Big Bear Bummers

Address: 624 Temple Ln, Big Bear Lake, CA 92315

Link: https://www.redfin.com/CA/Big-Bear-Lake/624-Temple-Ln-92315/home/3502970

 Beds/Baths: 1 beds, 1 bath, 525 squares

Purchase Price (8/2024): $250,000

Asking Price (9/2024): $389,900

Difference: +$139,900

Commission (3%): -$11,697

Total Gain: +$128,203

You read that right: they bought this thing in August 2024 and put it right back on the market in September with a 56-percent price increase. How much faith would you have in a flipper who managed to install a new kitchen, bathroom, floors, baseboards and interior paint in just three weeks?

For me, none.

And judging by the photos, this was a quick, low-effort flip that has a lot of potential for future problems.

First of all, look at this cabinet pull they didn’t even bother to screw in:

And I know this might sound nit-picky, but there are three clashing metal tones in this room: Oil-rubbed bronze faucet, brass cabinet pulls and brushed nickel door knobs/stainless appliances. At least try match the kitchen faucet to the cabinet pulls!

I will tell you from personal experience there is no way these stairs will pass the city inspection if you intend to rent it out. In our cabin we had THREE STEPS leading down to the back yard and the city forced us to install new handrails.

I can’t believe these flippers just fucked off and made the handrail someone else’s problem. But that seems to be the theme around here.

And while I appreciate high-mounted outlets for flat-screen TVs, why do you need two of them? Strange choice.

And can we talk about the gray floors? This trend died in like 2022, yet people still persist with this soulless look – in mountain cabins, no less! These vinyl floors absolutely destroy the cabin vibe and scream, “THIS CHEAP FLIP WILL FALL APART LIKE WET PAPIER-MÂCHÉ THE MOMENT YOU GET THE KEYS.”

The solo bathroom looks positively dreary, and once again the fixtures don’t match.

And, uh, where the hell are you supposed to put a mirror?

The sole power outlet is completely blocking the area above the sink. It would have taken 18 minutes to relocate that outlet a foot to the left, but nah, let’s call it good and let the new sucker – I MEAN…buyer sort that out.

Maybe Pottery Barn sells a special mirror to address this ridiculous, easily preventable problem? Here is my artist’s rendering:

And is it just me, or does the shower head placement look odd? Shouldn’t the shower head be, you know, in the shower?

I especially love these photos of the deck because it really encapsulates how little they cared about this project:

The buckets, piles of scrap wood and random trash strewn about really add to the charm. It’s like they couldn’t stand to look at their crappy work any longer and bailed out as quickly as possible.

“TERRY, JUST TAKE THE FRIGGIN’ PIC AND LET’S GET OUT OF HERE!”

For entertainment purposes I’ll calculate the new buyer’s monthly payment, but there’s no way this thing sells for such an absurd asking price.

Purchase price: $389,900

Down Payment (20%): $77,980

Monthly Payment: $2,910/mo (@7.3%)

Nobody with a functioning frontal cortex is paying three grand a month for 525 square feet. If it was lakefront, sure. But not for this slapdash, in-and-out, flipper-grade bullshit.

Flipping is easy when real estate is continually going up. But flipping in 2024 when interest rates are high and prices are falling? That takes balls of steel.

The good news for these knuckleheads is they only paid $250,000 and their lipstick-on-a-pig renovation didn’t cost them a whole lot, meaning they have a big margin for error. Although they have no shot at walking away with the $128,000 windfall they’re currently banking on, they have plenty of room to come down and still make a profit.

But until they get aggressive with price reductions, this thing is going to sit.