Now that the push for real estate matchmaking software has ended again for now… There is more to being a real estate matchmaker other than getting a buyer and seller and putting them together. I
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Well it’s been 209 days since my last post this one will be short the next one won’t be nor will it be in 209 more days! I guarantee it won’t even be another 209 hours before the nex
Read More So it has been awhile, but every time I had a post I wanted to write the flavor of the month would come out with an email that all of his large list of friends would send you also that was close to th
Read More I know several people have asked me about doing deals in other markets what’s my best tip? This is a good tip for doing deals in your own market also though… There is an old saying that
Read More So I’m just gonna say something real quick like… Be careful what you ask for you just might get it is a powerful old ass saying… I’m gonna have start digitally bitch slapping p
Read More So I’m just gonna say something real quick like… Be careful what you ask for you just might get it is a powerful old ass saying… I’m gonna have start digitally bitch slapping people for the nonsense that’s going on out here in the real estate investing “blogosphere”, blog world, or whatever silly ass term you want to put on it… Stay tuned to see what happens next!
It’s day 10 of 2011 who’s already fucked up their plans for the year? Have you done anything to get closer to your goals? Did you even have any to begin with? No goals = no chance for growth. No growth means your life stays the exact same or perhaps even gets worse! Do something people! I am here to help even… Just a suggestion.
I will even do an extended post on any question you have because I am that nice of a guy… sometimes haha.
I’m on a mission to desuckify your life!
Later peeps!
Well hello it’s been awhile but I have had major technical issues that prevented me from posting for a few weeks, but I’m back!!!
So as far as my question a lot of the big name guys are really pushing this whole social media for building your buyers list and selling properties thing, and well I have to kindly disagree to a point.
Facebook is huge which I’m sure all of you know already. A few months ago it passed Google as the most viewed website on the entire internet. (FYI the internet is a huge freaking place) Now can you find buyers on Facebook probably so, but its not in the typical manner where you take some info and shoot them properties that fit their criteria. In my opinion which matters to few people you can find people in groups who buy houses and build a relationship with them via Facebook and eventually do some deals with them, but that is probably the best you can do with it. It may actually work better with other wholesalers who just want to put out their deals to as many people as possible. I have actually added a few people I was Facebook friends with to my buyers list before, but they came from Open Road 3 oddly enough.
Twitter is almost in an identical boat, but with a much bigger hole in it! At least with Facebook you can go back and forth with emails, wall posts, and the chat feature, but with Twitter you have 140 characters and thats it! Which actually means you are forced to build a better relationship with someone before you do anything together. For example some of the best friends, business advisors, and partners I have came from twitter, but we built or relationships up from emailing and talking on the phone with each other.
LinkedIn may be promising once more than twelve real estate investors on the planet know how to use it properly!
Now as far as actually selling a property I have never heard of someone getting a sale off of either of them. To that effect I have never seen someone post a property and get it retweeted (at least in my stream) or commented on via Facebook.
So yes I think social media has a big place in real estate investing especially a place like Bigger Pockets , but I also don’t think it’s the end all be all, game changer, or saving grace for your business either.
Also on a side note if anyone has some solid Memphis contacts hit me up.
Every big dog at one point in time or another started as a pup! Name anybody doing big things at anything let alone real estate they have one thing in common. They paid their dues! People just starting out see all of these guys and gals doing huge numbers and think if they are doing it I can to exactly the same way they are. It’s true you can become a top producer in any field with some effort! You absolutely have to do the little things first there is no way around it. It’s perfectly fine that you have people you look up to, but you can’t repeat can not just pick up doing the same things the big producers are!
One thing I see a lot of people trying to do is automation and outsourcing which is okay except for the fact you can’t automate a business you don’t have yet that’s the bottom line point blank period! If you truly want to have the grand life not working for someone else you need to put in the work needed to get there. That means putting out your own signs, calling every lead you get whether you think it’s good or bad, answer your own phone calls or at the very least return them, and remember exactly where you are in the pecking order.
No matter what stage of the game you are at realize that time is of the essence in a multitude of ways. You can’t wait at any point in business in the beginning it’s important to be putting in time to learn your chosen profession inside and out. The best way to learn is by talking to sellers, buyers, other investors, and mentors. As you move forwards you still have to be conscious of time you can’t take your sweet time on deals, because one of the hungry young pups who gets it will step in and snatch it up.
You don’t want to be the baby in the game shooting themselves in the foot by trying to play big shot and just throwing away leads for chump change or the guy who used to be the top real estate investor that got passed by being comfortable let alone lazy!
That doesn’t mean that you can’t help people along the way or wholesalers have to hate each other it’s about establishing and protecting your bottom line. Which will actually get bigger if you learn to work with other wholesalers I kid you not on that one. You are in real estate investing to make money as an entrepreneur and stop being just an employee for someone else! Realize though it’s gotta be done the right way.
2 Quick tips before I sign off when doing ads for craigslist or whatever make 2 versions one in English and one in Spanish! Just use google translate if you don’t know it.
Tip 2 learn about other forms of investing or at least meet other investors who are doing different things so you can do something with every lead you get.
PS be sure to check out the new fan page!
So those of you who have legitimate initial interest in participating in the challenge that I don’t talk to on a semi-regular basis via phone, email, or twitter. Send me an email to greg@thewholesaleknockoutking.com with your name, contact info, and level of experience. Tomorrow I hopefully will have all of the details ironed out for a post and a sign up page or something to that effect as well as a tracking mechanism of some sort.
So one of my “avid” readers asked me a question/ made a statement via twitter and he knows a fair bit about real estate so I figured their are some more people that have a clarity issue about earnest money. So for Alex this is an expanded version of the explanation and for the rest of you maybe some new information. There is a misconception about the legality of wholesaling real estate without an earnest money deposit to the seller. So here is the the scoop straight from the mouth (well keyboard) of a real estate attorney.
” If you have a signed contract on a piece of property it then gives you a legal/financial stake in the property and you can do what ever you desire with the said subject property as long as it fits within the boundaries of the contract. Also to answer the follow up question you said if a contract doesn’t state that it can be assigned it is still assignable as long as there is not a contingency stating that it can’t be.
However if you do not have a contract with a seller or buyer it is actually illegal to receive any proceeds from a transaction. This is considered to be brokering real estate without a license, and is punishable with fines/ and or jail time dependent upon your state of residence.”
So now the we have all of the legal jargon out of the way when I go get a property to wholesale to another real estate investor I often (as in always) get the deal signed with no earnest money deposit. Why? One reason is almost every deal I do is an hour away minimum. Second I don’t like to risk my own money that’s just kind of silly if you think about it.
It’s no money down real estate investing if a seller insists on having a deposit before close I get it from a buyer, offer them ten bucks cash, or tell them that it would be deposited with the title company. If none of these scenarios work I usually just let the deal go, because these are the people who want huge deposits anyways.
As an entrepreneur the first thing you should want to do is create value for clients and those around you, but the second priority should definitely be protecting your own assets.
Okay your eyes aren’t playing tricks on you I am really blogging 2 days in a row, and this one is even about real estate! I have been busy with lots of different things including talking to some of you via email, phone, twitter, google chat, and Facebook. In the hospital, making movies, et cetera (yeah that’s how you actually spell etc.) and on down the line! Yet I haven’t forgotten any of you or wholesaling real estate during any of all this craziness!
In talking to so many of you it has once again been brought to my attention that for some reason there are investors out there that don’t realize that it’s pretty much mandatory to negotiate. I’m not saying that everyone should take my approach and negotiate everything business related, but you could learn a few things from some tips I use day-to-day. (Personally I use alibaba.com to negotiate prices on everything I use from pens and pencils to the paper for my printer.)
Tip # 1- Every seller you talk to is essentially after the most money they can get.
As a real estate investor when you go to “buy” a house the seller wants as much as they think they can get! Whether you are a wholesaler or whatever this is a fact. They want the most cash out of this asset that they are selling to you. It’s not rocket science! If they realize it’s run down they will say hey I’m “giving it at this price” sometimes that may be the case, but even still negotiate! It doesn’t matter if you only end up squeezing a mere thousand dollars off the asking price that’s where the difference in your bottom line comes from. If you do one house a month which isn’t big time by any means a grand more on your profit each deal is 120 thousand extra in your pocket over the next ten years!
Tip #2- Make sure you pay attention to others negotiations!
Here is something I have noticed throughout my dealings with buyers the one’s that don’t negotiate from your asking price any are usually the one’s who don’t end up buying! I don’t care if you have an in demand “perfectly priced” property and getting your asking price isn’t a problem they shouldn’t just accept your price as the gospel. If this keeps happening and you actually do close them like this regularly then your asking price is too low! It’s not greedy for me to say this the important part of entrepreneurship is having a grasp of the concept that you making money is just as important as anything else! The “freedom” of working for yourself doesn’t mean anything if you can’t afford to pay your bills.
Tip #3- The fear of speaking up will kill your business!
I know anyone who tries to do even part-time investing is actually trying to bring as many leads as they can in. The way I look at is don’t waste any of your marketing efforts! If a seller contacts you and their price is just outrageous try to do a quick negotiation anyways! You have them on the phone or are emailing them anyways why not just “Speak Up” and ask for something more favorable! Even if you hear no at least you heard something! This is actually a scientifically based thing here. For every rebuttal someone hears there will be a reaction and in more cases than you realize that reaction will be the seller caving in quickly to get some actual favorable terms out there!
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The other day I promised that if you asked questions I would either answer them myself, or find someone who knew the answer. Even though I am pretty sure one of you knew who I was going to get to respond to your question when you typed it. I actually tried to reach out to a different source, but apparently he got too busy sending out his follow Friday’s! I realize it was Monday he doesn’t care 24/7 #FF is my passion. F*** that! Whenever follow Friday starts generating money then maybe I will go non stop with it too, until then I will stick to connecting with the 27 of 703 followers that actually interact.
Question 1
From Nick J. of Subject2.com
I’m interested in knowing the difference between Revocable Trusts and Irrevocable Trusts in how they protect your assets and their tax implications.
Well Nick I wasn’t comfortable giving you an answer from my knowledge, which is why I have great friends to help out when needed. So here is what Mr. Bill Walston (resherpa on twitter) a real estate and tax specialist had to say:
The main difference between a revocable trust and an irrevocable trust (also called a “living” trust) is the control retained by the grantor (i.e. trust creator). In a revocable trust, the assets are still within the reach and control of the trust creator. The grantor may change his/her mind about a provision of the trust, a beneficiary, or even the trustee, and may amend, modify, or revoke the entire trust at any time. This means that the revocable trust offers no ceditor protection if you are sued, income generated by the trust assets will be taxed to the grantor, and the value of the trust will be included in the grantors estate for federal and state estate tax purposes.
Also for those of you haven’t check out my latest guest blog on Nick’s site 6 Steps to Craigslist Perfection
Question 2
Scott Costello ask:
My ?: You seem to be doing pretty well with marketing. How do you test out your marketing pieces in order to give you the best idea of which works best? and do you find that what works best changes over time?
Well first I look at what other people are doing and see what type of results they are getting. Then I look and see what is missing from the puzzle. I come up with some ideas and then if they are low-cost ideas I just give them a shot. If they require some spending on my part though I run them past my little sister. She just graduated in May with a degree in marketing and advertising. Then if and when they get sent out if there are campaigns overlapping they have a different number or a guiding phrase so that you can tell who is calling what piece. If you still can’t tell they won’t get upset if you just ask them. There is a little bit of a change I’m noticing that the “We Buy Houses Cash” guys have all started to turn in to “we buy houses if you are willing to owner finance it guys.” I prefer to not just say how I’m willing to buy until I’ve talked with the seller to see what kind of terms best fit the situation. Also it’s easier to target marketing to certain levels of homes. The hoods will always have people in their houses, because McDonald’s and the crack house don’t have layoffs. But some of those borderline upper middle class homes are really easy to get a hold of now. Just because they can’t pay for the house they bought for or 5 years ago, since they lost their job.
Question 3
Alex Rodriguez (the cool one, not the baseball ass-clown)
My question (a basic one from a basically n00b guy): What steps do you take to avoid errors in how you value your properties?
First thing you must have are good comps unless you are dealing in a rural area then you start to get a feel, on a per neighborhood basis for the the price of houses. An example of a bad comp. You have a 3/2/2 that’s in an alley, with no backyard, and all you can see is the building behind you. You can’t compare that with the house across the street that sits on 3 quarters of an acre on the beach, regardless of it also being a 3/2/2. Also be sure to take advantage of the lower comps brought in by all the foreclosures. Use them to your advantage when dealing with a private seller, and use the high comps to show the end buyer.
Second be sure you have a decent list of repairs. Also when I talk to a seller if a roof isn’t on the list of repairs I ask how old it is. If it’s an older roof I figure a new one into my offer price and let them know about it. Usually this helps them come to grips with the “wholesale” offer. Most people assume that certain items cost way more than they do which is why they don’t even price them let alone have them done.
Thanks for the questions if you have any more feel free to ask.
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