Flipping of us homes falls back to normal levels

Flipping of US homes is falling back to normal levels, according to RealtyTrac's latest report.

The practice, which Sees homes purchased and re-sold within 12 months for profit, relies upon markets with strong potential for capital growth, or properties that foreclosed and suitable for renovation. With the US market recovering, though, opportunities are returning to more traditional levels, prompting the habit to fall back in line.

Nearly 31,000 single family homes were flipped nationwide in the second quarter of 2014, accounting for 4.6 per cent of all US single-family home sales, down from 5.9 in the first quarter of 2014 and down from 6.2 per cent in the second quarter of 2013.

"Home flipping is settling back into a more historically normal pattern after a flurry of flipping during the recent run-up in home prices in 2012 and 2013,” says Daren Blomquist, vice president at RealtyTrac.

"Flippers no longer have the luxury of 20 to 30 percent annual price gains to pad their profits. As the market softens, successful flippers will need to focus on finding properties that they can buy at a discount and efficiently add value to."