Which method has worked best for everyone to find the best deals?

[Mark Millich]

I'm networking with real estate agents and also browsing the MLS daily. These are probably the two most common forms of property hunting, but it seems difficult to find the best deals using these methods. I recently began browsing Craigslist and have found what appears to be some decent deals. However, with limited information on each posting, it has me questioning their legitimacy. Because I don't live in the best area for real estate investment, I'm looking to invest in the Pittsburgh, PA area and all surrounding areas where the market is cheaper. I've found some decent properties in Mckeesport for very low prices, but the area is absolutely terrible and labeled as one of the worst areas to live in in Pennsylvania. Because I'm investing out of state (I live in WV), I don't often get the chance to check out some of the properties that appear to be "good deals" unfortunately.

Having said that, my question is which method has worked best for everyone to find the best deals? MLS, driving for dollars, direct mail marketing, etc.

[Laura Alamery]

@Mark Millich We do a lot of virtual wholesaling, meaning that while we live in South Florida, we wholesale in other cities and states.

We rely on highly targeted lists of off market properties, such as absentee owners who have owned the property for 5+ years, evictions with court dates, etc. We purchase these lists from list sources like PropStream. We then contact via phone, text and direct marketing. The sequence and the frequency of contacting the same list will yield the best results. It's definitely about setting up a well managed system.

We do use MLS from time to time and pursue aging listings (active on the MLS for over 6 months) and we have done deals with those leads as well.

Nowadays it is not just about volume, but clever systems in place and using the right tools.