The short answer: the margin comes after the purchase
A company that buys houses directly earns its money from what it does with the house, not from fees charged to you. It buys at a price that leaves room for repairs and risk, then either sells the finished house, rents it, or sells its right to buy to someone else.
That margin is real, and it is fair to ask about it. A buyer who explains how the numbers work is easier to trust than one who won’t.
Model 1: renovate and resell
Flipping means buying, renovating and reselling, usually within a few months. It is the model most people picture.
ATTOM’s report for the second quarter of 2026 gives a sense of the numbers nationally:
- The typical gross profit on a flip was $60,526, down from $71,000 a year earlier.
- The typical margin was 21.5%, down from 27.6% a year earlier.
- The typical flip took about 161 days from purchase to resale.
“Gross” is the key word. ATTOM’s figure is the resale price minus the purchase price only. It does not include rehab costs and other expenses, which ATTOM estimates at roughly 20% to 33% of the after-repair value. Out of that gross gap the investor also pays loan interest, taxes, insurance, utilities, agent commissions on the resale and closing costs. On many flips, the profit left over is a fraction of the headline number, and some lose money.
Model 2: keep it as a rental
A buy-and-hold investor buys the house, fixes what’s needed and rents it out. They make money from monthly rent over years and from the house’s value rising over time.
Landlords can sometimes pay a little more than flippers for the same house because they don’t need a quick resale profit. The BiggerPockets explanation of the 70% rule notes that landlords may pay more than flippers and that the rule really applies to flips. In Akron, where about 49% of homes are renter-occupied according to the Census Bureau’s 2020-2024 estimates, there is steady demand for rentals. If you’re selling a rental, the rental property page covers what changes when tenants are in place.
Model 3: wholesale the contract
A wholesaler signs a contract to buy your house, then sells that contract to another investor before closing. The wholesaler’s profit is an assignment fee, the difference between your price and what the end buyer pays them.
This model needs little money up front, which is why it is common. It also carries the most risk for you as the seller, because the person who signed with you may never buy. If no investor wants the contract at that price, the wholesaler may ask for a lower price or cancel. The full comparison is in wholesaler vs direct cash buyer.
Model 4: iBuyers and service fees
An iBuyer is a large company that makes algorithm-based offers, usually on newer, move-in-ready houses. Instead of relying only on a renovation margin, it typically charges the seller a service fee and deducts repair costs found after an inspection. It is a different trade-off from a local direct buyer; cash buyer vs Opendoor goes through it.
Why Akron and Canton see so much investor buying
Northeast Ohio is one of the most active flipping markets in the country. In ATTOM’s second-quarter 2026 data, flips made up 11.6% of home sales in the Canton metro and 11.2% in the Akron metro, both among the highest rates of any metro.
Part of the reason is the housing stock. The Census Bureau’s 2020-2024 estimates put Akron’s median year built at 1954, and about 34% of its homes were built in 1939 or earlier. Older houses with original systems leave room for renovation to add value. Lower prices matter too: Redfin put Akron’s September 2026 median sale price at $154,926, against $269,226 for Ohio as a whole, so an investor can buy and fix a house here with less money.
For a seller, more investors means more competition for houses that need work. It also means more postcards, calls and texts, and more reasons to check who you’re dealing with. Are cash home buyers legit lists the checks.
What this means for the offer you get
Every model above needs a gap between the purchase price and the finished value. How big that gap is depends on how much work the house needs, how long it takes, and how much risk the buyer is taking. That is why two investors can look at the same house and offer very different numbers.
The model also affects how a buyer behaves after you sign. A direct buyer who plans to own the house has every reason to close on the agreed date. A wholesaler’s incentive is to find an end buyer at a higher price, which can mean extra visits by strangers during the inspection period or a delayed closing. An iBuyer’s offer may change after its own inspection. Asking which model you’re dealing with is one of the simplest ways to predict how the next few weeks will go.
Our own model is simple: we buy directly, and depending on the house we renovate and resell it or keep it as a rental. For how buyers turn a house’s condition into a number, see how cash home buyers calculate offers, and if your house is move-in ready with no deadline, listing it may net you more. We’ll tell you if that’s the case.
