Real Estate Investor · Boise, ID · Member since 2016 · 28 posts · 1 vote
I am trying to figure out how to start the marketing process for a wholesaling business and also, wanting to eventually rehab. Then start a buy and hold businesses to build my retirement portfolio. But the first step I need to do is build my marketing campaign. Can anybody be able to give me some advice on this subject. Thank you guys so much. You guys are AWESOME!!!
Flipper/Rehabber · El Paso, TX · Member since 2015 · 379 posts · 201 votes
10y
Hello everyone, not sure why we are leading off with "need to have a buyers list." You do not need a buyers list to start marketing for properties. If you have 100 buyers and no properties then you just have a lot of people calling you for things you don't have yet. Once you get a property under contract, you can market that property and build your buyers list that way. If it's a deal a buyer will jump on it, even if it's outside of the criteria they gave to you. Take action. Get a property under contract then market it to the buyers so that you have something of value to offer other than a convo. Remember, these buyers talk to a lot of people about what they are looking for and very rarely get brought anything. Why not be different and come to a buyer with a possible deal and now you have earned that person's trust more than anybody else just gathering info. Hope that wasn't too long and I hope that it helped. Reach out if you have any questions.
Investor · Central America, Panama · Member since 2010 · 423 posts · 293 votes
10y
Before you start looking for properties to wholesale, you need to build your buyers list so you will have someone to sell to. When you contact investors, ask which areas they prefer to buy in, what price range, will they buy fire damage, do they have cash ready to buy or will they need hard money lender financing ( how fast can they close). Get at least 10 buyers on your buyer list before looking for houses.
Then...
To find wholesale deals the city code violation list is a good start but make sure these are properties which are red tagged as not habitable, not just a fence falling down or tall grass. Send a postcard to the owner. You'll find the owner by searching your county tax records. Postcards work much better than letters.
Vacant houses are always better deals than occupied houses. Drive lower than median priced neighborhoods looking for obviously vacant houses in need of repair. Talk to the neighbors to find out where the owner is. You can also recruit people from craiglist to do this driving around for you.
Everywhere · Member since 2016 · 63 posts · 26 votes
10y
Do you have a buyer's list? If not build your buyer's list first. Then you can find properties based on the kind of properties they like to buy. You can send out yellow letters, post bandit signs, connect with realtors, hang flyers on doors/door knocking, etc. I guess it depends on who you are targeting and the type of properties you are looking for and your budget. I would keep it simple in the beginning and stick with one or two marketing strategies first and give it a few months rather than trying lots of different approaches all at once. You could also have a google voice number and a voice
Message with information for potential sellers in case it can't pick up the phone. If you send out 1000 mailers you should get several deals out of that at least.
Flipper/Rehabber · El Paso, TX · Member since 2015 · 379 posts · 201 votes
10y
Hello everyone, not sure why we are leading off with "need to have a buyers list." You do not need a buyers list to start marketing for properties. If you have 100 buyers and no properties then you just have a lot of people calling you for things you don't have yet. Once you get a property under contract, you can market that property and build your buyers list that way. If it's a deal a buyer will jump on it, even if it's outside of the criteria they gave to you. Take action. Get a property under contract then market it to the buyers so that you have something of value to offer other than a convo. Remember, these buyers talk to a lot of people about what they are looking for and very rarely get brought anything. Why not be different and come to a buyer with a possible deal and now you have earned that person's trust more than anybody else just gathering info. Hope that wasn't too long and I hope that it helped. Reach out if you have any questions.
Investor · Roseville, CA · Member since 2009 · 1k+ posts · 583 votes
10y
@James MidgleyDepending on what city you want to wholesale in, finding a good deal is the hardest part so you can market to sellers before or at the same time you try to meet buyers. Direct mail marketing works best to find reasonable sellers. If you go online you can read and learn about what mail pieces to send out and to who. There are a couple of wholesalers groups on facebook that you can join to network and learn more. You can learn here also about marketing to sellers and buyers.
Everywhere · Member since 2016 · 63 posts · 26 votes
10y
I would prefer to have a buyer's list first so I know what criteria they are looking for and what areas. Then once I find a good deal I can contact them ASAP and get the deal closed fast rather than scrambling to try and find a buyer without knowing anyone. I guess we are all different.
@Gordon Cuffe thank you for the tips. Does craigslist or going to city hall and getting 30,60,90 lists work at all. Then do yellow letters and post cards to get them closer. Also wondering if finding fsbo and contacting them work?
Flipper/Rehabber · El Paso, TX · Member since 2015 · 379 posts · 201 votes
10y
@James Midgley Everything I do is online with Listsource.com. Very simple to use and able to obtain a list of 400 absentee owners for about $60 for my county. It will vary depending on how you filter the list.
@Account Closed That is the great thing about real estate is that there is no right or wrong way. As long as the process works for you and creates success than that's all that matters. Also, my market is very "cookie cutter" which means that most of these homes are built the same so the buyers know what they are getting for the most part not matter the area.
Real Estate Investor · Spokane, WA · Member since 2012 · 13 posts · 16 votes
10y
I would not worry about building a buyers list first. The only advantage is that it gives you some peace of mind when you get your first contract.
You are selling bargains to bargain hunters. That is the easiest business in the world to do. Now as you market that first property, build that buyers list as it is always easier to find house for a buyer than a buyer for a house.
Rental Property Investor · San Diego, CA · Member since 2011 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
10y
How a wholesaler starts wholesaling.
Pulls data and sees what type of properties investors buy in what zipcodes of their market. Markets to those type of property owners.
How a non wholesaler tells a wholesaler to wholesale
Do everything except market for deals, then when its perfect. Market for deals.
If you are afraid of screwing up, you'll never get started. Perfect gets in the way of done & ego is the enemy. It's okay to look stupid, make mistakes and learn as you go.
Flipper/Rehabber · Sacramento, CA · Member since 2016 · 807 posts · 815 votes
10y
Tim and others have said it well. Start marketing for properties right away. You don't need a giant buyers list. In fact, you only need a few buyers that buy ANY good deal. These are the big players who do many flips a year. Finding buyers is much easier for a good deal than finding the deal itself.
Besides, You should be talking to people and networking anyway. You'll come across buyers that way as well.
San Francisco, CA · Member since 2015 · 786 posts · 717 votes
10y
I think you get a variety of opinions about whether to start with a buyer's list and that's because every market is different. If you are in a hot market like mine where you have 100 investors that will take an actual flip deal in a heart beat, you don't need a buyer's list.
As far as knowing what criteria people are looking for, that is easy. They just want a deal. 70% of ARV minus construction costs. For rentals, 1% to 2% rule cash flow. Not rocket science. You don't need a buyer's list to figure this out.
The best way to build a buyer's list is to constantly find deals. The buyer's will find you.
Network like crazy with all of the other investors.
Real Estate Investor/Wholesaler · Philadelphia, PA · Member since 2015 · 757 posts · 318 votes
10y
I feel like I see this exact same question weekly from someone new all the time. I think most people don't realise that wholesaling is a real business that requires both sales and marketing skills. And it usually helps to have a solid background/knowledge in these subjects before you start any business or waste money on a marketing campaign. So if you had a new business and your task was to market it....what would you do? Social media, craighslist, signs,network, ads, online ads, newspaper ads, direct mail..etc etc etc.......To be a successful wholesaler your gonna need a marketing budget for at least 6+ months or dont even waste your time. Just speaking the truth......
Rental Property Investor · Charleston, WV · Member since 2013 · 262 posts · 109 votes
10y
Here's a benefit of having a large buyers list:
When you get a good property under contract, you email your buyers list with the property and details and say, "I'm starting a bid on this property with other investors at $___,___. Let me know if you're interested."
If you have 100 buyers and 10 of them would buy at the price you'd be ok with, but 1 would buy at $5,000 more. Wouldn't it be worth $5,000 to have a bigger buyers list to find that buyer?