Flipping houses has been an increasingly popular way to turn a profit, especially in the red-hot real estate markets around the country. College Station was not immune to this in the least. Home flipping in the community is as high as it has ever been, but new data shows that margins are falling just as rapidly as the popular money-making method becomes increasingly saturated and competitive. 

Particularly concerning were the numbers from the second quarter of 2021, which showed that home flippers in College Station saw an average 1.2% return on their investment. Represented as a dollar figure, that amounted to $2,779. Though the numbers are particularly stark in College Station, the city is not alone in their experience. Profit margins on home flips dipped in a total of 112 of 182 metro areas from first quarter 2021 to the second quarter of this year. 

Wendy Flynn, a real estate agent in Bryan-College Station explained the decline, saying, “We’ve been experiencing an amazing seller’s market in the Bryan-College Station area, as well as nationwide. That has affected home sale prices from top to bottom. People who are looking for homes to flip are looking to buy low, make the renovations, and then sell high. There’s a limited supply of homes available. We’re experiencing an extreme shortage of homes available to sell, which is organically driving prices up in the market.”

While the space is becoming increasingly competitive, many continue to look to it as a reliable source of income.