How to Lose Your Shirt Flipping a House

Sure, most people want to make fat cash by house flipping. But not you. If you want a sure fire plan for going down into the depths of debt, follow these simple steps

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Capital (preferably somebody else's)
• A questionable eye
• audacity

1. Find a house. Look for the worst house in a so-so neighborhood. Pay asking price. Bonus points if the roof needs immediate repair.

2. Make as many structural changes as you can. Move walls, raise (or lower) ceilings. Add doors and a porch.

3. Buy more stuff than you need. Extra cabinets. Tons of landscaping materials. A ceiling fan in the bathroom.

4. Choose colors poorly. When in doubt, go extra dark. Use dated countertops.

5. Price yourself out of the market. If the houses around yours are selling for $200,000 ask for $300,000. If no one bites, wait. There's bound to be a sucker someday.

6. After a year of no takers, sell for the price you originally paid and eat all the improvement costs.

7. Start again.

Tips & Warnings

• Of course, if you want to make a profit you could always do the opposite.