BankRate.com's real estate advisor Steve McLinden does an excellent job covering ethical considerations of flipping houses for a profit. 

Property flipping has gotten a black eye as of late from shady practices that have victimized first-time buyers, at-risk communities, and the reputation of the real estate industry as a whole.  The matter hasn't been improved by the proliferation of quick-money real estate courses and goofy reality television programs like Flip this House and Flip that House (yes, these are two different programs - just another indication of the general public's manic appetite for all things real-estate related).