We bought a long term rental that was rehabbed before the owner sold. It turned out okay for us in the long run, but here were our two biggest expenses and what I'll pay more attention to next time.

--Freshly laid sod. Turns out, it's nearly impossible to grow grass in our yard. We gave up and put in a stone patio. Love the patio, but it wasn't cheap.

--Our kitchen looked nice, but the cabinets where the super cheapest kind you can buy from Home Depot. They ended up falling apart around the four year mark and we put in an Ikea kitchen instead. The Ikea cabinets are much, much higher quality, which tells you how awful the HD ones were. Also, a flipper won't buy the right size cabinets for the space or add drawers and things like that that are important in a small space.

My friend bought a flip. When the electrician came in to wall mount his tv, he noted that they didn't add electrical outlets in places where you'd expect them to be. Also, there was a space for a washer/dryer, but when he had them delivered, they realized there wasn't a proper space for the dryer( or something). He had to have a contractor come in and build some sort of a platform. So be wary of missing appliances. They could be absent for a reason.

Anonymous wrote:Another warning sign is fresh basement dry lock paint

Yup, we feel for that. Lasted through a few big storms before the leaks started coming through.

If you trust your agent, s/he might be knowledgeable about flippers. Agree with PP who took friend who does contractor work. We did this a few times and paid our friend. Well worth it.

Anonymous wrote:Most of the flips I've seen, the basement has been finished entirely and you can no longer see any foundation walls, hence OP's question.

Usually you can go into the furnace room and see the walls.

Most of the flips I've seen, the basement has been finished entirely and you can no longer see any foundation walls, hence OP's question.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Another warning sign is fresh basement dry lock paint

How can you tell dry lock paint from regular paint?

it is directly on the foundation walls, white and thick. Your realtor should be able to spot it, ours did.

Anonymous wrote:Another warning sign is fresh basement dry lock paint

How can you tell dry lock paint from regular paint?

Another warning sign is fresh basement dry lock paint

if you are in fairfax county you can search for permits here

https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/bldgpermits/