It’s not the upgrades as much as the type of flexible lending in flipped homes. Most buyers/1st time buyers in the under $400K market have marginal down payments and want a finished home they can just make payments on. Foreclosures and Short Sales usually only offer conventional lending and are missing out on large portion of buyers. That’s why the FHA/VA buyers gravitate towards the flipped homes. If you don’t have the money for a conventional loan, you won’t have the money to re-model after the purchase. This is how flippers are making a living. People like convenience and are willing to over pay for the service. There are a lot of concessions (down payment assistance, closing cost) that are not seen or recorded on a flip sale. The best deals are short sales, followed by foreclosures in today’s market.