Condo flipping popular around the country

Condo flipping popular around the country: "MIAMI -- Sept. 29, 2005 -- The 'flipping' of apartments and condominiums, a practice in which investors purchase units before they are built and sell them at a profit before closing, was made popular in Florida and now is gaining steam in Las Vegas and New York City.

Jack Winston, a Goodkin Consulting analyst, says this so-called Miami Model works best for developers with in-house sales representatives and numerous projects in different phases of development. He adds that the model is profitable only if enough investors jump aboard.

According to Metrostudy South Florida director Bradley Hunter, developers became more accepting of flipping when they found that restricting the practice gave investors all the profits and put a large number of units on the market after closing.

'We went down to Miami and saw that this is a great way to protect the value of the building,' says Paul Scaringe of Panorama Towers in Las Vegas. 'With this program you can control the amount of inventory that is out there at any given time; supply and demand will dictate the pricing.'

Christopher Mathieson, managing partner of JC DeNiro and Associates, plans to use the Miami Model when he begins selling a trio of developments in Manhattan, which he says allows developers to shift risks to investors.

Source: The New York Times (09/25/05); Bahney, Anna"