Most new luxury flippers lose money not on renovation costs — but on the purchase price assumption. Here's the exact 3-check filter I use before ever touching a high-end property listing:

1. ARV Comp Radius Discipline

Only pull comps within a 0.5 mile radius AND sold in the last 90 days. Luxury markets move fast — a comp from 6 months ago in a "similar" neighborhood can overstate your ARV by 10-15%. That gap is your profit margin, gone.

2. The Spa/Amenity Tax

Private spas, wine cellars, home theaters — these features look great in listing photos but rarely return renovation dollar-for-dollar unless the buyer pool in that specific zip code already expects them. Before budgeting a reno around a "wow" feature, check: do 3+ recently sold comps in the area have the same amenity? If not, you're building a feature the market won't pay for.

3. Holding Cost Reality Check

On a $1M+ property, every month of holding costs (financing, insurance, taxes, utilities) can run $8K-$15K. Most first-time luxury flippers budget renovation timelines optimistically and get squeezed here — not on the reno itself.

I break down a real deal (including a private spa walkthrough and full numbers) inside Elevate Luxury Flip Coaching. If you're serious about flipping high-end properties for profit, this is where I go deep on real numbers, not theory.