Still bullish on flipping

Real estate agent Kirsten Kemp tells Michael Schneider (Variety, Franklin Avenue) that even in this market you can buy a property and resell it at a profit. At least that's her message on the TLC show "Property Ladder," which is all about flippers, especially first-timers. This is mighty dangerous ground for obvious reasons, though Schneider insists that the show does a decent job in illustrating how risky it is to flip a house these days. Kemp says she's focusing on Northern California, as well as Santa Barbara and Montecito, where "the high end is still moving like crazy." "Anything on the market for $3 million, $4 million gets snapped up quickly," she says.

Kirsten, who has been in real estate for 15 years, says a volatile marketplace like the one we've entered "presents an opportunity for the savvy investor. I'm still flipping. I'm just going to be a lot more careful where I'm flipping." But those big-ticket flips "are not something Middle America can relate to," she admits. That may be why "Property Ladder" is spending more time out of California now, in order to find more interesting stories in places where flipping is still viable. The show is also including more people who have already flipped a home or two (although that takes away from one of "Property Ladder's" big draws: Watching those newbies falling flat on their face). Over at TLC, which runs "Property Ladder," execs aren't all that concerned about a bubble pop. Actually, Brant Pinvidic, TLC's senior VP of programming, believes it will make for good TV.