What am I doing wrong? All agents so far have been flaky at best.

[Craig Parsons]

So we have been actively looking for investment properties for 2 years now. Fortunately we were able to purchase one and are in the rehab process. But even getting the first one took finding 3 realtors. So here is the story.

About 3 years ago I was looking to purchase property in a small Idaho town that we want to retire to sometime in the future. We already have a personal residence there but we're looking for a few fixer uppers that we could buy rehab and then rent down the road. At this point in time I had NEVER watched a flipping show or heard of BP. My plan was to buy a few cheap to me properties and just pay the mortgage with my California bay area wages. So we won't even discuss my horrible use of my cash. Anyway I find a place 50k on zillow and click the contact agent button. We'll after a few text messages I finally talked to an agent. After about 15 minutes he says " hey I have to go I will call you right back." That was 3 years ago I'm still waiting. Flake #1

So my next tactic was to Google the agent listed on the property and call her direct. We met and few weeks later I told her I was willing to make an offer but needed to know if I could even get a bank loan on a property that needed some rehab. She said "no problem we will do owner financing" I said great I can give 20% down and Made offer for 45k. this property had been listed for 6 months so I thought that warranted a price reduction. So we go back and forth a few times and she told me the owners do not wish to carry and they want full price. I said ok thank you but if you have anything else come up please let me know. 2 1/2 years later I have not heard from her. Flake #2

So here is the best part about flake #2. She was the listing agent on the house we finally purchased but we used a buyers agent because honestly from my first experience and the fact she never called me made me scared to use her.

So for the house we bought I just happened to be walking by her office and asked her if she would be willing to show me a house I had found on zillow. She said yes and she did help us purchase the property. Her service however has been lackluster at best. The last time I was in town I told her I would be there for 2 weeks and wanted to see three property. And please let me know when she could fit it in her schedule. She never called me back. But I will take some blame for this since I maybe could of pressed her harder. On the other hand I am a proven buyer in a very small market.

Ok so fast forward a till the last month after I found bigger pockets and the small Multi family game. I found a triplex I was interested in called the agent went back and forth a few time. I told her I had bank financing approved but was interested in if the owners wanted to carry back the down. She told me she didn't think they would but would ask and get back to me. Guess what! That was 3 weeks ago and still have not heard from her.

So after reading about the cash flow opportunities in the Midwest I have contacted 3 listing agents all who have multiple small multi family rentals listed . With 1 response from a guy who told me he had a family function he was headed to and what would be a good time to call me the next day. I said great told him a time and still have not heard from him. The other 2 agents have not responded to my e-mail.

Sorry for the long post but am I wrong to judge these peoplez work ethic on their lack of responsiveness or should I be prodding them harder? I have no problem contacting 100 agents but want to make sure I am not judging them too harshly.

Thanks for reading my novella! Not trying to whine just be more effective.