I am about to pull the trigger

[Asim Zaidi]

So after looking into REI for over 3 years, spending on education well over $10k, I think I am finally ready to take on Colorado real estate market. I think what I am is what you would call an extra cautious flipper. I think I have browsed through 1000's of properties online and physically in just last few weeks. I have come to a point where I think the best bet is to buy properties directly from the auction. The issue is that I have not found a proper hard money lender that can do auction property, probably because of the time limitations!

How are you guys dealing with that? Any good advice on to how to leverage OPM at auctions? I do not want to tie all my money into one deal. I would appreciate a good feedback!

Thank you and happy investing!

[Don Nelson]

@Asim Zaidi, I've been in the Colorado investor market for a long time.  Right now, auctions are crammed with people over-bidding properties because they don't know how to buy safely.  If you are not careful, you can easily get caught up in the hype and over-pay.  In addition, the Denver market if extremely competitive with good properties have multiple offers, driving up purchase price.  This market is very hard to flip in and make a profit right now.  Contractor management is a serious problem with prices very high.  I say all of this because if you've never done a flip before, you definitely should mentor under someone before jumping in.  LOTS of risk in this market right now.  

I don't want to create fear or negativity, but please be sure you know the numbers and you have a very solid crew/team you can trust before taking the risk.  Several ways to mitigate the risk would be:

1. Do the work yourself - don't know if you have that option, but it would save a ton of money and headache.

2. Use your own money - if you pay cash for a property, you don't have the pressure of a timeline and interest payments and you can have more breathing room to do it right.

3. Know the market - you don't want to buy on the higher end of the market right now.  Things are slowing/shifting, and the high end is the most risky sector with the pickiest buyers.

I hope you find this helpful - would love to hear how you move forward.