Flipping houses was a hot business that cooled off as the financial crisis took hold. Now, it's making a comeback, most notably among million-dollar houses.
Read MoreInvestors and international buyers have been keeping high-end sales moving. Despite rising interest rates and the subsequent decline in mortgage origination, the luxury home market is still going strong - and not because celebrities are buying trophy homes.
Read MoreAs housing analysts start to worry about the sustainability of the recent run-up in the real estate market, a troubling trend has returned, harking back to the days of the housing bubble: house flipping.
Read MoreCelebrity sweat is behind some of the biggest house-flipping projects in L.A. In Tinseltown, even movie stars can be found playing the home-flipping game — and this year they've upped the ante. Celebrity muscle is behind some mega-bucks Westside property turnarounds, part of a boom in the rapid buy-fix-resell mania known as flipping.
Read MoreCelebrities are not immune to the temptation of making a quick profit on the housing market, real estate agents in California said.
Read MoreThe Reserve is a six-bedroom, 11-bath Art Deco mansion in Los Angeles that Kristoffer Winters spent more than two years rebuilding and decorating down to its monogrammed bathroom towels. His asking price was $25 million.
Read MoreBetween 2011 and today, transactions valued at $1 million USD or more are up almost 40%, according to housing data company RealtyTrac. Jan Brzeski stands in a sun-filled, beautifully refurbished living room high in the Hollywood Hills, looking out at a swimming pool and, miles below, stunning views of Los Angeles.
Read MoreThe rise of the "flippers" ... U.S. investors who buy a home, refurbish it, and sell it at a profit. Jan Brzeski stands in a sun-filled, beautifully refurbished living room high in the Hollywood Hills, looking out at a swimming pool and, kilometres below, stunning views of Los Angeles.
Read MoreJan Brzeski stands in a sun-filled, beautifully refurbished living room high in the Hollywood Hills, looking out at a swimming pool and, miles (km) below, stunning views of Los Angeles.
Read MoreManagers claim sector's institutionalization is a sign of good times ahead. Single-family housing, which seemed like a good tactical investment a year or so ago, could turn into a staple in investors' portfolios if some money managers have their way.
Read MoreEllison has bought nearly two dozen properties in the beach community during a decade-long shopping spree, including at least nine homes on coveted Carbon Beach. On busy Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, some well-kept facades conceal a secret. Behind the Mediterranean with wooden doors, the white stucco two-story with a red tile roof, the long wall obscuring a three-structure compound, hides a singular, massive wealth fueled by obsession.
Read MoreTired of dealing with a bank? Then it might be time to put your money where your house is. Not the one you’re living in, mind you, the fixer-upper that you want to flip for a profit.
Read MoreBy now, everyone has seen articles in the national media about the business of purchasing homes at depressed values and holding them as rental properties.
Read MoreMonday's Journal looked at some of the large investment funds interested in bidding on thousands of homes from Fannie Mae through the federal governments first foreclosure-to-rental pilot program. But a bunch of smaller players say they are a much better fit for the program since they already know the market.
Read MoreTo riff off those snazzy EF Hutton commercials from the 70s and 80s - When Warren Buffett talks, people listen. Last month, while appearing on CNBC's Squawk Box, Buffett pointed to the US housing market as a sound investment opportunity.
Read MoreLos Angeles is infamous for its traffic-jammed freeways. I know about traffic from personal experience of travelling on the 405 freeway of “Carmegeddon” fame almost every day. In Los Angeles, instead of saying “Interstate 405” or “I- 405” we just say “the 405”—demonstrating the prominence of freeways in our lives here. On some days, travelling the 11 miles from the Los Angeles Airport to Westwood can take an hour.
Read MoreThe great real estate buying opportunity that was expected to follow the recent financial crisis has yet to materialize. While the residential real estate market has thawed somewhat with the help of ultra-low-interest mortgages provided by federal government agencies, the commercial market remains frozen. Income-property values are down about 40 percent from the peak, but transaction volume remains a fraction of what it was a few years ago.
Read MoreIncreasing numbers of income property owners are faced with a tough decision: either dig into their own pockets to cover debt service every month, or hand the keys back to their lender, losing 100% of their equity investment to date.
Read MoreThe liquidity crisis and recession has put the squeeze on the commercial real estate industry but smart owners and experienced investors can stabilize their properties and tap one of the best deal-making markets in a generation.
Read More