Tarek El Moussa Reveals He Was Electrocuted During His First House Flip

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Although Tarek El Moussa became famous for his house flips, the HGTV star didn’t go into his iconic show Flip or Flop with all of the knowledge he holds today. In his new book, titled Flip Your Life: How to Find Opportunity in Distress—in Real Estate, Business, and Life, El Moussa reveals details about his first-ever flip. It involved what he describes as “a comedy of errors,” from being electrocuted to stepping in acid wash.

Fans might also be shocked to learn that before embarking on his first project, El Moussa already had his sights set on a home renovation show. “I pitched a house flipping show before I ever flipped a house,” El Moussa tells House Beautiful.

After submitting his proposal for a show, the production company asked El Moussa and his now ex-wife and costar Christina Hall to send them a video. Luckily, with help from his investor Pete de Best, he had already secured a viable property for flipping to film for the video. It was a foreclosed home that they bid on through an open-air auction for $115,000. The two-bedroom condo was located on King Street in Santa Ana, California.

To save money, El Moussa did most of the work himself—leading to many lessons learned the hard way. When installing a new bathroom vanity light, he held it up to show Christina how it would look without noticing the live wires where it was going to be placed. Sparks started flying, and his teeth clenched. He was sure he was being electrocuted. And yes, they caught it all on camera! “I’m surprised the video didn’t show smoke coming out of my ears,” El Moussa quipped in the book.

Another wild moment came when it was time to acid-wash the shower tile. While El Moussa made sure to follow some of the safety instructions, mistakes were still made. He put on rubber gloves, took his sandals off, and stepped into the shower to start scrubbing the walls with a sponge Karate Kid style. Soon enough, his feet started to tingle. Then they felt like they were on fire. He jumped out of the shower and into the bathtub, only to realize he had shut off the water to the condo. He then ran to the community pool and jumped in to ease the pain.

Despite the struggles, El Moussa completed the project in 15 days. It sold fast with a profit of $34,000, which ended up being close to a 30 percent return in under 60 days. That project led to another taping done by the production company, which eventually led to the pilot of Flip or Flop. The pilot featured El Moussa’s third-ever flip, launching the series into its eventual 10-season run.

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