He's Flipped 1,000 Homes. Here's What He Fixes First.
5/14/202625 min
Tarek El Moussa has bought, fixed, and sold over 1,000 homes. That means he's walked into quite a few houses in his day. And he sees things the average homeowner completely misses. In this episode, Angie sits down with Tarek to talk about what actually moves the needle when you're preparing to sell, what kills deals at inspection, and how to think about ROI when you're deciding what to fix, update, or leave alone.
Here's what we discuss in this episode:
- What buyers see the moment they walk through your door — and what they're actually looking for
- Why seven out of ten homes fall out of escrow today, and the simple move that prevents most of it
- The projects with the best ROI before you list and the ones that aren't worth it
- How to get a high-end look without blowing the budget
- The gold toilet rule: what's personal, what's smart, and when those two things collide
- Tarek's four-step framework for any home improvement decision: evaluate, emulate, renovate, duplicate
Ready to find the right contractor before your next project? Visit angi.com to connect with top-rated pros in your area. Angi (formerly Angie’s List) is a leading home services marketplace that has helped homeowners with 300M+ home projects from plumbing and remodeling to roofing and landscaping.
Learn More: angi.com/landing/podcast-angie-hicks
Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsTarek El Moussa· Guest0:00
[upbeat music] If you wanna paint your walls pink and purple and do gold toilets, go ahead, enjoy it, love it. Just know [laughs] when you go to sell your house, you're gonna have to replace your toilets and you're gonna have to replace your wall, because you're gonna leave money on the table if you don't.
Angie Hicks· Host0:16
My guest today is Tarek El Moussa. You've probably seen him on HGTV on Flip or Flop, Flipping 101, or Flipping El Moussas. But Tarek is also a well-seasoned real estate investor who's bought, fixed, and sold over 1,000 homes, and he's spent years helping homeowners determine what adds value and what doesn't, which makes him exactly the person I wanted to talk to about ROI. Welcome to Own It. I'm Angie Hicks, co-founder of ANGI. And the honest conversations that every homeowner wants to have start right here. In today's episode, we talk about what works in home improvement, from choosing the right projects and people to avoiding the mistakes that can cost you time, money, and maybe even a deal. Here's my conversation with Tarek El Moussa. You got into real estate at a super young age. You know, what drew you there?
Tarek El Moussa· Guest1:14
It was kind of out of the blue. I was 19 years old. I had just graduated high school, and I was selling Cutco kitchen knives. I developed the sales books. I had all my leads, all my contacts. I had my little li- uh, knife-selling business, and what happened was I lost my entire lead