I used to underwrite my flips for 6 months. Now every single one is 10. Houses are sitting longer. Some of mine sit on the market for 4 or 5 months, and that's after the renovation. If I only budgeted 6 months of holding costs, I'd be in trouble. Two things this changes for me: 1. I won't take a short loan. Most hard money lenders give 12 to 18 months. If a private lender offers me 6, I ask for at least 9, and I plan on extending. 2. I don't panic. When a low offer comes in during the first month, I can say no, because I've already built in the time to wait for the right buyer. How many months of holding costs do you put in your numbers? Reply with a number.

This happened to me in August. I was refinancing a house, and the appraisal came back way under what I'd underwritten. Not a little under. Tens of thousands under. I said absolutely not. I turned that lender down, opened a file with another lender, and the second appraisal came back right around my number. On a refinance, you can do that. You can switch lenders and get a new appraisal. When it's your end buyer's appraisal, you have fewer choices. You can fight it, you can lower your price, or you can let that buyer go and find another one, and that could cost you months of payments. And there are new appraisal rules out there, so this is happening more. That's why I build room into my numbers before I ever buy. Has an appraisal ever surprised you, good or bad? Tell me what happened.

In 2022 I sat down and wrote out my five-year picture. Not a number. A picture. I was sitting in a beach house with my kids around me and all their friends over. Ours was the house everybody wanted to come to, and the snack drawers were full. People trusted me with their kids. We could take trips and give to our church and our local charities. And I had Airbnbs all over the country bringing in income. It's 2026 now, so I'd better be getting close. The funny part is I do own some Airbnbs, and I've also changed my mind. I love co-living now, renting by the room, so my picture changed with it. That's okay. It's supposed to change. Try it. Where are you in five years? Who's around you? Who do people see you as? Get as detailed as you can. Then share one line of it below. Where are you sitting in five years?

Doesn't matter how small. Your first call to an agent counts. Getting your MLS search set up counts. Running the numbers on a house for the first time counts. So does an offer that got told no. I say this all the time, there are going to be a lot more no's than yeses, and that's fine. The people who get deals are the ones who kept going. So drop your win below, and if you see somebody else's, go tell them good job. That's what this room is for. What did you get done this week?

If you're selling a flip you cannot rely on just the timing of the market. I'm seeing more investors sweat as their properties stay on market 30, 45, 60 days without a serious buyer. And, unfortunately, selling the home was their only goal and consideration. But how many months can you list a property until you run out of funds? Every investor should know that number and have a backup plan in case you hit it. A.K.A Refinancing There are too many dreamers out there who think optimism means their plan will work no matter what. But that's delusion. And YOU are not delusional. So back to the numbers you should know. When underwriting a flip we have the typical numbers in mind: purchase price, rehab costs, ARV, holding costs. What you are going to do differently is run numbers for the refinance, the plan B. That looks like: the highest loan to value you can get, the interest rate, the prepayment penalty, the fees & closing costs. Run those numbers BEFORE you list. Not after day 45 when you're starting to panic. Because here's the truth: A refinance you plan for is a strategy. A refinance you scramble for is a rescue mission. ​And rescue missions cost you more — in rate, in fees, in sleep. ​ So before you put the sign in the yard, know your numbers on both sides: → What you need to walk away with as a sale → What you need to walk away with as a refi If those two numbers are close, you're not gambling anymore. That's the difference between an investor and a dreamer. Between those that hope the market cooperates and those that build a plan that works whether it does or not. ​ So — have you run your refi numbers on your current flip? Or are you still hoping it sells before you have to? Drop a ‘NUMBER’ in the comments if you want to go over HOW to calculate a refinance. I may just do a webinar on it. 😉