How I Made $5,000 on My First Wholesaling Deal — & Why You Should Consider This Strategy

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A lot of the times I hear aspiring real estate investors claim they want to use real estate wholesaling as a gateway drug into “real” investments.

We’ve all seen them: They watch the fix and flip shows on HGTV and want to flip properties or buy and hold properties to generate passive income, but since they don’t have enough working capital, they figure they’ll get their feet wet by wholesaling properties.

Now, let me first say if that’s your approach, just do us all a favor and don’t do anything in real estate wholesaling at all!

It’s people with that mentality that give the rest of us wholesalers a bad name.

I think this is a real shame because I have found that wholesaling discounted real estate as a long-term investment strategy can be extremely simple, lucrative, and enjoyable.

In fact, real estate wholesaling has given me the life of my dreams! I went from living a miserable life where I hated my career as a substitute teacher to really living a purposeful life while doing something I truly love. Now I have complete control over my schedule. I can go on vacation whenever I want, and it’s really awesome!

So in today’s post, I really want to make a case that real estate wholesaling is not just a “beginner’s strategy,” and if done the right way, it can truly be a long-term strategy and a gateway out of your 9 to 5 job and into a life of purpose and freedom.

So without further ado, let’s get into today’s post!

Buy and Hold Investing Compared to Wholesaling

When compared to buy and hold investing, wholesaling is a lot quicker and much more low maintenance.

Buy and hold investing sucks up so much time, and if you really want to see a return on your money, you’ll need to have a lot of properties in place, which will also require more leverage (loans) and more capital tied up.

Related: Answers to the Top 5 Questions Asked by Aspiring Wholesalers

To be honest, you’re going to make roughly $200, maybe $300, per rental unit, and even that’s not guaranteed!

But with wholesaling, it’s a lot more simple.

If you find two to three good deals a month, you can easily generate a monthly cash flow of $10,000, eliminating the headache and hassle that comes along with buy and hold investing.

For example, as a buy and hold investor, you are responsible for the maintenance of the property and filling vacancies. If your tenant decides to damage the property or stop paying rent, it’s your responsibility to fix any damages and deal with evictions.

That doesn’t sound appealing at all to me!

Fix & Flipping Compared to Wholesaling

After I had sold a few properties as a wholesaler, I wanted to jump into some “real” investments and started flipping properties. I flipped properties for three years, and I’ll be honest with you guys — I was not cut out to be a fix and flipper!

It was an extremely stressful time for me. I was constantly burned by contractors, and unexpected expenses were flying through the roof.

It was a total nightmare.

Even after all of the stress and expenses, I was making the same amount of money I was making wholesaling properties, and that was the turning point for me.

That’s when I realized wholesaling could be a long-term strategy with a lot more flexibility, a lot less risk, and lower levels of stress involved.

Making $10,000/Month Selling Wholesale Real Estate is Simple

Let’s talk numbers. I started it off with $5,000. My father matched me, and I bought my first property in Youngstown, Ohio for $10,000. I didn’t have any extra money to invest in the property, so I decided to sell the property for a slightly higher price. I ended up selling the property for $15,000, making a $5,000 profit.

It’s that simple!

Now, you’ll still need to analyze your deal before purchasing the property to help determine your profit margins, but even on the low end, if you make an average of $3,000 to $5,000 per property and close three deals a month, then boom! You’ve made $10,000 a month.

Related: What Exactly is Real Estate Wholesaling (& What Does a Wholesaler Do Every Day)?

Consistently finding good, discounted deals is challenging and requires a lot of hard work, but if you constantly put in the effort, your monthly income will be unmatched as compared to fix and flipping and buy and hold investing.

Conclusion

Wholesaling may not be for everyone, but it’s definitely something to consider for the long haul. I would highly encourage you to not look at this with short-term vision, but to consider it with the same weight as you would any other strategy.

Question: What is your real estate investment strategy?

Share your comments below!

Note By BiggerPockets: These are opinions written by the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions of BiggerPockets.