The big business of real-estate investing is going from flip to flop as markets across Canada slow and take away the seller's edge.

"The market has definitely flattened here, so we're probably getting less for our house than we should have," says Jacquie Lines, who put her Calgary home on the market last month.

"Our realtor told us when we put our house on the market that around 120 houses are going on the market here every day and only 30 or so are going off - so there's definitely a lot of competition."

With inventory up in Calgary and sales down 38 per cent in March from March of last year, Lines and her husband Trevor are hoping that the major renovations they did to their house will help it stand out.

Larry MacDougal, Business Edge
Calgary's Jacquie Lines is resigned to seeing less of a profit than expected when her house is sold.

"It's a 1950s bungalow and it was totally '70's when we bought it so we've renovated most of it - the kitchen, the main bathroom, busting out a wall, ripping out the nasty carpet and putting in all-new fixtures," says Lines. "We've really done a lot to the house."

Spending close to $50,000 to update their home, the Lines did as much work as they could themselves.

But it turned out seeing past the tacky decor was a lot easier than securing a tradesperson when it came time to find a contractor.

"People wouldn't even sniff at the place unless the work was over $70,000," Lines says. "It was near impossible to find someone and we ended up using an old neighbour of ours who we originally didn't want to ask because he was trying to get out of the business. But we had no choice."

The Lines consider themselves lucky - many people never find a contractor, or if they do, the work often takes many months - and even as long as a year - to complete.

The situation is similar in British Columbia.

"We hear complaints all the time about how long you have to wait for a good tradesperson and that the quality is thinning out," says veteran Victoria real estate agent Paul Osborne of Taddy Owen-Flood.

"The availability of trades is just horrible out here because so many properties that look good on paper turn out not to be because of the cost and the time it takes to do it. This is not a market to buy to fix to flip for the faint of heart."

Victoria's flipping frenzy ended about six months ago. After double-digit property increases for the better part of a decade in B.C.'s capital, slowing sales are having an impact on real estate investing - but not renovating.

"The reno market in Victoria now is more about people making their own space special," Osborne says. "Probably only fools are walking around right now thinking they're buying houses here to flip. We've had a terrific long run, but the headspace to buy it and flip it a year from now has ended."

Larry MacDougal, Business Edge
Jacquie Lines checks for-sale sign outside Calgary home.

In fact, there are only a few major cities in Canada where you can still flip for fast cash.

Topping the list? Winnipeg, where the average single-family home still only goes for around $215,000 and the "high end" of the market is anything over $300,000.

"It's a great place and it's still a wonderful opportunity for people to invest here," says Kathy Hrechka, a long-time agent with Sutton Group Kilkenny Real Estate in Winnipeg.

"It looks like we're going to have 10- to 12-per-cent growth for this year and they're predicting the same for next year before we get to that point where the market levels off and stabilizes."

With low inventory and high demand, multiple offers are the norm in Winnipeg, where more often than not, properties sell for more than list price.

"There was a little starter home recently listed for $159,999 that got 11 offers and sold for $200,000 and another nice family home listed for $179,900 that went for $250,000," says Hrechka.

"It all depends how many buyers are looking in that area - if 10 people are bidding on two houses, there are still eight buyers out there looking, so when the next house comes along, they're going to offer higher to make sure they get it."

The statistics are startling - houses selling for 30, even 40, per cent over the asking price.

According to the Winnipeg Realtors Association, 10 per cent of residential properties sold at list price in March, with a whopping 57 per cent selling for more than the list price.

Even a former drug house recently went for $70,000 more than the $119,900 asking price. The house was in such bad shape, offers had to be made sight unseen.

"If you can believe it, they had 44 offers on it and the winning offer had first right of refusal after seeing the house in a hazmat suit," says Hrechka. "There was mould everywhere from the grow-op and the house had to be totally gutted."

Renovating your way to a big payday has never been bigger in Winnipeg, but the Prairie city isn't the only place where you can still cash in. In Western Canada, Saskatchewan's real estate market is also still hot.

In Saskatoon, the price of an average home has doubled in the last three years, with total sales up 61 per cent in February alone. Insiders say Regina is probably the better bargain with lower prices, but both cities are predicting more growth.

"The experts are telling us that Saskatchewan and Manitoba will continue to have good growth," Hrechka says.

"Everything's positive here, the economy's strong and there's lots of immigration coming in, which means demand will only go up."

With demand down in other parts of the country, slowing sales in B.C., Alberta and Ontario are actually having the opposite effect on the renovation market as many homeowners decide to stay put and fix up the home they already own.

"The phones are ringing off the wall and we're booked out for six months or so right now," says Don James of Jameswood Homes in Calgary. "We're big enough that the smaller jobs are hard for us to do because of our overheads - we've just grown so much."

So what constitutes a small job?

According to James, who also chairs the renovators' council for the Calgary Regional Homes Builders Association, $60,000 to $70,000 is the "bare bones" for most contracting firms.

Where does that leave the average person who just wants their kitchen or bathroom redone?

"As far as the small jobs, it's really a tough one," James says. "People are desperate to get the work done, so they'll find anyone they can get. Whether they're legit and whether they're going to rip you off is a different story."

Renovation is such a big business - both above board and under the table - that there's an industry standards program called Renomark. Its website (www.renomark.ca) has tips on how to hire a contractor, a free reno guide, and even a list of licensed renovators in the Prairies and Ontario.

"Make sure you get a licensed contractor - if you don't, you're just putting your wallet on the table," says James. "It comes back to bite you big time if there's a problem."

In the business for more than 35 years, James also recommends that anyone considering a renovation do their homework first so they know exactly what they're getting into.

"Make sure you check out the contractor, get a contract in writing and be sure it covers the scope of how the work will be done and when the work will be done," he says.

"You really want to limit how long it takes, because what do you do without a kitchen?" For the typical kitchen renovation, James says you should plan for three to six months, depending on what's involved. Expect three months at the most for a bathroom renovation.

These rooms are the two most important to renovate for resale and if you're looking to climb the property ladder, make sure any renovations you decide to do will pay off when it comes time to sell.

"You can't assume each time you spend a dollar you'll get a dollar back," says Victoria real estate agent Paul Osborne. "Sometimes you only get 80 cents back, sometimes less."

For Jacquie and Trevor Lines, all the work they did to their Calgary home will result in a big payday - even if it's not as big a profit as they'd originally hoped.

"There's no question we'll come out ahead so we have to keep that in mind when we look at the market," Jacquie Lines says. "There's no doubt we're still doing really well."

Anticipating a substantial six-figure profit, Lines only has one renovating regret.

"I really wish we had done more of the work sooner, so we could have enjoyed it more," she adds.

"It seemed like we were constantly working on the house."

(Tess van Straaten can be reached at tess@businessedge.ca)