The ‘BRRRR’ strategy is quickly becoming 2026’s go-to real estate approach for more predictable returns

With the fix-and-flip marketplace proving to beryllium little lucrative successful caller years, existent property investors are opening to fancy the “BRRRR” strategy: buy, rehab, rent, refinance and repeat.

“Home flipping enactment and profitability continued to diminution successful Q3 2025 with emblematic instrumentality connected concern dropping to 23.1%, the lowest since 2008,” said Rob Barber, CEO of ATTOM, a supplier of existent property data, successful the company’s Q3 2025 U.S. Home Flipping Report (1).

• Dave Ramsey warns astir 50% of Americans are making 1 large Social Security mistake — here’s what it is and 3 elemental steps to hole it ASAP

• Thanks to Jeff Bezos, you tin present go a landlord for arsenic small arsenic $100 — and no, you don't person to woody with tenants oregon hole freezers. Here's how

• I’m approaching status with nary savings. Should I panic? Here are 6 casual ways to drawback up (and fast)

“Rising location prices and shrinking margins person made flipping progressively challenging,” helium added. “What was erstwhile a flipping marketplace that consistently delivered 40% to 60% returns for much than a decennary opening successful 2009 has present settled into 5 consecutive quarters of returns successful the 20% range.”

As of Q3 2025, 72,217 single-family homes and condominiums were flipped, accounting for 6.8% of full U.S. location income for the quarter, according to ATTOM. That’s a diminution from the 75,977 single-family homes and condominiums that were flipped successful Q3 2024.

Barber said investors request to take their markets carefully, stating that “the crippled has fundamentally changed.”

“Sentiment remains muted, arsenic economical uncertainty, elevated owe rates and rising resale inventory measurement connected request for flipped homes,” according to a survey from John Burns Research and Consulting, arsenic good arsenic Kiavi — a lender specializing successful existent property investors — arsenic reported by CNBC Property Play (2).

According to the survey, challenges facing flippers see higher involvement rates and reduced labour availability for renovation enactment owed to migration enforcement. Home income successful wide person besides fallen to a 30-year low, which means it’s taking flippers longer to merchantability their properties (3).

“I deliberation what our customers are truly experiencing, it truly comes down to lodging velocity and turnover timelines,” Arvind Mohan, CEO of Kiavi, told CNBC Property Play. “They are decidedly successful the velocity business, and truthful if it takes them an other period to implicit a transaction, that’s superior that’s tied up successful that spot that can’t needfully beryllium freed up for the adjacent investment.”

To accommodate to this environment, immoderate investors are moving from a fix-and-flip exemplary to the BRRRR strategy. This involves buying an undervalued property, renovating it to summation its value, uncovering tenants to make rental income and refinancing the spot to retrieve the concern and currency out. That wealth tin past beryllium utilized to commencement the aforesaid process with different spot (4).