Photo from fixbuffalo.blogspot.com (28 Eaton St. currently on auction at eBay)
While I don’t profess to be any kind of expert on internet flipping, I do know what I have seen with my own eyes. Since we announced the premiere of “Flipped”, there has been some commentary on how flipping is really just an exercise of the free enterprise system and that it is the duty of the buyer to fully perform their due diligence prior to making an investment, sight unseen.
I have to agree fully on both points. What is missing in this argument is the fact that the majority of the flipping occurring in Buffalo now is fraudulent and it is tying up properties that could possibly have been sold through more ethical venues. The result is that these properties are sitting vacant (see above), being extensively stripped and vandalized (again, see above) and are demoralizing and blighting our neighborhoods. That’s the downside of free enterprise and that is what we are dealing with now.
Of course, flipping is not the only problem in these neighborhoods. In some cases, it’s not even the major problem. But it is a springboard that leads to an infestation of other unwanted problems and undesireable tenants.
Ask yourself this question: how would you feel if this was happening in your neighborhood and you couldn’t afford to move elsewhere? You might think twice about dismissing the problem as just “free enterprise”.
Check out 28 Eaton St. on eBay.
