Get to Know the Minds Behind Florida's Best Flips

At Flipping Florida 101, I’m passionate about transforming houses into dream homes and empowering others to do the same. Founded by a seasoned home flipper with years of experience in the Florida market, my blog is dedicated to sharing the insights, tools, and strategies you need to thrive in Florida’s real estate trends. Learn from my successes and challenges, and gain the confidence to pursue your own flipping projects.

Michael Higgs, Owner

My start in real estate was at a very early age. My father was a pilot for Delta, but when he was home, he started by literally flipping small apartment complexes. Get a rundown 8 unit, fix it up, sell it, then buy an even bigger rundown unit and then flip it. I remember working as young as 8 years old doing various chores. Eventually, I was painting, laying tile, installing water heaters and pool pumps, all sorts of tasks. I didn’t have my first outside-family job till I was 14.

School took over, went through college, worked for almost 30 years in corporate IT. I’ve lived up and down the East Coast doing all fashions of IT, from engineering to Cybersecurity to project management to consulting and management. However, I reached a line where I needed to do something different. Covid-19 helped me to do this. I decided to go back to my roots. I of course earned my real estate license and dabbled in that a bit. However, very unfulfilling, and as we all know, MANY real estate agents are HORRIBLE! I didn’t want to play that game. Then I decided that I needed to follow my “professional” heart!

I have been addicted to the flipping shows for years. HGTV was on my TV so much, I think my wife was secretly plotting to either destroy all the TV’s in the house or just tie me up and leave me in the closet when I was home. Thankfully she didn’t. One person stood out to me the most, and surprise surprise, it has been Tarek El Moussa! The King of Flipping. The ultimate “Flipping Rags to Riches” person.

When you watched “Flip Or Flop”, you very quickly notice that he was doing 90% of the work. He had the contacts for finding houses, he did the evaluation, he negotiated the purchase, he handled the GC’s, he did labor with demo and other various tasks, he did about 50% of design choices, he did the prep for sale, he handled the transactions, he even handled the hard money loans when they needed them. He did the work!! Then came his “Flipping 101” show. He was extending his help to first time flippers. If you watch the show, wow, it is no wonder that 70% of first time flippers fail and never do it again! Some crazy rookie mistakes always blew my mind.

Throughout my life, I have always aspired to be a guide to people. If I possess a knowledge, I love to pass it on. I am all about flipping, and I want other people to become successful as well.

Two years ago, I scrambled up every drop of money I could. I sold investments, cashed out an IRA, sold some things, I did what I could to get some money together. Then I bought a condo, and started work.

The dream became real!

I decided to document all the things I was doing. I have done videos of various steps, and have put them here. I have done my best to make them both informative, and fun to watch. I try to put in my tips and tricks, and I hope they help people out. One tip I will strenuously give, my motto that I say over and over again, “Don’t cut corners, cut costs!” Granted, so many people overdo their flips, trying to create mansions from cottages, with the fanciest appointments throughout. Other people try to cheap out where they can, to make an extra buck. I will attempt to show you that there is a happy middle ground.

I will also stress that you have to work VERY HARD to aggregate a great set of contractors. I am VERY blessed to have a great set of folks such as my plumbers, electrician, HVAC folks, and my incredible construction guys. They are the heart of my operation, and we all work very well together. I have plenty of others like my general contractor, roofers, irrigation company, etc. These are your resources, and you need to work almost literally daily to keep up these relationships.

I will hope that you love my videos, laugh every once in a while, and learn.

Enjoy!!

A man working on a table with tools in front of him.

Reach Out for Flipping Tips

Curious about my journey or have a question about flipping houses in Florida? I’d love to hear from you! My community is built on collaboration and learning, and I’m here to support you every step of the way.

Let's Flip Together