This is getting to be a crowded trade. A few years ago when I googled "hard money lenders" I got maybe a couple dozen hits for my area. Today I got 749,000 hits. Friend that has been trying to buy his first flip says he is now looking at loaning to other flippers since he can't find a flip that makes sense. The low fruit in flipping is gone. Zillow thinks they can generate $20 billion over the next 3-5 years flipping 5000 houses a month. The logistics of that is just astounding (finding, buying, holding, planning, scheduling, marketing, etc...).
As long as rates stay low, and the local housing market is hot... buying the cheapest house in an expensive neighborhood (that needs minor cosmetic repair) is a formula that one would have to work hard at to f-up with and not turn a profit. Landscaping, paint, new carpet... that stuff is cheap.
Home-Flipping Trend Weakens as High-Interest Lenders Jump 40% https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...ers-up-40-even-as-home-flipping-trend-weakens