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Updated almost 5 years ago, 02/19/2020
Beginning on my journey to becoming a REI
Good Morning,
I'm DeAnthony Whitney, I'm 27 years young and I'm fresh out of class eager to become my journey as an Real Estate Investor. I resident in the Chicago area for now but I will venture out once I have the knowledge needed to move forward so if anyone could referral me to some great agents that would be most helpful. I started this journey like most because I deserve better for myself and the way I'm living now is not where I want to be so I've decided to make a change. Due to my financial issues it was suggested to be that Wholesaling would be the best route to take until I can build the Capital needed to pursue better opportunities down the line and I'm willing to commit to the process. I plan on moving from Wholesaling on to rental properties then commercial properties. My goal is to create passive income for myself so I can managing my time to get the best out of life while I'm still here. Now with Wholesaling I understand that I have to find a deal, find a buyers list, find a good agent to work with, construct a contract and so on and so far but where I'm stuck at is actually what to say when I've found that agent or how to create the contract seeing as I'm new to this so basically I'm asking for direction. My brain freezes because I just don't know how to properly start off. I understand not every individual I talk to will deal but just having a starting point helps with communicating with these agents or getting a contract ready. lol these beginning stages are the worst so if anyone has helpful advice I could use today please share. thank you
Hi DeAnthony,
Congrats on starting your real estate investing journey!! I'd suggest going to some local real estate meetups to meet other investors and see who they recommend to use as an agent in your area. Plus, it's always great to see how other people are finding investing success in your town!
You could also find an agent by going to biggerpockets.com > Network (in the top ribbon) > Real Estate Agents and filtering by your zip code. Finding an investor-friendly agent through BiggerPockets will be an incredible help as you start your journey!
Hi @DeAnthony Whitney - Feel free to PM about your specific wholesaling on concerns.
Also, even for those on a limited budget (see websites below for details on eligibility/requirements), there are some grant programs that will allow home purchases for as little as 1% down of your own funds in Illinois. You can find down payment assistance programs for 6-10K here (SFR and 2 UNITS ONLY):
https://www.ihda.org/my-home/getting-an-ihda-loan/
Stackable with the IHDA program, for DuPage county, the county offers up to 3K and this program up to 15K for down payment assistance (SFR ONLY):
https://www.homedupage.org/
For the single family homes (or in your owner occupied unit of the 2-flat), rent out rooms to potentially eliminate living expenses and generate cash flow to fuel your next investment. You can do this in conjunction with wholesaling to possibly reach your goals faster.
@Joseph Konney
This is such a good advice for those newbies, like myself as well, and I appreciate that. Thank you Joseph :)
Congratulations!
Best of luck in all your endeavors.
Originally posted by @DeAnthony Whitney:
Good Morning,
I'm DeAnthony Whitney, I'm 27 years young and I'm fresh out of class eager to become my journey as an Real Estate Investor. I resident in the Chicago area for now but I will venture out once I have the knowledge needed to move forward so if anyone could referral me to some great agents that would be most helpful. I started this journey like most because I deserve better for myself and the way I'm living now is not where I want to be so I've decided to make a change. Due to my financial issues it was suggested to be that Wholesaling would be the best route to take until I can build the Capital needed to pursue better opportunities down the line and I'm willing to commit to the process. I plan on moving from Wholesaling on to rental properties then commercial properties. My goal is to create passive income for myself so I can managing my time to get the best out of life while I'm still here. Now with Wholesaling I understand that I have to find a deal, find a buyers list, find a good agent to work with, construct a contract and so on and so far but where I'm stuck at is actually what to say when I've found that agent or how to create the contract seeing as I'm new to this so basically I'm asking for direction. My brain freezes because I just don't know how to properly start off. I understand not every individual I talk to will deal but just having a starting point helps with communicating with these agents or getting a contract ready. lol these beginning stages are the worst so if anyone has helpful advice I could use today please share. thank you
Since you want to start out wholesaling then the first thing I recommend you do is make sure you know the laws. For example, a new law was just past in Illinois. Below is just a section of the act.
“Whether for another or themselves, engages in a pattern of business of buying, selling, offering to buy or sell, marketing or sale, exchanging, or otherwise dealing in contracts, including assignable contracts for the purchase or sale of, or Buys, sells, offers to buy or sell, or otherwise deals in options on real estate or improvements thereon. For purposes of this definition, an individual or entity will be found to have engaged in a pattern of business if the individual or entity by itself or with any combination of other individuals or entities, whether as partners or common owners in another entity, has engaged in one or more of these practices on 2 or more occasions in any 12-month period”
In short- You'll need a real estate license to assign contracts if you do more than 2 deals in a 12 month period. If wholesaling is the route you want to go you'll have to decide if you want to invest in getting a real estate license or partner with someone that has a real estate license.
Honestly I was afraid to say anything but I truly appreciate the responses the advice I’ve been given and I thank you y’all for the suggestions love and peace. Another question though, as far as contracting a deal how would I go about that being my first time?
When I was first trying to get my foot in the door of the real estate industry, I found using LinkedIn as one of the best tools out there to network with real estate professionals that opened many doors for me. Specifically, I used LinkedIn Sales Navigator (month trial) to connect with many local agents, wholesalers, investors, and various other REI professionals. The Sales Navigator feature allows for very specific (and unlimited) searches so you can better pinpoint the best people to network within your area.
Once they accepted my connection I then reached out to them just asking if they were open to meeting and offer up any advice they may have. You'd be surprised by the number of people willing to just sit down and chat. By meeting as many people as you can in the industry, you are given the opportunity to learn super valuable insight into starting out in real estate, as well as opportunities to collaborate. If you can network with real estate attorneys, agents, lenders, etc., they will be able to offer you great advice on contracting a deal.
Good luck!
Thank you @William Goss