House flipping activity surged to an 11-year high this year, with more than 207,000 homes flipped, according to ATTOM Data Solutions, a real estate data firm. But the key is knowing where to be and when. “The sweet spot for successful home flipping is finding the neighborhoods just emerging as the next hot neighborhoods in a city,” says Daren Blomquist, a senior vice president at ATTOM Data Solutions. The firm says the average profit for a housing flip in 2017 was $68,100.

Realtor.com® ranked the 200 largest metros according to the share of all home sales categorized as a flip (defined as any type of home that is bought and resold within a three- to 12-month period). Researchers limited their rankings to two metros per state for geographic diversity and only included markets where the average profit was at least $30,000.

The following are the best housing markets for home flippers, according to realtor.com®:

1. Nashville, Tenn.

• Ratio of flips to all home sales: 4.1%
• Average flip profit: $87,200

2. Fresno, Calif.

• Ratio of flips to all home sales: 3.5%
• Average flip profit: $53,200

3. Palm Bay, Fla.

• Ratio of flips to all home sales: 3.3%
• Average flip profit: $71,500

4. North Port, Fla.

• Ratio of flips to all home sales: 3.3%
• Average flip profit: $85,300

5. Baton Rouge, La.

• Ratio of flips to all home sales: 3.2%
• Average flip profit: $70,000

6. Chattanooga, Tenn.

• Ratio of flips to all home sales: 3.1%
• Average flip profit: $65,800

7. Los Angeles

• Ratio of flips to all home sales: 3%
• Average flip profit: $169,400

8. Lubbock, Texas

• Ratio of flips to all home sales: 2.7%
• Average flip profit: $46,000

Source: “Flip It Good! Top 10 Home-Flipping Hotbeds Where Profits Are Through the Roof,” realtor.com® (May 23, 2018)