This flip looked great in the listing photos. Once I started digging, it was clear corners had been cut at every turn. It’s the most-watched inspection on my channel, with over half a million views, and it’s a textbook example of a flip done for looks instead of longevity.
Inside the house
- Doors and safety: missing weather stripping, door latches that don’t work, trip hazards, no handrails upstairs and sloppy smoke detector installs.
- The primary suite: double doors held shut with Scotch tape. I’m not kidding.
- Plumbing: missing shutoff valves, flex drains where they don’t belong, leaking toilets and sinks with no P-traps at all.
- Bathrooms: wide tile gaps, poor caulking and missing trim. That’s water damage waiting to happen.
- Electrical: outlets painted over or dead, and GFCI protection incomplete or missing entirely.
- Garage: a dangerously loose garage door, and a brand-new water heater that isn’t vented properly.
The structure and the roof
- Termites: clear termite damage in the garage and attic, along with rotted trusses and exposed wiring.
- Foundation and stucco: the slab is shifting, drainage is poor and the stucco is failing.
- HVAC: serious condensate drainage problems.
- Roof: missing shingles, bad flashing and skylights sealed over with no way to access or maintain them.
How to inspect a flipped house
Flips aren’t bad by definition. Plenty of investors do good work. But a quick flip has every reason to spend money where buyers look and save money where they don’t. When I inspect a flip, I pay extra attention to:
- Plumbing under every sink, where shortcuts hide behind cabinet doors
- The attic, which almost never gets remodeled
- Every outlet, especially near water
- New equipment that was installed fast, like water heaters and AC units
- Termite damage covered by new paint, baseboards or flooring
Don’t let a fresh coat of paint fool you. This one could cost a buyer tens of thousands of dollars in repairs. Every home inspection I do includes a termite inspection, and on a flip I strongly recommend adding a sewer camera scan too.
Watch the full inspection
All 50 minutes are in the video above, or you can watch it on YouTube. Buying a flip in the Phoenix area? Book your inspection online or call 623-399-0079.
Property Inspections Plus is a Gilbert, AZ home inspection company led by Certified Master Inspector Dan Pierce. We inspect homes across the East Valley, the Phoenix metro and the rest of Arizona. See all of our service areas.
