The sustainable living movement has gained a lot of ground in the last few years. More renewable energy is being used, people are recycling, and zero-waste lifestyles are being adopted. 

Sustainability has also moved to the forefront of business. Industries around the world are looking for more ways to be eco-friendly. That includes the real estate business. 

House flipping has been around since the 80s, but recently, eco-flipping has popped up as the more sustainable alternative. The basic strategy is the same but with a green twist. You buy a house for a low price, upgrade it to make it more sustainable, and then resell it for more money.

This strategy allows you to run a successful real estate business while also helping the environment. If that sounds appealing to you, here’s how you can make a house flipping business sustainable.

Find Homes That Will Last For Years

When you’re searching for houses to flip, focus on options that are well built. There are two reasons for this.

The first is that a good structure lets a house be a home for years. Houses that last prevent new houses from being built, saving countless resources. 44 full-grown trees are used to make 2600 square feet of house, so you can save dozens of trees by preventing just one build.

The second reason is that structural repairs are expensive. They can easily wipe out your entire budget, leaving you no money to make other upgrades.

When possible, find houses that only need cosmetic changes. That way, you’ll have more money for eco-friendly upgrades. 

Speaking of your budget, if you’ve already found the perfect house to eco-flip, it’s time to move on to funding. A loan designed for flippers can help you. A fix and flip loan can give you the money to buy a house now and fit it with sustainable upgrades. 

When you’re done, you can sell the house and repay the loan with some of your profit. The rest can go into a new flip or your pocket. Apply today so you can get your eco-flip underway.

Choose The Eco-Friendly Upgrades With The Most Impact

When it’s time to choose your eco-friendly upgrades it’s important to make sure you aim for the most impactful decisions. Any green upgrade is good, but some have more positive effects on the environment, and resale value, than others. 

Switching to a sustainable energy source, for example, is a move with drastic environmental impact. That’s because traditional electricity is a major contributor to emissions that result in global warming. Every house that switches represents a lowering of harmful emissions and a step forward for the planet.

Another good choice when doing eco-friendly upgrades is to go with natural materials that have been sustainably harvested. Find out what the origins are on the wood you’re planning to use for floors or cabinets. Ideally, it should be reclaimed wood, a product of recycling, or come from a carefully monitored forest.

Research which upgrades will work well for the house you’ve chosen, and pick the ones that have the most positive impact on the environment. The Earth will thank you, and it’s a great selling point when it’s time to put the house on the market.

Get The Word Out

If you want to encourage more people to be sustainable while also growing your business, you need to get the word out. Market yourself as an eco-flipper and explain to people what that means. The number of people wanting to be more sustainable grows every year, so you’re sure to attract some interest.

Put together a good pitch and marketing plan that explains the impact of eco-flips on the environment and the housing crisis. Don’t forget to include that green homes tend to be cheaper to maintain than traditional homes, thanks to features like energy efficiency.

There’s a perfect audience for the work you’re doing, and they can easily turn into future investors in your business. Whether that’s through partnerships, advice, or even buying one of your flips. 

Sustainability is a mindset you can adopt in every section of your life, including your house flipping business. Now that you know the basics of eco-flipping, you can do your part to help the environment. The Earth is, after all, our most important home.