What the Flip?

Amid a national housing slump, it seems some cities in Central New York are seeing more of an up turn than a down. In Syracuse, two men are “flipping out” about this rare case.

By: Marissa Torres, NCC News

Shawn Zachary Designs

Shawn Clarke and his partner Zachary Belil began their house flipping company, Shawn Zachary Designs, more than ten years ago in New York City. In starting the company, they were able to turn their passion for home design into a profit. They soon realized however, how much more expensive it was to continue this business in NYC compared to anywhere else in the country.
“ We were at a point where we could do it here…but if we had to do the same thing in NY it would be impossible…because it would cost us a million dollars for a crappy one bedroom” says Zachary Belil.

What the Flip?

We have all seen or heard of the popular shows like “Flip this House” by A&E or “Flip that House” by TLC, but are these television series truly a reality?
According to Shawn and Zachary, it’s pretty close. While the shows make it look easier, and tend to invest much more money, it is accurate to what their company is all about. Shawn and Zachary find a classic “fixer-upper,” which is reasonably priced, and in an area they feel will be prosperous. They renovate it, re-design it, and re-sell it for a greater price. This is an attractive idea to many people looking for convenience. “They want to come in and they want buy a house and they want move in. They don’t want to buy a house and do everything from top to bottom” says Shawn.

Why Syracuse?



According to various realtors in the area, Syracuse, along with the rest of Central New York, is not following the national housing economic downturn. Jim Giannuzzi from Salt City Mortgage says the past year held a fair to good selling and buying trend. “We are very fortune because we didn’t see inflation effect the price of our houses like a lot of areas did. So it’s really not a bad market around this area” says Giannuzzi.
David Manzano, President of the Board of Realtors, says last year, the median price of a house in Syracuse was 131,000 dollars. Compared to New York City, where Shawn and Zachary began their business, the median price of a home was 440,000 dollars. Here it is much easier for them to get more “bang for their buck.”