Driving for Dollars- Tampa, FL

[Nicholas Jones]

Hello everyone,

This will be my first post on BP. I have been a firefighter for 7 years, had a side business doing home inspections for the last 2, and recently made the decision to also start investing in real estate. I've spent the last few months researching, reading books and forums, watching the BP webinars and listening to the podcasts on REI, and getting my real estate license. It's finally time for me to jump in and get my feet wet!

I've decided to start off my RE investing by "driving for dollars" in the Tampa/St Petersburg FL areas.  (Potentially even as far down as Sarasota)  I want gain some insight from those who have experience with this strategy in this area, or other areas of the country in general.  What kind of success have you had when out in the field hunting for these "off market" deals?  Are you knocking on doors and attempting to speak with the owners, leaving marketing materials at the door, or are you just writing down addresses and sending letters at a later time?  For those in the west FL region, which types of neighborhoods are you targeting and which are you avoiding?  Any input to help this "newbie" get ahead of the learning curve and start doing some deals is greatly appreciated.  

Thanks!