Do I Need A Attorney?

[Tien Nguyen]

Hello, I have a newbie question. I still have not had my first rental property yet, but I am thinking about buying off market deals. Since I will not have a real estate agent representing me, do I need an attorney to help me with all the paperwork to avoid unforeseen legal issues? and where do I need to go to obtain purchase and sale agreement and things like that? Thanks for your response.

[Corby Goade]

Personally, I think starting off only focusing on off market deals is a mistake. Not that you shouldn't look, but you'll be missing out on lots of opportunity and these off market deals are generally much more complicated and usually cash deals anyhow. 

If you work with a good realtor, for one, they may bring you off market deals anyhow- ones that you'd never be privy to. Heck, I just emailed some of my clients a killer deal in my market yesterday that was not on the MLS and none of them would have seen it had they not reached out to me in the first place.

Keep in mind that 95% of home sales happen on the MLS. It's silly to think that out of all of those sales that no one is getting a great deal. I've worked on tons of deals for my clients that were on the MLS and many of them have been fantastic- most of them better than the off market deals that other investors are clamoring for. This is a long term game- you'll win the world series if you just keep hitting lots of single and doubles. If you wait around for that grand slam off market deal, you just might be waiting forever.

Finally- those off market deals often require finesse, cash and negotiation skills that are really tough to navigate for someone with no experience. If you insist on exclusively going this route, you should connect with a local investor who will let you either shadow them or partner with you on a deal- but you'd need to bring something to the table, either cash or free labor. 

In any occasion, best of luck to you!