How do you look at a house? Investor eyes?

[Sam Rockafellow]

IN the Marine Corps I studied what is called Combat Hunter. We took hours of classes on how to identify human existence while patrolling though rural terrain. We learned how to identify many things about the enemy. Figured out how many people walked through that area, whether they were walking with or without a load. Identifying anything that would help us in the fight that we were walking towards. We had trained eyes. I get a similar feeling when I'm walking through a possible investment opportunity. Not so much the threat of violence, But the opportunity to learn as much as possible about a property before I take on the burden of ownership. I am a newbie and have 0 investment properties under my belt but I have walked through 10 properties in the past 2 months and realized I'm looking at it with untrained eyes. My question to the bigger pockets community is How do you get trained investor eyes? Do you have a system or a strategy in place for when you walk through an investment property for the first time? Do you have a list of questions that you ask every agent that is showing you the property? Do you walk around the outside 1st and look for structural issues or do you go right inside and see the status of the flooring and walls and kitchen? To give more of a visual of my question my primary focus right now is SFR's and I am located in Grand Rapids Michigan Thanks in advance -Sam Rockafellow

[Jim K.]

@Sam Rockafellow

This is an excellent question, but I suspect it's different for everyone. There is way, WAY too much to elaborate on here. But, as a DIY landlord and renovation contractor, I am always checking to see how structurally sound the property is, how much work it's going to take to turn it into a functional rental, and what obstacles lie between what the property is and what I want it to be as a rental. My typical path through a property is going around outside, then down into the basement, and then up through the house slowly with extra time spent in the kitchens and bathrooms.

An agent or wholesaler intent on selling you the property, however, will often have a pre-planned route through it that points out its strongest features first, and only then proceed to the weaker features and major problems.

You acquire the kind of reading skills you're talking about, and to a great degree, only over time and with experience. Don't rush it, don't fake it. It comes slowly and with great effort.

Invariably, you are going to meet a lot of people who most definitely ARE faking it, especially agents. Except for a very small percentage of them, agents are the biggest poseurs and BS artists in real estate. The ones that aren't have been in the business for decades and were usually employed elsewhere in some capacity associated with real estate before they became agents.

To help the process along, what you should do is find an experienced real estate investor who's been doing what you want to do for awhile and follow her or him through a property. Hit the local meetups. Make connections. Ask if you can tag along on walk-throughs. Lots of us just love hearing ourselves talk. I am absolutely no exception myself.