How to Buy a Good Deal With Conventional Financing

[Tony Gazetti]

Hello all,

I'm new to the game, and have been listening to the podcast and doing online research to educate myself enough to get started. I'm very concerned with getting analysis paralysis, so I make sure to at least listen to a podcast every day.

I'm actually posting because I have three questions

1) How do you buy a "great deal" without cash - i.e., with conventional financing? Is that possible? Is it possible but difficult? If it's not possible or highly unlikely, what is the next best option?

I have my eye on a particular neighborhood in Clarkston, MI, an upper middle class suburb of Detroit. It's a lower priced neighborhood for the city, but has nice SFHs and from what I can tell, several houses that could have flip potential. Most of the houses I would be looking at would be in the $100k-$175k range. I have about $45k saved, so I have money for closing costs and repairs, but I'm just wondering if it's even possible to find a really good deal and take advantage of it given the slower speed of conventional financing.

2) One possible plan I have is to start a direct mail campaign to that neighborhood. My thought is that it would be a good way to find a good deal for my first flip, and if it generated more leads than I could handle, I can get into wholesaling as well. I guess I'm just looking for some validation on that one - is that a feasible plan? Also, any resources/articles you can provide with advice on what kind of marketing to send out?

3) Lastly, I'm thinking a good first step in the whole process would be to find and meet with an attorney. If I end up going the marketing and wholesaling route, I want to make sure I'm doing everything the right way. 

FYI, my wife is a newer real estate agent which means we have access to the MLS, so if scouring that is a smarter way to go, that's an option as well. I appreciate any input from anyone who knows more than I do! Which is everyone! Thanks everyone for your time!