Empyrean's House Flipper launched on 17 May 2018, published by Frozen District and PlayWay, and this is the original rather than the 2023 sequel. It is a first person renovation sim driven by an email inbox: clients write in, you mop, paint, knock down walls and fit radiators, and the money funds buying wrecked properties from the laptop to fix and auction off. House Flipper 2 arrived in December 2023 on a completely new code base and added the town of Pinnacove, an Assembly building mode and a true sandbox, none of which exist in this game. The 2018 original scored 68 on Metacritic for PC and still became a Steam bestseller.
These tips go beyond the basics. They're the strategies experienced players use to play more efficiently, the hidden mechanics most people miss, and the optimizations that compound over a full playthrough. If you're just starting, check our beginner's guide first.
Essential Tips
1. A job has to be completed to at least 70 percent for its tool unlock to become permanent and appear on your tool wheel
A job has to be completed to at least 70 percent for its tool unlock to become permanent and appear on your tool wheel. Walking away from a job at 60 percent costs you the tool as well as the payment.
2. The four tool unlock jobs are worth doing in order: Sara Lewis's stolen radiator job for the mop, Amanda Smith's Amaranth Walls for the paint roller and scanner, Thomas Johnson's Additional Walls for the sledgehammer and wall building, and Eric Camel's Necessary Extra Bathroom for tiling and paneling
The four tool unlock jobs are worth doing in order: Sara Lewis's stolen radiator job for the mop, Amanda Smith's Amaranth Walls for the paint roller and scanner, Thomas Johnson's Additional Walls for the sledgehammer and wall building, and Eric Camel's Necessary Extra Bathroom for tiling and paneling.
3. The scanner is a money tool, not a cleaning tool
The scanner is a money tool, not a cleaning tool. Selling the furniture already inside a bought property recovers part of the purchase price before you spend a single coin on the tablet.
4. Perk points come from doing the activity, so the tree you use most fills fastest
Perk points come from doing the activity, so the tree you use most fills fastest. That makes Cleaning almost free to max and Building the slowest to fill unless you deliberately chase wall jobs.
5. Negotiation perks apply on both sides of every transaction
Negotiation perks apply on both sides of every transaction. Price negotiations and Higher payment together change the profitability of the same flip more than any decorating choice does.
6. Buyers at auction value different things
Buyers at auction value different things. Read what a buyer type wants before deciding whether to spend on a second bathroom or on a family room, because finishing the wrong feature well earns nothing extra.
7. This game has no true sandbox mode
This game has no true sandbox mode. House Flipper mode, where you buy a wreck and do what you like with it, is the closest equivalent, and the dedicated sandbox arrived only with House Flipper 2 in December 2023.
8. Apocalypse Flipper is free DLC from May 2018 and adds five extra properties along with new items, which is the cheapest way to widen the pool of houses available to buy
Apocalypse Flipper is free DLC from May 2018 and adds five extra properties along with new items, which is the cheapest way to widen the pool of houses available to buy.
9. Cyberpunk Flipper, also free and released November 2020, is cosmetic only
Cyberpunk Flipper, also free and released November 2020, is cosmetic only. It adds items rather than jobs, so treat it as decorating options rather than new content.
10. The full paid DLC list runs Garden Flipper from May 2019, HGTV from May 2020, then Luxury, Pets, Farm and Dine Out
The full paid DLC list runs Garden Flipper from May 2019, HGTV from May 2020, then Luxury, Pets, Farm and Dine Out. Each adds its own item catalogue, so buying several at once inflates the tablet menu considerably.
Advanced Strategies
Build Optimization
The difference between an average build and an optimized one is massive. See our builds guide for full breakdowns.
For Cleaning (A-Tier):
- Focus on Email jobs from the laptop combinations for maximum output.
- Core gear: Mop
- Stat priority: Offensive stats first
For Painting (A-Tier):
- Versatile approach that handles any situation.
- Core gear: Vacuum Cleaner
- Stat priority: Balanced stats
Mechanic Interactions
Understanding how House Flipper's systems interact is where the real optimization lives. Our combat guide covers this in detail.
Email jobs from the laptop + Six perk trees fed by tool use: Work arrives as emails on your in game laptop, each one from a named client with a short backstory and a list of demands. Combined with Six perk trees fed by tool use, perk points come from doing the work, not from levelling a character.
Buying and reselling properties + Tool unlocks gated behind jobs: Once you have cash, the laptop lets you buy derelict houses outright. When paired with Tool unlocks gated behind jobs, tools are not bought, they are earned by finishing specific jobs, and a job has to be completed to at least 70 percent for the unlock to stick and show up on your tool wheel.
The tablet catalogue and item scanner scaling: The tablet is the in game shop for furniture, paint, tiles, doors and windows, and it is where most of a flip's budget disappears. The scanner that arrives with the paint roller lets you sell items already in a property for a partial refund, which is the fastest way to clear a hoarder house and recover some of the purchase price at the same time.
Equipment Efficiency
| Equipment | Best Use Case | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Mop | Every cleaning contract, the first pass on any bought property, and farming Cleaning perk points quickly. | The first tool the game gives you, unlocked by Sara Lewis's opening job about the stolen radiator. |
| Vacuum Cleaner | Dusty properties, window work, and the pest clearing steps that some client jobs require before anything else. | The second cleaning tool, introduced through jobs like Cleaning the Garage. |
| Paint Roller | Redecoration contracts, raising a flip's sale price cheaply, and covering damage you did not want to rebuild. | Unlocked alongside the scanner by Amanda Smith's Amaranth Walls job. |
| Sledgehammer | Structural flips, opening cramped floor plans, and clearing broken fixtures faster than removing them by hand. | Comes with Thomas Johnson's Additional Walls job together with the wall building tools. |
| Tiling and Paneling Tool | Bathrooms and kitchens, finishing floors after demolition work, and completing the full tool set before your first property purchase. | The final tool slot, unlocked by Eric Camel's Necessary Extra Bathroom job. |
Location Efficiency
Cleaning Jobs (Opening hours, no perks required): The bulk of the early inbox and the reason the mop and vacuum unlock first. Jobs like Cleaning the Garage and the student house clean up are low paying but they build the Cleaning tree, which stays relevant for the rest of the game because every bought property starts filthy.
Painting Jobs (After the first cleaning contracts): Redecoration contracts, opened up by Amanda Smith's Amaranth Walls. They pay better than cleaning and they hand over the scanner, which changes your economy by letting you sell items already sitting in a property.
Installation Jobs (Mid career, Handyman perks recommended): Radiators, plumbing, plastering and fittings, the work the Handyman tree exists for. These jobs are the slowest in the game before perks and among the fastest after them, which makes them a good measure of whether your perk spending is paying off.
House Flipper Mode Properties (After the full tool wheel is unlocked): Buying a wreck from the laptop, renovating it and auctioning it off. Buyers weigh different things, one caring about cleanliness and another about family rooms, so the same house sells for different sums depending on how you finished it. This is the closest the 2018 game gets to a sandbox, since a true sandbox mode only exists in House Flipper 2.
Garden Flipper Plots (Requires Garden Flipper DLC): Outdoor areas added by the Garden Flipper DLC in May 2019. Planting, paving and garden furniture attach to properties you already own, and a finished garden raises the auction price on a flip that is otherwise complete.
Mistakes Even Veterans Make
- Abandoning a job around the halfway mark, which forfeits both the payment and the tool unlock that job was gating.
- Buying a property before the tool wheel is complete, then hitting a tiling or demolition step with no tool for it.
- Furnishing from the tablet before running the scanner over the junk already in the house, which throws away easy refunds.
- Spreading perk points evenly across all six trees, so no tree reaches the perks that actually change how long the work takes.
- Confusing this game with House Flipper 2 and looking for Pinnacove, Assembly mode, the Flipper Tool or co-op, none of which exist in the 2018 original.
Pro Quick Tips
- A job has to be completed to at least 70 percent for its tool unlock to become permanent and appear on your tool wheel. Walking away from a job at 60 percent costs you the tool as well as the payment.
- The four tool unlock jobs are worth doing in order: Sara Lewis's stolen radiator job for the mop, Amanda Smith's Amaranth Walls for the paint roller and scanner, Thomas Johnson's Additional Walls for the sledgehammer and wall building, and Eric Camel's Necessary Extra Bathroom for tiling and paneling.
- The scanner is a money tool, not a cleaning tool. Selling the furniture already inside a bought property recovers part of the purchase price before you spend a single coin on the tablet.
- Start with Painting, switch to Cleaning when ready
- Invest in Mop above everything else
- Clear areas in order: Cleaning Jobs → Painting Jobs → Installation Jobs → House Flipper Mode Properties → Garden Flipper Plots. See our maps guide
- Email jobs from the laptop + Six perk trees fed by tool use together are stronger than either alone
More House Flipper Guides
- House Flipper House Flipper Overview
- House Flipper Best Builds
- House Flipper Tier List
- House Flipper Walkthrough
- House Flipper Beginner's Guide
- House Flipper Weapons Guide
- House Flipper Combat Guide
- House Flipper Boss Guide
- House Flipper Maps & Locations
- House Flipper Crafting Guide
- House Flipper Classes & Characters
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