All Forum Posts by: Ben G.

@Michael Quarles

Forgive me, I'm new...What is the NCOA? For last 7 years you are saying last purchase date 7 years ago...however won't you lose out on inheritance properties if you use last purchase date? What if someone inherited a property a year ago and has all that equity but they didn't purchase the home?

@Dev Horn

I like your advice about not only doing absentee homeowners, but primary homeowners as well. These people may be looking for a way out too. Thanks!

@Francisco Nieves

Hello fellow Hoosier! What part of Indiana are you working? Maybe we can learn from each others successes and failures?

@Steven J.

those are great points that you make especially regarding equity in$ vs %. I have heard a lot of recommendations for 3br as well. Thanks for the input. What investment strategy are you practicing (wholesaling, fix and flip, buy and hold)? Have you had success in direct mail?

I posted on screenshot of list criteria I was considering mailing to. I look forward to the input the community can give.

Here is a different list with different criteria:

@Steven J. Thank you for the feedback. I have settled on testing direct mail first, and yes I do plan on sending multiple mailers using my budget. That is why I plan on only spending $500-$1,000 per mailing. Here is a screenshot of a list I build using listSource:

Do you see any issues with this criteria? You can see it returned 689 addresses.

I have been told by a few respected individuals in the community that I am over analyzing the criteria for my list and that I just need to get started. I do agree that analysis paralysis is preventing me from pulling the trigger. However, when I plan on shelling out $5,000 towards my overall campaign (multiple letters to absentee owners) I want to be somewhat confident that I'm targeting the right absentee owners.

Anyone who uses wholesaling as a strategy, and has had success with direct mail in the past if you could share the criteria you have used for building your list it would be greatly appreciated. I really want to make this $5,000 work for me. I plan on sending 500-1000 mailers per month depending on the # of absentee owners I have access to based on my criteria.

The struggle I'm finding is that some successful wholesalers are saying that 10+ years for length of residence is important because it's hard for ListSource to ultimately determine equity in a home and there's a good chance someone with 10+ years in residence has enough equity. However, what if they have recently refinanced?

Is LTV or Equity % important. What if someone owns the home outright, and therefore there wouldn't be any LTV. How are these list providers determining equity?

I guess I would like to hear what success you have had with direct mail if any, and if so what did your list look like? From there, I am sure I will have the confidence to settle on my list and pull the trigger with my $5,000 marketing budget.

Ben

Thanks for being so welcoming everyone! Is there any way to do the @ reply without having to type the entire username out? Thanks for the help.

I saw that orientation switcher. Fixed it! I'm devouring all the content I can. Thanks!

Hello Everyone,

My name is Ben Grise. I'm a part time poker player who has had a lot of success on the tournament circuit. I've final tabled a WSOP (World Series of Poker) Event, a WSOP Circuit event, and have been on television in a Heartland Poker Tour event.

When I'm not playing poker I'm working as a Electronic Medical Record Software Training Consultant. I basically travel around the country or if I'm extremely lucky I find a contract in Indianapolis where I teach Providers and Nurses how to use their EMR software.

I'm not always on contract as a EMR Consultant. Therefore I've been looking into pursuing the world of Wholesaling to supplement my income. That's how I discovered BiggerPockets and I can't put the computer down. I hope to do my first deal before the end of the year.

I'm thinking my brief past as a mortgage banker will help me understand the financial aspect of wholesaling. I'm so close to pulling the trigger and start my marketing campaign, but I'm scared I don't know everything I need to know. However, that's what the community at BP is here for. If I find a good deal I'm sure with the help of the community I can get it closed.

Happy Hunting,
Ben