Property data curator ATTOM released its first quarter 2025 U.S. Home Flipping Report showing that 67,394 single-family homes and condominiums were flipped in the first quarter, accounting for 8.3 percent of all home sales from January through March.

The share of flipped properties, as a percentage of all sales, rose to 8.3 percent from 7.4 percent in the previous quarter. But it was down slightly compared to the same time last year when flips accounted for 8.7 percent of all sales.

The buying slowdown also appears to be affecting home flippers. The 67,394 homes and condos flipped nationwide during the first three months of the year marked the lowest number in a quarter since 2018, according to ATTOM.

Returns have also been falling, with the typical flipped home netting a 25 percent return on investment (ROI) (before expenses) in the first quarter, down from 28 percent in the previous quarter and continued a gradual decline from the recent high of 48.8 percent in the fall of 2020.

Gross profits on a typical flipped home were down to $65,000 from $70,000 in the fourth quarter. The typical investor paid $260,000 for a home they flipped in the first quarter and sold the property for $325,000.

“The competitive home market means high prices, which is good for short-term investors on the selling end,” ATTOM CEO Rob Barber said in a release. “But that dynamic is also making it harder to find under-priced homes to buy up and it’s ultimately squeezing profit margins for the industry. … It’s tricky to balance at times when the market looks like it could take a downturn. Investors don’t want to buy a property when prices are high and then see them drop before they’re ready to sell.”

Home flips, as a share of total sales, rose quarter-over-quarter in 76.3 percent (132) of the 173 metropolitan statistical areas with sufficient data to analyze. However, the share was down compared to the same time last year in two-thirds (115) of the metro areas. Metro areas were included if they had a population of 200,000 or more and at least 50 home flips in the first quarter of 2025.

Among the metro areas analyzed, home flippers accounted for the biggest share of sales in Macon, Ga. (flips comprised 21 percent of all home sales); Warner-Robins, Ga. (20.6 percent); Atlanta (15.9 percent); Memphis, Tenn. (14.7 percent); and Akron, Ohio (13.3 percent).

Besides Atlanta and Memphis, the metro areas with populations over 1 million that had the highest proportion of flips were Birmingham, Ala. (12.8 percent); Kansas City, Mo. (11.6 percent); and Salt Lake City (11.1 percent).

Of those biggest metro areas, the smallest proportion of flips was in Honolulu (4.7 percent); New Orleans (4.9 percent); Seattle (5.5 percent); Pittsburgh (5.9 percent); and Portland, Ore. (6.1 percent).

A home flipped in the first quarter of 2025 sold for a nationwide median of $325,000, netting a 25 percent ROI and a $65,000 gross profit over the $250,000 median purchase price.

Profit margins were down quarter-over-quarter in 45.7 percent (79) of the 173 metro areas in ATTOM’s analysis and down annually in 63 percent (109) of the markets.

The metro areas with the biggest quarterly declines in flipping profit margins were Spartanburg, S.C. (return on investment ROI down from 160.2 percent in fourth quarter to 31.3 percent in first quarter); Ocala, Fla. (down from 125 percent to 50.6 percent); Chattanooga, Tenn. (down from 125.6 percent to 81.3 percent); Lynchburg, Va. (down from 69.2 percent to 31 percent); and Johnson City, Tenn. (down from 82.1 percent to 44.5 percent).

Among metro areas with populations over 1 million, the biggest quarterly profit margin drop-offs were in St. Louis (ROI down from 49.3 percent in the fourth quarter to 27.3 percent in first quarter); Fresno, Calif. (down from 51.3 percent to 37.8 percent); Pittsburgh (down from 108.7 percent to 100.4 percent); New York City (down from 44.2 percent to 36.1 percent); and Chicago (down from 52.6 percent to 44.8 percent).

Only 26 percent (45) of the 173 metro areas analyzed posted typical flipping profit margins (before expenses) over 50 percent, with the most lucrative markets located in the Midwest and Northeast.

The areas with the largest ROI in the first quarter were Buffalo, N.Y. (102.1 percent ROI), Pittsburgh (100.4 percent); Scranton, Pa. (89.9 percent); Peoria, Ill. (89.1 percent); and Rockford, Ill. (87.7 percent).

Aside from Buffalo and Pittsburgh, the metro areas with populations over 1 million that had the largest flipping profit margins were New Orleans (76.5 percent ROI); Memphis (69.7 percent) and Philadelphia (69.6 percent).

The large metro areas with the smallest profit margins were Austin, Texas (1 percent ROI); Dallas (3.7 percent); Houston (5 percent); Salt Lake City (6.5 percent); and San Antonio (6.9 percent).