Flippers and Dishwashers – Say What?

We have a lot of flippers in the Los Angeles market right now. Some of them do a fabulous job while others, not so much. You tend to get to know which is which but in every case I make sure my buyers do a complete home inspection on any property they intend to purchase- flipped or not.

Great post.  I'm in the middle of a flip purchase that so far has been a breeze.  We'll see what the HVAC and roofing inspections reveal today!  Best of luck!

What you speak about is a common problem on flipped homes here in AZ also.  Flipped homes look beautiful at first glance, but the "lipstick on a pig" saying definitely applies. Dishwashers are a common issues, as well as strange electrical issues. I once plugged in the built in microwave and the breaker to the oven tripped.  A complete, thorough home inspection is a buyers best protection when purchasing a home, but in the case of a flipped home it is even more important to uncover the "hidden" defects under that beautiful granite countertop and new paint job.

That was just one of a punch-list of unfinished items in one of my most recent "flipped" sales.  This was a first-time buyer and we ended up holding money in escrow after closing as a couple items were still not fixed by closing.

Karen:

I guess the flipper forgot to tell his helpers that there should be outlets and water hookups for dishwashers.  What a laugh.

Karen, I like House #1 the best. You've got a dishwasher but nothing to connect it to!

Well at least they bought it - demonstrates some good intention...

There are good flippers and bad ones and you can usually tell with in 5 minutes on the property. 

I bid on distressed homes and I know that when an "investor" outbids me either they know more about the property than I do, or that they are going to do a hack job on the rehab.  It costs a certain amount of money to rehab a home correctly and some investors offer so much more for a property that they have to be grossly underestimating the rehab costs.  I think that over paying and underestimating leads to "investors" cutting major corners on their rehabs.

On Flips - its let the buyer beware. A well done flip is the exception, not the norm.

This just goes to show why a home inspection is so important.  A buyer should always get one no matter how nice the home looks.

A good renovator/flipper can make an excellent return on their investment and do a good job. Why is it so hard to get them to do it right?

That's when an inspection is worth its weight in gold. That would be a bummer the first meal after closing to find something like that!

I have been part of a group of investors. There are those who do used licensed contractors and follow up with them so that everything was done right. There are those unfortunately that do not use licensed contractors or who do not check up behind them to make sure it is done properly. The contractor could have thought they could make a few more dollars by not taking the time to install the dishwasher and merely shoving it in the hole!

I find the same issue frequently as well.  It's typically the last item installed and usually just a connection that was not completed.  Missing drain line and electric conncetion is a much bigger issue that points to poor planning and execution.  I would look extra hard at that house as there are probably other items that were not planned and executed properly.

I am a flipper, and I can assure you we hook up the dishwasher.  We actually do a termite and home inspection when we buy, and fix everything that's noted on the list.  However, I recently represented a buyer as a Realtor on a flip she was buying, and it was the same situation.  Tons of things left undone, a leaking roof that was described as "updated" in the MLS, 35 year old hot water heater, missing valves under the sink.  It looked great cosmetically, but the important stuff was ignored.