Flip or Flop

I do enjoy the show, mostly to see the before and after. However, I absolutely cannot stand Christina's voice, lack of vocabulary, and her clear intentions to get noticed for wearing a new outfit every 15 minutes. She also seems awfully eager to drop off her ONE child at her mothers, when a house can be evaluated by one person. Or maybe even bring your ONE child along with you. She does seem to have somewhat of an eye for decorating, but of course she is insistent on the high end tiles, quartz, flooring etc... When you speak to most flippers they will tell you the main focus is making a profit. You can make your kitchens and bathrooms shine just as easy with much cheaper products.

I do also have some doubts about their claims of massive profits each week. Their houses are always well done, but sometimes the prices they ask are ridiculous yet magically they seem to get what they are asking for, sometimes even MORE.

Tarek getting upset when the contractor tells him the galvanized pipes are clogged. First of all any Flip that you expect to get 400,000 or better should get new plumbing when there are cheap galvanized pipes used. How can he look upset really pisses me off when if he was a reputable builder he would change out all those pipes as a matter of practice. Also the electrical panels same thing when they encounter crap. Yet he always has to appear coming to the conclusion to replace kicking and screaming about his budget. And reputable. So if you want to educate people in renovations at least present a proper way to do it.

In the same way video shot containing failed offers and lost auctions would be edited out of the show, the show would gravitate towards footage containing the more complex and challenging flips because that will naturally bring more interesting content. When flipping houses, complexity and challenges usually result in a higher cost of repair so that should mean the net profit should be lower than one of their uneventful and unaired typical flips.

But this is not what we see. Instead, in usual reality TV flipping drama, we have Ken and Barbie fretting about losing money only for the final minute to show they actually made $50-$100K. Every time. This simply cannot be true and here is why:

In a number of shows they have mentioned that they have a number of other flips in progress simultaneously. The ones we see usually take 4-8 weeks to complete and net around $50-$100K. Also in a number of shows they try to make it sound as if they are stretched thin, borrow money from relatives, and act as if one unprofitable flip will force them into poverty. The only way this could be true is if they either lose money on houses we do not see or make a minimal amount on a typical flip. At any rate, I want to see that. I want to see why a house failed to flip profitably! I think that would be extremely educational and be a far more interesting show than one where we already know the ending!

It's like watching an episode of Gilligan's Island where they have a chance on getting rescued. C'mon, even if the show was airing new you know they aren't getting rescued.

I'm not some airhead socialist condemning someone their right to earn their profit, but I do want to see the truth in now successful these flips really are so that the faux financial drama that is put into the show at least feels real. The show where they asked Barbie's father for a $15,000 loan and then cut to break as we sat on the edge of our seats waiting to find how what happened is a bit much.

After sampling several over-produced 1 hour house flipping shows that are typically padded with made-up story lines, bad acting and more hype than help, I found this show to be a breath of fresh air! It gives a lot of useful insights into the industry for buyer and seller alike. I'm a California native who would love to "go home" except for the cost of living. If I ever win the lottery or inherit a fortune from a secret rich uncle, I'd be there in a minute. Until then it's interesting to be reminded just how much more of a house I can get by choosing location wisely.

The show also serves to show just how much money can be saved through sweat equity. Although I've never flipped a house, I have fixed up old cars for resale. That experience has shown me how a little knowledge and a lot of initiative can pay/save big money! I see them doing a lot of the labor themselves, which is the not-so-secret secret of their success. Oh, to be young again!

I do have a gripe with the half-hour format of the show, and others like it. There's just too much story to cram into barely over 20 minutes after commercials! This show really could use a full hour time slot.

OK, I'm not from SoCal so Christina's SoCal accent is pretty annoying. She swallows her vowels and talks like a ditsy "Valley Girl". They both sound like they are reading from a script or from cue cards. She is constantly playing with her hair and walks like she is modeling for a magazine or video.

With that said, the issues they run into are very real. The costs to fix the issues seem right on. Somehow, though, they always make a profit on this and always win the auctions. That isn't real.

Aren't we watching this show to experience the ups and downs of flipping houses? Shouldn't there be more drama? They get along well which is nice but it always turns out OK. Life never turns out OK all the time.