On “Flip or Flop,” Tarek El Moussa and Christina Anstead are always up for a renovation challenge. Yet in the latest episode, titled “Midcentury Money Pit,” they may just have met their match.
The four-bedroom, two-bathroom house in Fullerton, CA, has itty-bitty bathrooms, a backyard covered in old, cracked cement, and a host of other problems—plus one feature home buyers love that, alas, still must go.
Can El Moussa and Anstead pull through? Here’s how these two tackle this renovation, and some lessons we can gain along the way.
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Don’t be afraid to change the bathroom layout
When El Moussa and Anstead first tour the house together, El Moussa gets excited at the prospect of opening up the master shower. He has a plan to move the bathroom wall, but when it comes time to start renovation, contractor Jeff Lawrence breaks the news that the bathroom can’t be expanded as much as El Moussa had hoped. Bummer!
But, dreams of a bigger shower aren’t completely lost. Anstead and El Moussa decide that if they can’t get the square footage they want, they can at least work with what they have. They rearrange the bathroom so that the shower and toilet switch spots, allowing more space for a larger shower.
In the end, the results are amazing. With the layout changed, there’s plenty of room for a spacious shower—and the entire bathroom looks beautiful.
Simple shower tiles trump busy designs
With one bathroom undergoing a layout change and another waiting for an update, it’s time to start picking out bathroom tiles. While El Moussa picks out a speckled gray tile for the shower walls, Anstead doesn’t think the style will work for the space.
“It’s too busy and there’s not enough natural light, and it just feels a bit claustrophobic,” Anstead says of the tile. “In this bathroom, it looks a little bit weird.”
El Moussa decides to trust Anstead’s taste and instead puts more simple white and gray tiles in both bathroom showers. Once the tile is done, the updated showers look spacious and stylish.
“I love, love the coloring,” El Moussa says when he sees the finished product.
Anstead loves her tiles as well, adding, “Everything looks very big. It looks very contemporary.”
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A white backsplash complements colorful cabinets
Anstead and El Moussa choose two-tone cabinets for the kitchen: white on top and a unique, darker color on the bottom. But they run into a problem when they realize that the darker cabinets look gray, brown, or olive green depending on the lighting—which makes it difficult to find a complementary backsplash.
In the end, they decide on a white tile with a little texture. This way, the white won’t compete with the dark color, but the design will still add a little something extra.
When the kitchen is finished, Anstead and El Moussa love the look.
“The two-tone cabinets are perfect, love them. Love the backsplash,” Anstead says. “It’s really pretty.”
El Moussa is also proud of the design. “What I love about the backsplash is, like, the three-dimensional look,” he says. “It really pops.”
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It’s OK to remove a fireplace
While buyers will usually pay more for a fireplace, this feature isn’t always an asset.
In fact, when Anstead and El Moussa first inspect their latest flip, they know that the large fireplace, which is taking up room in the middle of the living space and blocking sightlines, has to go.
Even after they learn the fireplace is load-bearing, El Moussa and Anstead stand by their decision to remove this dated feature. While the removal may cost more than El Moussa and Anstead expected, the result really pays off. With the bulky bricks gone, there’s so much more space in the living room, and there’s great flow from the entryway to the kitchen to the living area.
When Anstead and El Moussa finally tour the finished flip, he admires the beautiful open living space.
“That fireplace was the worst thing in this house,” he says.
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Don’t settle for old, cracked cement in the yard
El Moussa and Anstead know they have to deliver when it comes to the backyard, but creating a beautiful outdoor space proves difficult.
They remove the old, worn-down covered patio feature and put in some greenery, but they aren’t sure what to do when it comes to the cracked cement patio. It’s ugly and so uneven that it could be a tripping hazard.
Luckily, contractor Lawrence comes to the rescue with an idea to take out the old cement and pour new cement that has a little more style. He gives the cement a diamond score, turning what was an eyesore into a fun feature.
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Don’t shy away from a colorful front door
Though El Moussa picks out the exterior paint colors quickly, he’s unsure when it comes to the front door. He’s torn between having a sleek, and safe, black door or taking a risk and painting it a burnt orange.
After talking to Anstead, El Moussa decides the orange is “kind of cool, kind of different,” and they go with that.
Luckily, the risky choice pays off. The color pops out against the gray house and adds to the already impressive curb appeal.
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So, is this a flip or flop?
When the house is finally finished, it looks beautiful—but El Moussa and Anstead realize that they have some competition. Another house across the street, one El Moussa flipped years ago, is going up for sale the same week he plans to list this one. What are the odds?
With that other house on the market, El Moussa is sure they’ll have to reduce the price on this home. And in the end, he’s right. While he and Anstead list the house at $799,900, they end up selling at $770,000.
That means that after buying the house for $565,000 and putting $93,000 into the renovation, they stand to make over $79,000 in profit after closing costs and commission. Not a bad profit for a money pit!
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