Investment Property
Someone who has been flipping, renting and holding since 1999, and will tell you when a deal does not work.
I have been doing this since 1999
I started flipping houses in 1999, which is sixteen years before I was licensed to sell them. My husband and I own multiple real estate investing companies and we have flipped, run short-term rentals and built a buy-and-hold portfolio.
Experience matters here for one reason only. I have lost money on a deal and I know what it looked like going in, which is the part that is hard to learn from a spreadsheet.
The numbers come before the house
Investors get into trouble the same way every time: falling for a property and then building a model that justifies it.
The order is the other way round. What return do you need, over what period, with how much of your own money in it. Then we look for properties that clear that bar, and most will not.
The underwriting has to include the things new investors leave out. Vacancy, not full occupancy. Maintenance as an ongoing line, not a one-off. Capital expenditure for the roof and the furnace that are seven years from needing replacement. Management, even if you are doing it yourself, because your time is not free.
A deal that only works at full occupancy with no repairs is not a deal. It is a hope with a mortgage on it.
Seeing past the condition
Flipping since 1999 teaches you to look at a house and see what it could be rather than what it is, and to cost that difference honestly.
The skill that actually matters is knowing which work returns more than it costs and which is money you never see again. Kitchens and bathrooms usually return. Structural surprises and anything involving permits usually do not, at least not on the timeline a flip needs.
I will walk a property with you and give you my read on the renovation number. I will also tell you when I think it is wrong for you, which is more often than most agents will say out loud.
The things people get wrong here
Short-term rentals are governed locally. Rules vary by city and they change. Whether a specific property can legally be operated as a short-term rental is a question to answer before you buy, with that city, in writing, rather than after.
Appreciation is not a plan. It has been kind along the Wasatch Front and that is not a guarantee about the next decade. A deal should work on its income. Appreciation is the bonus.
Tax treatment is a question for your CPA. Depreciation, exchanges and entity structure all matter and none of them are things I will advise you on.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you invest yourself?
Yes. Flipping since 1999, plus short-term rentals and a buy-and-hold portfolio, run through companies my husband and I own.
Will you tell me if a deal is bad?
Yes, including when saying so costs me the sale. An investor who loses money on a property I sold them is not coming back, and referrals are most of my business.
Can I run a short-term rental here?
It depends on the city and the rules change. Confirm it with that municipality in writing before you buy, never after. It is the single most expensive assumption investors make in this market.
What return should I be targeting?
That depends on your capital, your timeline and what else you could do with the money, so it is your number rather than a benchmark I would hand you. What I will do is underwrite honestly against it, including vacancy, maintenance, capital expenditure and management.
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