Flip This House ended with newbie investors facing either a break even or a loss on their properties. The show ends with the investors paying their expenses month after month while never receiving a contract on their properties.

You may or may not have heard that you make your profit when you buy a property, not sell it. Often times investors speculate on properties before educating themselves on the market. Let me just say this: Running comparables on free websites like Zillo.com and Home Gain.com is not enough! Running a few comparables with an agent is not enough either!

If you want to be successful flipping houses, like many of the episodes of Flip This House on A&E TV, you will need to fully understand the market conditions.

Consider the factors below prior to acquiring a property. This will help you determine if the market is softening or gaining strength.

* How many homes in the area are listed for sale? Is there an abundance of active listings with little or no contracts pending on properties?

* How many closed sales have there been in the past 12 months in relation to the active listings? Is it balanced?

* What are the marketing times of the closed sales? Can you expect to sell your flip within the 1st month, 3 months or will you have to consider paying a full year of expenses and be forced to add a for rent sign next to your for sale sign?

These points are not mentioned to deter you from flipping properties. Rather, they are mentioned to display some of the real issues with flipping. Educating yourself on the market will likely put you in a position for large profits; similar to some of the episodes on Flip This Houses on A&E TV.

Successful Investing,

Jeff Knize, CRA, ICAP member