How to find houses to flip that aren't on MLS

How to find houses to flip that aren't on MLS

Investor · Marlborough, MA · Member since 2016 · 28 posts · 11 votes

Hello All,

I stumbled upon this website this morning and I think this is going to be helpful for me. Just a quick background on me before I get to my reason for writing this. I have a full time job outside of Real Estate. My real passion is for RE investing and most of all Flipping houses. My father and I have a Real Estate office that we use to help family and friends purchase and sell their homes. We also use that company to purchase and sell our flips through MLS. Our flipping company consists of myself, my wife, my father and my mother. My father gc's the flips, my wife and mother design them. I do what I can before and after my full time job, which makes for long days, but well worth it.

So, my question is for everyone out there, how do you find flip properties without them being on MLS? The properties on MLS are good but with everyone else bidding on them, the prices are getting to be to steep. In the past we have sent out letters and called expired listing for potential flips but most of the time we never hear back. There has to be a way to contact potential flip properties before they get on MLS. I'd love to hear how others do this and how successful you are at acquiring flips. We like to work about 30 minutes from Marlborough, MA 01752 so if your outside that area, we would not be in competition with you.

I look forward to reading the responses,

Mike Miele

0Reply
26 views

3 Replies

Jump to latestLatest
  • Investor · Marlborough, MA · Member since 2016 · 28 posts · 11 votes
    10y

    John, thanks for your response. 

    I'm also a realtor and know a lot of realtor in the area. They all know that we invest in distressed homes. I've received a few calls on leads from other realtors, but it was for properties they were putting on MLS. Back in the day Realtors used to find off market deals for their buyers but with there being so many people looking for flip homes, the realtors are not working in the best interest of the seller if they don't get it on MLS for everyone to see. Almost every potential flip on MLS gets a bidding war and the price gets driven up to where its not worth buying it. I've lucked out to where the past few deals I've done have been word of mouth but theres got to be another avenue to explore to find deals.

  • Real Estate Broker · Manchester, NH · Member since 2014 · 630 posts · 420 votes
    10y

    Direct-mail marketing, cold calling, working with wholesalers, auction properties, etc.  

    If you started a marketing campaign towards distressed property owners, you'd have an advantage as a real estate agent with a firm.  You can approach sellers and offer them several different options.  You can go ahead and offer them an as-is, quick close, cash price for their property (where you'll go ahead and flip it yourself).  If they say no to that, you can go ahead and offer to list their property and get them more money, but have it take longer.  Either way you'll end up helping them out and making yourself some money along the way.  

Join the conversationCreate a free account to reply, vote on answers and follow this thread.