Townsville couple’s passion for flipping Queenslanders to their former glory proves a success

The thrill of restoring Queenslanders to their former glory has consumed a Townsville couple for the last 10 years of their lives.

Kay and her husband Alex Valkenburg, at their new Annandale property, are flippers who renovate properties to sell at a profit.

The thrill of restoring Queenslanders to their former glory has consumed a Townsville couple for the past 10 years.

Kay and Alex Valkenburg have flipped two Queenslanders, turning them from three-bedroom, one-bathroom properties to four-bedroom, two-bathroom homes.

The latest Queenslander they restored in West End took eight months to complete and was successfully sold for a profit.

Mrs Valkenburg said that the key to flipping success was investing in the right property.

“People love Queenslanders in the inner suburbs and if you do the Queenslander justice and bring the old heritage back into it that it deserves, you make it into a home,” she said.

“We have noticed with open houses there are more people at Queenslanders.”

The married couple of 34 years aim to not only improve the houses but to also add character to the street and value to the community when flipping homes.

They said Queenslanders was a “unique market” that was always desired by families but the “biggest challenge was finding the right property at the right price”.

Mr Valkenburg said it wasn’t a walk in the park flipping a house.

“Unfortunately these renovations shows (on TV) make it look too easy,” he said.

“It is not an easy thing, it is a lot of hard work and commitment.”

Both Mr and Ms Valkenburg flip houses in their spare time, describing it as their hobby.

“We both work full-time and we do this in our downtime. People go out and go fishing but we do this seven days a week,” Mr Valkenburg said.

“Restoring houses to their former glory is the biggest satisfaction and to be able to make money on it as well especially makes it worth getting up early on weekends when all your fellow workers are sleeping in.”

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Some mistakes flippers make include becoming too invested in the property or ‘emotional buying’ resulting in making a loss once it is sold.

Ms Valkenburg said it was important to keep your eye on the prize as an effective flipper.

“You have to be very careful when you renovate. They take a lot of money and you can never ask for the money back,” she said.

“You also don’t want to get to the point where you actually buy the house for more than what it is worth. You have to be really sensible and negotiate on the right price so you don’t just break even.”

Mr and Mrs Valkenburg have been looking for their next Queenslander to flip but unfortunately have not had any of their offers accepted in the past six months.

The latest house they have purchased settled on Wednesday. They plan to do some cosmetic renovations over the coming months before listing the property back on the market.

Mr Valkenburg said watching a house come to life was what he loved about flipping.

“It is nice feeling walking into a house with rubbish or damage and figuring out how to create something that a family would like to live in,” he said.

“It is like finishing a painting. You spend months doing it and when you see the finished product and look at the old photos, it gives you a feeling of accomplishment.”

Originally published as Townsville couple’s passion for flipping Queenslanders to their former glory proves a success