All Forum Posts by: Account Closed

When I'm talking to sellers, I ask them specific questions about the condition of their house.  I ask about their roof, A/C, water heater and plumbing and electrical systems. 

What's your professional opinion?  What major systems are the MOST crucial to know for a property?

What about for direct mail marketing?  Would it be weird to find some brownies when opening my letter or a pleasant surprise?

I'm currently knocking on people's doors to make leads and I was wondering if bringing desserts or pastries is too much of a gesture?  To the home owner, I'm just a stranger.  Would it be weird for a total stranger to be giving you chocolate chip cookies, while talking about why you're selling your house?

If we connected with eachother before and we're doing some negotitations today, I would definitely bring some cookies over.  A stranger knocking on my door?  I don't know, what do you guys think?

What criteria do I need to know for every investor on my buyer's list? 

All I can think of is putting them into categories like flippers and buy and holds. Then add details like their minimum and maximum offer range, what properties they only invest in(SFH, moblie, etc) and areas they only invest in.

What else is important to know about each investor?

I have no personal suggestions other than going into the community and asking around.  You can do this for just about anyone for your power team.  If you're looking for a plumber, ask around.  If you're looking for a residential real-estate attorney, ask around.  

Heck, tell EVERYBODY you come across that you're looking for this type of professional, you might be surprised by who the information comes from.  Friends, family, everyone's fair game, but be specific.  There are Realtors for residential and commercial properties.  There's real-estate attorneys for a variety of areas too.

I went to TeamMade's meeting in April and one of the public speakers there was a real-estate attorney(can't recall what his area of expertise) and he also talked about wholesaling.  It's a gray area yes, but it is possible.  Heck, talk to Stephan Aarnio and ask who he uses.  Aside from teaching and public speaking, the only real-estate he does now is wholesaling.  Definitely worth to ask him if he can grab him for 5 minutes.

@DIANE LEE

It's no trouble at all Diane, the more the community grows, the more beneficial it is for everyone.  Think about this for a minute. Every investor works with a collection of professionals.  Realtors, mortgage brokers, insurance brokers, plumbers, electricians, roofers, carpenters, internal designers, real-estate attorneys, etc, etc, ETC!  

Investors put food on the table.  Each and EVERY one of those professionals that you interact with, is getting fed tonight.  PLUS, when you completed the project you set out to do, whether you rent it out or sell it, a person now has a place to call home, a home you've renovated(hopefully) to look fundamental.  Isn't that incredible?  Not only do you get closer to your financial goals, but you also get to help a whole bunch of people along the way.

Also, for people who see investors to be shady or egotistical, I hope this opens your eyes a little to the reality we live in!

@DIANE LEE

Hi Diane, it's great to see another aspiring real-estate investor in Winnipeg!  

I want you to know something VERY important Diane, not everyone has made the decision that you just made one week ago.  A great portion of the population don't even dip their toes in the water because they're afraid, close-minded, etc, there are a million reasons.  You should be proud of yourself.  Go on, give yourself a pat on the back, you earned it!

There are so many things I want to talk to you about, but to avoid writing an essay, I'll just answer your questions.  :D

1)  Yes, you and me are able to invest in real-estate in all of Canada.  Ontario, Manitoba, Vancouver Island, everywhere is pretty much fair game.  I think one person here said that Canadian properties are expensive compared to the US.  It depends, if you go to British Columbia, you got homes worth at least over $800,000, yet in the US, you can find property at $30,000.  To us Canadians, US properties are dirt cheap, but to Americans, we're expensive.  It all comes down to perspective.  All I can say is that Winnipeg has the lowest average sales value in Canada, which doesn't mean much, but it gives you an idea of where we're at.  Other countries would probably have their own laws and ways of doing things, so if you want to invest in other countries, you probably have to call an attorney or something for more information.  I would suggest though, to first master the market you live in first, then move on to other countries.  

2)  You don't need to use your own money for real-estate investing, despite what some people might think.  Heck, I used to believe it for a while now, but now that I'm getting into this business, I see it been done all the time.  It's not a "rare occurrence" or "unrealistic", it's VERY much real.  If you want insight on this subject, I'd be happy to help!

3)  I am not familiar with the immigrant laws and just to make sure you don't get in trouble, hire an real-estate attorney.  Yes, it might cost a few hundred dollars, but you will save A LOT of time, effort and 1000s of dollars if trouble does happen.

If you want to be more involved with the community in Winnipeg, there's a local real-estate investing group called "Truly Invested" who's hosting a meeting in May.  You'll be able to gain new information, and network with local new and expert investors.  I highly suggest attending, the first meeting is free.

Also, I am no expert with this business, but I currently have enough knowledge to take action.  I've been where you have been, so I have a good idea about what you need.  Learn as much as you can, network as much as you can, and just keep learning till you're ready.  Trust me, you'll know when you're ready!

I was talking with another investor a few days ago, and he said that two of the most important things for bird-dogging is...

1)  Know if the owner is willing to sell

2)  Setting the owner up for negotiation

I can't seem to understand what number 2 means.  The way I see it, setting them up would be like knowing that they're willing to negotiate the sales price of their house and setting up a future appointment with them.  Or maybe setting them up would mean to somehow convince the owner who wasn't willing to negotiate before, is now willing to negotiate the sales price of their home.  

Of course I can just call him up tomorrow, but I would also love to get more insight from the community here.  What are your thoughts?  How do you transition from the lead to the deal?

@Sayid K.

Hi Sayid and welcome to the club! It's great to hear that you're getting more serious about real-estate investing. Your story sounds exactly like mine, except I've been jumping from career to career to career TO CAREER! For half a year now(since the beginning of October) I've been reading books, listening to podcasts, talking with people, going to seminars, etc, etc, so I can know as much as I can about real-estate to get started.

I've also come to the same conclusion that you need a full-time job, work for a few years to save up enough cash for your future real-estate investments, and continue to grow till I become a full time real-estate investor. On my learning journey, I've discovered a piece of information that is absolutely mind-blowing, where it changed my mindset forever. As a result, this summer, I'm finally going to be taking action and applying all of the knowledge that I've accumulated over these past several months and truly igniting my vehicle to reach my goals. Of course there's still so much to be learned, but hey, learning is a life-long journey!

Again, welcome to the club, and I salute you in the pursuit of financial freedom.

This summer I'm finally going to take action with real-estate investing.  I plan to do bird-dogging and eventually wholesaling, while building my buyer's list, reputation, hands-on experience, etc.  I also have a decent idea of what I can start with, like finding potential investment properties, going to city hall to find the real owner of the property, seeing if they're willing to sell, open-minded and negotiable, crunching the numbers to see what would be a good deal, etc, etc.

While I was networking with local REI groups, I was offered a marketing internship from a local, successful real-estate investing company, where they will show me how they do their bird-dogging, in exchange for finding leads for them. The company is called Ratna Fehr properties and is owned and run by 3 investors, where I've become well acquainted with one of them.

The internship costs nothing, and both me and them can end the contract with each other at any time.

Now my question is:  should I take the internship and be guided by these investors?  Or should I start bird-dogging on my own, go at my own pace comfortably and take their internship when I think I need the help?

Excited to hear your recommendations!