Marketing Thoughts: All Homeowners with Equity vs Absentee only

[Chris Bounds]

In a podcast a while back I heard @Michael Quarles say that he groups potential sellers into two categories: Owners with equity and owners without equity.

Can anyone share their thoughts/results marketing using direct mail with equity as a primary marketing parameter verses marketing to only Absentee owners?  

Currently I am marketing to only absentee owners with equity, but I realize I am leaving out a lot homeowners in my farm market that may be willing to sell at a discount.

[Dev Horn]

Absentees with equity is the most productive pool.  Max out your opportunity there before you add regular Owner Occupants (OOs) with equity.

If you are a RE investor - i.e., cash buyer - you need equity in order to do a deal.  If you are an agent that can list them, or you do other things like lease options, you can market to people with less equity, but for cash buyers equity% > 50% is MUST on ANY list.

When you mail to OOs, don't expect the kind of response rate you get from Absentees. It's harder to find motivation in the OO pool.

When we mail to OOs, we hit specific groups that might have higher motivation such as senior citizens (who may be moving in with kids, going to assisted living, have houses that have not been updated since the 70's, etc.).

Be SMART with your direct mail investment.  You can waste a ton of money if your list is not well-targeted.