Hello all. My name is Louis Goldberg and I'm working on a show for the Learning Channel called "Flip That House". We are beginning our second season and looking for interesting house flips to document. Our show is purely documentary style we don't DO anything to the house at all. I was wondering if any of you had clients who do this kind of thing. We are looking in several areas of the U.S.

You can check out more about the show at the following web sites:

Our Production Company Site
actualreality.tv

Discovery Home's site (This season is on The Learning Channel but the show will be the same)
Discover Home\'s Website

If you do have clients who are interested or you simply want more information you can e-mail me at louis.goldberg@actualreality.tv

Thanks you,
Louis

PS
I'm not so sure if this violates the TOS if so and the post has to be removed I understand and apologize for any incontinence

This TV show is good education for investors. I have seen it myself and would suggest watching it.

Ugh, although I like shows like this I think they seem to be deceptive for uneducated investors. In the end, they say, profit (before taxes and fees) was X amount. What uneducated people don't realize that taxes (capital gains) and commission can take up a huge chunk of the funds (even as much as 50%). I really wish this show would show and accuarate accounting of EXACTLY how much they stand to profit. There's a big difference between a $50,000 profit before taxes and fees/commissions and a $12,000 TOTAL profit.

These shows are bringing me unrealistic prospects. Everyone in the world thinks they can flip houses now. I think they can if they have the right plan, but it's a lot of education on my part. I don't mind, but they come with the worst sense of how the business works.

Did you know incontinence means not having control of your bowels? I really hope it doesn't come to that.

Goodness. I didn't even notice that. Wow.

""""""""Originally posted by Tori Stamps, MA, JD:
Ugh, although I like shows like this I think they seem to be deceptive for uneducated investors. In the end, they say, profit (before taxes and fees) was X amount. What uneducated people don't realize that taxes (capital gains) and commission can take up a huge chunk of the funds (even as much as 50%). I really wish this show would show and accuarate accounting of EXACTLY how much they stand to profit. There's a big difference between a $50,000 profit before taxes and fees/commissions and a $12,000 TOTAL profit.""""

Do you know any tv show that offers 100% truth everytime? The show doesn't have to educate people on taxation because there are endless ways to control your taxes. So when you say accurate accounting which accounting would that be?

You could potentially have a self directed IRA and flip all you want for a tax free transaction. you could also rollover through a 1031 exchange.

Good point. You could also buy low, fix up, and rent, thus eliminating a good portion of your taxes and commission costs. However, that really wouldn't be a "flip," would it? Though in some areas, this strategy might be the only way to get positive cashflow from day 1. Just a thought.

You can't 1031 a flip.

Then do it one day after the annual mark. There are other ways of flipping to reduce/delay taxation. buying/Leasing for resale under one year would be considered a flip too.

I personally like using a self directed IRA.

You all bring up very valid points and I will pass them on to my executive producer and see what he thinks. Our show is meant to be a documentary show. We try not to manipulate anything and try our best to show the events as best we can (within the short 22 min. time frame).

In regards to my incontinence.... uhhh oops. That is rather funny though. I guess that's what happens when you spell check too quickly sometimes.

but is does make reading the forums interesting!!!

I actually like the show.....I just watched one today about the company with the two women supervisers and the guy who was obviously the money man...

I thought it was hilarious that they didn't find the termites till the bitter end....LMAO!

Sprinkler---I believe that's "Flip this House" on A&E--I saw it too; two different shows i think. It features Trademark Properties on every show, which is a real company in Charleston, SC.

Good show. I'm working with about 3 investors who do this, but they are very small right now, not the big operations that they show on the show. That might make for some interesting TV though. I have a good market for these because the properties are low enough that anyone thinks they can get in the game (have done several under 80k purchase) as opposed to some of the ones I've seen on the show where the house started at 350k and was a dump.

I second that emotion about showing TRUE profits. It's ok to show PURCHASE-FIXUP=PROFIT, but an easily readable note that this profit does not include capital gains taxes and costs associated with selling the house could be included for more accuracy.

Ky, that is correct. Our show "Flip THAT House" is purely documentary style. We don't do anything to the houses ourselves. Sprinkler maybe talking about an episode of our show from last season in which it was a team of 3 people who work together.

Radar, if you or anyone else wants to contact me about potential flippers for the show you can e-mail me at:

louis.goldberg@actualreality.tv

I love the show, but like some of the others here, I worry that uneducated investors would get a false idea that flipping is just quick and easy. What the show does not show is all of the time spent making sure that the little things are happening, and all of the dead-ends the flippers run into.

We try and show the good and the bad of the flipping process. Sometimes it's hard to portray all aspects of the flips due to the 21min time frame the show falls in. The example I always use is the episode last season where a handyman decides to flip a home. He figured he'd save a lot of money doing the projects all himself. What happened was he under estimated how much he would have to do. The building had structural problems among other things. In the end he spent almost as much as he planned on making back. In the episode he even talks about tapping into his wife's savings. When all was said and done he was hoping to break even. I think your concerns are very valid and I'd like to think we show all sides of the renovation. This year the show is on The Learning Channel and that's our goal is to make it a some what educational show and still be entertaining.

It is very frustrating to watch that show..I am by no means an expert as I have only done 2 of them myself...but why do they insist on doing the work themselves capable or not?

I always use contractors myself..I make more money flipping it faster than the money I would save doing it myself..and I am capable of most of the work.

Time is indeed money.

I haven't seen all of last seasons shows (and I didn't work on them). Of the shows we've started this season I'd say 3/4 of them are hiring people to do the work it seems. They sometimes do smaller projects themselves such as painting etc...

Hey Louis,

You guys keep up the good work. Showing the good, the bad and the ugly in a 20 minute something spot gets a point across. It ain't easy making those greenbacks. :-)

I don't know if I've seen this show or not.....I'll have to look for it.

My challenge with these types of shows is that a first-time investor gets all fired up after watching a few of these and calls me to help them find a REO/distressed property.

Great....we go, we look, they buy, we close.
The day after closing my phone starts ringing non-stop with these buyers wanting ME to answer all of their questions on how/when to get these repairs done; which contractors to use/not use; whether or not the bids are reasonable; whether a contractor-recommended repair is really necessary, and on and on. I am SOOOO not about to get in the middle of their re-hab project; I've got my hands full with my own.

Sure the new owners can paint and change out light fixtures, but all of the OTHER stuff starts kicking their a$$ after a couple of weeks.....

Here's hoping this shows shows the pitfalls as well as the rewards.

I may even submit some of my experienced investors as nominees for the show....some of them really have a system, schedule, budget, and plan all mapped out beore they even write the offer. Those are the investors that know how to make it work and make it look easy.

Ultimately shows like this are done to make people like Mr. Goldberg rich...and boy do they.

The housing market is filled with so many dishonest, cheating buyers, sellers, agents, brokers, mortage companies that it's completely out of control.

Nothing is done about this of course because the cities in which stupidly priced properties are being sold in (such as Los Angeles, etc) are benefiting and raping people via property taxes like there's no tomorrow.

I'm not sure what will happen to the housing market. Where people are getting their monies from these days is beyond me...but somehow they are. One thing I know is hard working people are sitting on the side lines while people who had no clue and were picking their noses 5 years ago are sitting fat, dumb, and happy with a 950sqft, 600K home.

If I'm the only person here who think's something's wrong with this picture, then I guess it's time to leave the States for good.

bye!

Actually you sound bitter cause you are on the outside looking in. Instead of that whoooooa is me attitude you should get in the game. What happened to you that you are so bitter talking about dishonesty, cheating buyers, sellers, agents and just about everyone else connected to the real estate business?

Sounds like someone who failed miserably trying to invest in real estate or become a RE agent.

I just want to address this comment:

Ultimately shows like this are done to make people like Mr. Goldberg rich...and boy do they.


Uhh no... maybe someone else gets rich on shows like this, but not I. I'm just hired to work on the show. I don't own it. Let's me put it this way for all of you real estate folks... I RENT! ha ha ha ohh well.

Actually it has nothing to do with bitterness. It's the truth. I'm neither an agent or would I want to be. I've come across enough of them around here to know that a majority of them are opportunists. I guess if you're riding the wave you'd have a different point of view but there's no doubt that alot of people have gotten in over their heads due to coaxing, false or misguided representation from agents and mortgage brokers alike. The amount of greed and speculation is completely out of control. How some of you could sit here and actually say get in the game or someone's bitter with a straight face is beyond me.

Yeah sure...I could get in the game if I wanted to spend over 60% of my income on a house with an interest only loan and still think that's sane.

At the very least some of you people could be honest with yourselves about how ludicrous of a position some people are placed in. Do we need to go back to mid-late 90's when agents and brokers were starving? Or is short term memory wiped away by dollar bills?

Flame bait - A posting soley intended to trigger an acrimonious dispute on a public electronic forum

As you are neither agent nor investor and have no interest in the industry other than whining about how people are taken advantage perhaps you should look for a new forum whose content is something of interest and on a subject you can communicate with true knowledge of the facts.

You have absolutely no clue what you are talking about other than regurgating bits and pieces you have read or heard which fail to give a true picture of the industry.

[QB]Actually it has nothing to do with bitterness It's the truth.[QB]

It may be "your truth" but it is not "the truth".

[QB]I guess if you're riding the wave you'd have a different point of view but there's no doubt that alot of people have gotten in over their heads due to coaxing, false or misguided representation from agents and mortgage brokers alike.[QB]

"coaxing, false or misguided representation" Give us all a break. With interest rates at record lows buyers wanted the most house they can get and that is what they got. It is funny that you place the blame on agents, mortgage broker and other industry professionals when it is the buyers and sellers that drive prices and values.

[QB]At the very least some of you people could be honest with yourselves about how ludicrous of a position some people are placed in. Do we need to go back to mid-late 90's when agents and brokers were starving? Or is short term memory wiped away by dollar bills?[QB]

It is the buyers that have placed themselves in whatever position they are in! They are the ones that made the decision on what home they wanted to buy. Is that your situation? Did you decide to buy a house that is proving to be more house than you can afford and are looking for someone other than you to blame?

If that makes you be able to sleep at night then more power to you.

It's easy to blame the buyers since you wipe your hands clean of them as soon as you close the deal.

Apparently according to you people who aren't in the industry don't have a clue...yet it's their responsibilty to make decisions for $500K+ properties? How very convenient for agents like you...

The buyer may sign the paperwork but PLEASE don't sit here and say you never pushed a buyer or seller in a particular direction via pushing a false sense of urgency...they make ads on TV and radio with that pitch for crying out loud! And agents never do? Oh please...

It's the duty of the agent and broker alike to educate the buyer or seller about what they are getting themselves into. For the longest time brokers were buttering up buyers with "flex" plan mortgages.."The best thing since sliced bread" apparently. Wow...you can afford a $700K pile of crap now! Yeepie! As if you'd even flinch to stick someone in a predicament like that. Very few agents would have the morals to inform a buyer about such a stupid purchase and pass up a 3% commission on a sale like that...but of course it's become ethical.

Luckily I wasn't one of the suckers who fell into that trap.

What a whiney little vampire you are and it is so sweet how you moan and whine for the sake of everyone else.

I have no problems sleeping at night and unless you are totally stupid which you are bordering on it is the buyers decision on what house they buy. I have never pushed a buyer to buy a specific house and would never do so.

Your stupid comment about washing our hands of the buyers after the transaction is so moronic I just have to respond to it. 70+% of my business is based on past client referrals. I continue to keep in touch with my clients as do most sucessful agents.

[QB}Apparently according to you people who aren't in the industry don't have a clue...yet it's their responsibilty to make decisions for $500K+ properties? How very convenient for agents like you... Actually I was speaking specifically about you!

[QB]The buyer may sign the paperwork but PLEASE don't sit here and say you never pushed a buyer or seller in a particular direction via pushing a false sense of urgency...they make ads on TV and radio with that pitch for crying out loud! And agents never do? Oh please...[QB]
And who are these mysterious "Theys" you keep talking about? Perhaps you need some new tinfoil for your hat, careful or the mysterious "theys" may find you!

[QB] the duty of the agent and broker alike to educate the buyer or seller about what they are getting themselves into. For the longest time brokers were buttering up buyers with "flex" plan mortgages.."The best thing since sliced bread" apparently. Wow...you can afford a $700K pile of crap now! Yeepie! As if you'd even flinch to stick someone in a predicament like that. Very few agents would have the morals to inform a buyer about such a stupid purchase and pass up a 3% commission on a sale like that...but of course it's become ethical.[QB]

Educating buyers is my number 1 priority and it is also that of the lenders I work with as informed clients make better decisions.
Flex mortgages are the most widely misused product on the market. They were originally designed for use in a very limited market. I personally have never had a flex deal used by a buyer that was not an investor or someone who only planned to be in the property for 3 years or less. Neither I nor any agent that I know would push a flex to get someone into a property they plan to stay in for longer than 3+years.

[QB]Luckily I wasn't one of the suckers who fell into that trap.
So what are you whining about? Did you have a bad experience with an agent or mortgage broker?
Just curious but what is it you do for a living?

Spare us the professional approach...call me what you want...it doesn't change a thing about the current situation. You're whining on the other end of the spectrum so don't excluse yourself in regards to that.

It's quite possible that you are one of the rare types of agents who actually don't care about $$$ as much as actually helping someone.

However, I can't imagine that you are THAT sheltered that you have no clue about the shaddy practices, misinformation, coaxing, baiting, and use of the feeling of urgency that was being pushed on the client just to make the sale go through?

If you are that seasoned of an agent that you present yourself to be, at the very least you could acknowlegde it and be big about it. I'd take my hat off to you if you never did it but that for sure isn't the norm around here in LA. Opportunists are abound here and they have no shame screwing you over if they can...and in this climate they could quite easily.

There was a time when a home may have sold in less than an hour after having the for sale sign put up...playing on desperation and greed is a powerful tool.

You are quite mistaken. I am not whining about anything as I love the real estate business as both broker, builder and investor. Yes there are bad apples in the real estate and mortgage business but despite all the hype that is definately not the majority. I would be willing to bet that whatever industry you work in has its bad apples as well but is that the norm for your business? I think not so perhaps you should get down off the whiney pulpit and join the rest of us in the real world.

Sound like you need to move to a place where life moves a little slower as it seem that the corruption of LA is too much for you. Try small town living it may be a better fit for you since you are obviously so unhappy with your current life.

If you thrive on corruption then I guess you're right at home.

It seems that it is you that lives your life by corruption. What engineering field is it you are in? Bet we can all find some significant corruption in your industry.

For someone with a masters degree you are pretty stupid! You are so far gone you see a whole industry as corrupt because of a few bad agents and mortgage brokers.

What thrive on is finding, selling and building the homes that people want and need and providing them top notch customer service during the process and for years after! That is how you build a great business! Taking advantage of you clients is not a way to build a good referral business.. Maybe that is how you do it but not me.