
Flip Your Future: How to Quit Your Job, Live Your Dreams, and Make Six Figures Your First Year Flipping Real Estate by Ryan Pineda
Flip Your Future does a good job of combining the flipping process with achieving financial independence. Like most house flipping books, Pineda details various steps in the house flipping process such as choosing a market, evaluating deals, and budgeting flip time- but he does so with a constant goal of setting himself for financial independence. While most real estate investors are working towards a goal of financial independence, it is interesting hearing a strong perspective throughout the book.
Best for…
Flip Your Future does a good job of combining the house flipping process with the goal of financial independence. Readers who are actively seeking financial independence will appreciate the insight from Pineda as they venture on their own journeys.
The Book on Negotiating Real Estate by J. Scott, Mark Ferguson, and Carol Scott
Whether getting ready to make your first on offer on an investment property or making your one thousandth deal, The Book on Negotiating Real Estate is a great tool to add to your arsenal. It has over 250 pages packed with information from the basics of negotiation and every step of the process. J. Scott, Carol Scott, and Ferguson masterfully lead the reader through aspect of negotiating a deal including opening bid consideration, defense and counter tactics, and concession strategies. Every, and we mean every, aspect of the negotiation process is covered in this book with information laid out for almost every type of scenario that could arise. In real estate investing, money is made with the offer on the house- that is where you are going to make your money so start off the investment on the right foot by getting the best deal you can.
Best for…
The Book on Negotiating Real Estate is perfect for an investor that feels like they aren’t always getting the best price they could or want to try out different strategies in the attempt to boost return on investment.
What Every Real Estate Investor Needs to Know About Cash Flow by Frank Gallinelli
What Every Real Estate Investor Needs to Know About Cash Flow is an in-depth look into every real estate investing formula you could ever want to know. The book provides a comprehensive look into thirty-seven real estate investing related formulas from simple concepts like simple and compound interest to more complex formulas like net present value and break-even ratio. Not only does Gallinelli provide how to set up all thirty-seven formulas, but he also provides an overview of what each formula means, how to calculate it, and provides an example. Gallinelli also provides the reader with ways to gather the data needed for each formula helping to set the reader up for success.
Best for…
What Every Real Estate Investor Needs to Know About Cash Flow is a good read for investors who want to fully understand the numbers going into each essential real estate investing calculation. This book will help provide insight into the key parameters investors should be validating before making investments.
Keys to successful house flipping
Have a roadmap
With every real estate investment you go after, it is important to have a sound strategy. This is especially true for house flipping. Flipping houses generally requires more time, capital, and work than other types of real estate investments so it is important to lay out a roadmap before you begin.
Know your calculations
Using the right calculations can help take emotional decisions out of real estate investing. A lot of times, we get caught up in how we feel rather than what makes the most sense. While you have to have a balance between your brain and your gut, understanding the numbers can go a long way towards objectively evaluating real estate investments. Many of the books included in this article outline the important equations you need to start making sound decisions- and some books are completely dedicated to the topic.
Have an exit strategy
While it is important to have multiple exit strategies with every real estate deal you go after, this can be especially important when flipping houses as your success can be tightly tied with things beyond your control like market cycles. When you are investing large amounts of capital into a home in an effort to improve the value, you must understand the risk associated so you can protect your investment.
Summary
Having a road map, knowing your calculations, and having an exit strategy are just three important keys to flipping houses. Flipping houses can be a great strategy towards building wealth and achieving financial independence but you should do your research before jumping in to minimize risks and maximize rewards. Start by diving into one or more of the books above to begin learning about real estate flipping today.