Direct mail marketing

[Rocky Verteramo]

Hi Everyone! I am new to investing. I currently only own 1 rental and just purcahsed my first fix and flip with a partner, so we will see how that goes. I live in a college town, student / football weekend rentals are my niche. Most houses in this area go up for sale and are sold with in days, and sometimes hours! There are usually multiple offers and bidding wars are common. I was fortunate to get one plus I rent out my primary in this area during football game weekends.

I really want to start direct mail marketing. To be able to possibly get to a potential seller before a house goes on the market, I feel this is something I may have to try and do.

Question #1 -  Where do I collect lists such as vacant home, absent owner, tax default or divorce / bankruptcy lists? A department of the county city building? Online?

Question #2 - I have heard of yellowletter.com through BP. I haven't done much research on them yet, but it seems like they may help with this kind of work. Does anyone recommend them, or anywhere else that I can get help in this form of marketing?

Questions #3 - Is there any do or don't advice you could inform me of that would better help me educate myself on how to go about this without wasting time and money on areas that may not be beneficial or helpful?

Thanks everyone, in advanced, for any help!

[Claire Trammell]

Hello @Rocky Verteramo!

Let me take a stab at some of our questions:

1) You can get your list of potential sellers from multiple different sources, however we get ours from ListSorce.com. You are able to specify if you want Absentee owned (in- or out-of -state) as well as specify equity, bedroom count, last sales year, etc. 

3) As for some advice, I have a whole arsenal of advice, but I'll give you a quick rundown of the highlights:

• Planning on sending a campaign is the best route. Follow ups are very important. Send a different marketing piece every 3-5 weeks for 5-7 weeks is great.
• Keep your message simple in the beginning and expand or elaborate as you continue to send to those on your list.
• Be specific in your lead search. If you know what you are looking for, use the specifications when compiling your list.

I hope this is helpful! I wish you luck!