All Forum Posts by: Daniel I.

I'm looking for input from other wholesalers as to whether they think motivated sellers would rather sell to a company or an individual investor. For example, on my website, would it be better to write "We buy houses" or "I buy houses"? 

In some instances, I think it can help build trust if it comes off as just an individual and you have an about me page where people can put a face to the business. So many wholesaler sites just seem murky and look so similar to the next, I feel this may help differentiate myself if I call it what it is and just say I'm an individual investor. 

I'll be having someone else answer the phone to pre-qualify leads, so I don't know if they'd just ask to speak with me every time.

On the other hand, I don't know if they'd take it more seriously if it was a company of seemingly multiple employees. You could surmise that the more successful an investor is, the bigger operation they'd have. 

I could be over-analyzing this, but it'd be interesting to hear what other wholesalers have found to be most effective in building trust and closing deals. 

I think a video could be a good idea as long as it's done right. If you're going to be on camera and just use a basic webcam, filming it by yourself, I wouldn't bother. You want to convey professionalism and trustworthiness. Hire a guy who has good gear (high-end DSLR, lavalier mic) who will give you a higher end look. I think the whiteboard animations are over-done and don't make the seller any more comfortable about selling their home to you, but that's just my perception. 

I second what @Eric H. said about optimizing your site for SEO and implementing PPC ads, but why not ramp up your direct mail? If it's working for you, try doing 4,000/month. Outsource to a live answering service if you haven't already.

@Ana G. I love the momentum you have going for you and the can-do take action attitude! Definitely inspiring. This is a great thread and I hope you'll make time to keep us in the loop with your wholesaling business!

Congrats! Glad to hear you took action despite your busy schedule!

It depends on what area of Chicago you're looking into, but try reaching out to @Lumi Ispas.

GOAL RECAP:

Take actionable steps to obtain my first rental property. I also would like to set monthly budgets for myself to help direct more income towards investments.

Thanks for reeling me back to my 2015 goals, Brie. 

I used YNAB software to start creating a budget for myself in the Spring. Unfortunately, I kind of got away from that a bit, but definitely plan on becoming more disciplined with it.

I had an unexpected trip to Europe come up in August that I diverted some of my savings toward right at the same time I was moving from Chicago to LA. The combination of both forced me to step away from REI for about a month. I'm settling in to the west coast now and am hoping to launch my virtual wholesaling business in October. I plan to use the profit from that to invest in a rental property in Indianapolis. While I'd love to make it happen in 2015, I don't plan on over-extending myself or making a rushed decision just to meet my goal. I think I'm on the right track to make it happen in Q1 of 2016 if need be.

I'm thankful for this post to provide an outlet to make a written goal that others can see. Certainly helps with accountability!

Hey @Daniel Ibarra, welcome to BP! You're definitely in the right place. Definitely check out the BP Meetups hosted by @Brie Schmidt and George Foster. Best of luck getting started! Feel free to reach out if you need anything.

If I were you, I'd find someone (maybe on BP) who has experience calculating rehab costs and then offer a profit share for them to go take photos and estimate rehab costs for you. 

Not sure what you're asking about the % of ARV. Just break it down like you did and make sure the rehabber will be making enough profit.

@Ashley Jackson right here:

http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2014/12/25/bp-podcast-102struggle-succeed-real-estate-scott-costello/