How do you Benefit From Property Radar?

[Krista Brashear]

I've been using Property Radar for a few days. I've heard it referenced positively a number of times and have read a number of posts about it. If you use it yourself,  could you provide a short list of niches that PR is particularly adept at providing info and lists for? Thank you.

What types of deals have stemmed from using this app?

[Sean OToole]

@Joe Yobaccio

1. Equity - we developed our own equity models a decade ago, and to my knowledge were the first to offer them to investors, though I think Listsource launched their's not long after. I believe our equity models are still the best in the industry, as we take a number of things into account that others don't. Still, they aren't perfect - for example there is the no way to know the open balance on a HELOC without access to credit data, and access to that for this purpose isn't allowed by law.

2. Divorces - we don't collect divorce filings. I have yet to meet a real investor who has succeeded pursuing these, until I do I have no plan to waste my time on them. A few simple reality about divorces: 1) often one of the two ends up with the property, 2) money usually gets tight as they move from one household to two, so good luck getting a deal, they'll squeeze every penny out, and 3) in serious disputes the attorneys, not the owners, pick the real estate agent and oversee the sale.

3. Tax default - the counties are really good about posting these, and most of the sales are now online. We have a LOT of customers that use us to do their property research and find the owners on these, but we don't collect them directly. I know many large, multi-state, tax default buyers, and not a single one buy's this data from a third party, or sees much value in us doing it for them. Too easy to do directly.

4. FLBO - We offered this data for about 5 years. In those 5 years I have exactly ZERO examples of the data leading to a great deal for one of our customers. After surveying customers we dropped it, and used the money on other features.

5. FSBO - Yes these folks want out of their property, but they want every dollar for themselves, to the point they aren't even willing to pay a realtor. Is there maybe one in hundred that mis-values their property, perhaps. But again, I know exactly zero successful investors who pursue these. Easy data for us to get and add to the platform, so if I'm wrong I'd love to hear it.

6. Empty nesters - yes we do this, and about 1000 variations of this.

7. Evictions - I think this one is interesting. I haven't yet found a reliable data source. Like probate and divorce the data on these that is available tends to not be very good, though some vendors mistakenly still tout it as such. For me to offer data it needs to be timely enough to actually have a chance of doing a deal, and accurate enough to not waste my customers time.

8. Probate / Death Certificate - these are just a straight up stupid way to go after this opportunity. If you want to chase this path, then you want Obituaries. Obituaries are typically posted in the local paper weeks or months before you can get either of these. This is another one like Tax, where I believe we are the most popular product in the market even though we don't offer the data directly. Simply look at the obits, and do a name search in PropertyRadar, as you find them add them to a list and start whatever marketing campaign you desire. Takes just a few minutes a day.

9. Non-Owner Occ - we do this better than anyone. We not only give you non-owner occ, but variations on it like whether the owner is in county, or in state. Plus you can combine it with things like Vacancy, or any of our 200 other criteria.

Be careful not to get caught up in vendors pushing specific life events as get rich quick schemes. We're fortunate to have most of the long term successful investors, and as such don't have to rely on constantly attracting noob's with those kind of false claims. Here is what I know works:

1. Pick a thesis around which you think an owner would be willing to sell their house at the discount you desire. You'll find hundreds of ideas here on Bigger Pockets - but just know that what worked awesome for the guy in Utah, probably is NOT what is going to work awesome in your neighborhood. My suggesting on this, is to pick a thesis where you can bring authentic value to the table when speaking to the owner. If you are going to pursue obits/probate, then become an expert in everything about that - be able to help answer their questions about the process, help them find an attorney, help them with arranging services for their loved one, learn how to lend money to help them pay for expenses through the process and prior to a sale, etc. Those are the guys who do well. You'll never be successful just mass mailing "I buy houses".

2. Learn your market, ideally by knocking on doors. Go talk to folks that are on your list, before even trying to buy anything. For a new list, I'll offer folks a $50 or $100 gift card (from my pocket), if they'll give me 30 minutes of their time. I then ask them every question I can think of about their situation, whether or not they'd sell, if they would why, what they would want out of the deal, what they think their home is worth, what discount they'd take for various things - like moving whenever they want, or not having to clean the place up, or not having to evict the tenant, or whatever. I'm NOT in sales mode when I do this, and won't even offer to buy their home unless they specifically ask. Also, while you are there BE SURE to ask if they get any direct mail from investors, and collect as much of it as you can - it's a great way to check out the competition. I'll even offer them more $ if they'll collect it for me over a period of time. Pretty good chance your thesis will change or be eliminated in this step, that's ok, it's part of the deal. Real estate investing is hard work, not a get rich quick scheme.

3. Test your thesis. From 2, I'll put together a pitch, and then try it out. Always best to start in person, so door knocking is still ideal at this stage. This is where perseverance makes all the difference. Most successful investors know that it takes a lot of no's, to get a yes. If you think you have a really good thesis, don't be afraid to knock 100 doors at this stage. Listen to feedback, try small variations, refine until you find what works.

4. Start to scale. Once things start to work in 3, then switch to calling. It's far more efficient and you can reach a lot more people. That said, you don't get the benefit of body language and it's easier for folks to not answer or just hang up. So this often takes more refinement and some changes from what worked in 3.

5. Go big. Once you have your message really dialed from 3 and 4, direct mail can help you scale. This is the most efficient way to reach a large number of people, but your message has to be absolutely perfect, or you will be literally throwing money into the trash. Too many investors jump straight to this step resulting in homeowners getting a bunch of nearly identical yellow letters that offer nothing unique that will get that owner to actually call.

If you take nothing else away from this long post, please know that the unique value you bring to the owner, and how good your are at explaining that to them (the message) is FAR MORE IMPORTANT then the list you choose.