When flipping furniture, know which pieces to walk away from. This will save you so much time, money, and energy in the long run. If you can learn what to avoid when choosing furniture pieces to flip, you will be so far ahead of anyone else who is starting to flip furniture.
What To Avoid When Choosing Furniture To Flip
Non-Wood Pieces
I always recommend picking up pieces that are made of real wood. There are so many benefits to working with real wood pieces. To see how to tell if a piece of furniture is real wood, CLICK HERE. They will take paint, stain, wax, and glazes well. They are made to last forever and if you are selling, most buyers want to invest in real wood pieces.
Cracked Legs
I have been flipping furniture for more than 20 years and I still avoid pieces that have cracked or broken legs. That is one thing that is not easy to fix and most of the time, unless you replace the legs altogether, “repairing them” is a temporary fix. Avoid pieces that have cracked or broken legs.
Missing Pieces
If you are a beginner at flipping furniture, I would suggest avoiding furniture pieces that have missing drawers, missing tops, missing legs, etc. You will gain more and more skills as you continue to flip. You will be able to fix some missing things as you progress, but in the beginning, leave those pieces behind.
Broken Drawers
Broken drawers are something to avoid. Now, there are some broken drawers that are fixable. To see how we fix a broken dresser drawer, CLICK HERE. But, if you are a beginner, I would stay away from broken drawers.
Smells
Avoid pieces that have smells. There are things I do that remedy certain smells and I share all my tips on how to get smells out of furniture HERE. I know it sounds weird, but smell the pieces you are looking to flip. If there are any smells, be wary. If you are unsure at all, walk away.
Unstable
Every time you think you have found a piece of furniture to flip, give it the stable test. Put your hand on the top of it and wiggle it. Is it stable? If not, you may want to avoid it. Sometimes, it just needs some screws tightened on the legs, but a lot of times, it is a structural thing that will take more time than it is worth.
Know what pieces are easy to sell and focus on finding those.
Upholstery
If you know how to upholster furniture, I envy you. That is one thing I wish I knew how to do. I can recover a seat on a chair, but other than that, I avoid pieces that need upholstery work. Unless you know how to sew and do upholstery right, avoid upholstered pieces.
Hard To Sell Pieces
It is important to know your market and what kinds of pieces sell well and fast. For me, I will always pick up hutches, buffets, and dressers. They are easy to sell. A dining room table and chairs are a little harder for me. Avoid pieces that are hard to sell and focus on finding furniture pieces that sell fast.
Water Damage
Some water damage can be remedied or covered up, but if the water damage is so bad that the wood is buckling, avoid that piece of furniture.
Stuck Drawers
Always open every drawer when you are searching for pieces of furniture to flip. You need to know that they all work. If you find drawers that aren’t working well, make sure you figure out what the problem is. It could just need some sanding, but it could be something a lot more involved than that.
Major Repairs
Avoid furniture pieces that need major repairs, especially if you are a beginner. Again, your skills will grow as you continue to flip, but in the beginning, you want to keep the process simple. Do not pick up pieces that need major repairs.
This post on what to avoid when choosing furniture is full of the things I had to learn the hard way. I wish I could go back and save all the time and energy it took me to figure these out but now, I get to help others save that time and energy.
Do You Want To Make Money Flipping Furniture?
After twenty years of doing this, I am still picking up pieces when I can find them because I love the creative outlet, but I am now coaching other furniture flippers on how to make more money in their business. If you are someone who is looking to start and/or grow a furniture flipping business, I would love to help you. There are ways to make money in your business beyond painting a piece of furniture. Once I learned that, my business flourished. Don’t waste your time trying to figure it out on your own.
To help other flippers, I created The Furniture Flipping Academy! The academy includes everything you need to start, grow, and/or scale a furniture flipping business. It includes courses, resources, templates, social media planner and guide, a private community, and so much more. It will ensure that you are doing the steps that will lead to success and not wasting your time on things that won’t.
You can find all the information about the Furniture Flipping Academy HERE.
Let’s get your business started and/or moving in the right direction. The Furniture Flipping Academy is for any flipper, from beginner to experienced. If your business is stagnant, there is a reason for that. Let me help you grow it into a flipping career that is profitable and fits the lifestyle you want to live.
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As always, good to know! Especially when starting. You don’t want to be overwhelmed.