All Forum Posts by: Francois G.

If you made a financial investment to take a wholesaling course then you should absolutely make an investment to get your real estate salesperson license. The trouble getting in contact with sellers you're having wouldn't be nearly as difficult if you had access to an MLS. You would see all the Expired listings in your region from today to however far back they go (probably would have the ex-listing agents contact info instead of the seller, but you have an address to doorknock*). Or go on Zillow and filter out FSBO's in your region. It seems to me that you're expecting the business to roll in because you paid for the course, software, etc., but there's more to it then that.

People choose to go the wholesaling route because there's no significant financial commitment but they're quickly disappointed when they get into the thick of things. In REI, especially rentals, profits margins are very thin to begin with. Now your goal is to get a contract signed significantly under market value, just so you can sell it to someone who's also looking for a "deal", while still trying to flip a profit. It's extremely difficult and in some parts of the country it's not even worth the time commitment.

Get your salesperson's license, pass the state exam, hang your license with a broker, then start bringing some real value to your clients by getting their house sold and/or bringing them buyers. You'll make more money, you can re-invest your commissions into your investing career, and it's an excellent way to learn the investing side of the business.

My goal isn't to scare you from wholesaling, if that's your cup of tea then go for it. But I feel like getting a salesperson license is more of what you're looking for rather than wholesaling. I see you're from NY (I'm NYC/LI) which is even more of a reason to get your salesperson's license. You live in a state that has one of the highest home values in the country, one closed deal can easily be a 5 figure income.

Work smarter, not harder.

My perspective comes from someone who's visited AC often, not from someone who's done any relevant research on the market so take it for what it's worth. Politicians have turned the city upside down the last few decades. Block by block does change pretty drastically. It seems to me that there's an abundance of war zones and slim picking on the decent neighborhoods. If you click on the 'Network' tab, do a quick search to see if any of the properties management companies on this site service the AC area. 

The problem with buy and holds in the Northeast is property taxes kill your profits. Most buy and hold investors in this region migrate to the south and midwest because of this. I would assume AC's taxes aren't as high as NY (I see you're in Staten Island) but still very high compared to the rest of the country.

Another similarity in this region is we're not landlord-friendly states for the most part. In NJ it can take many months to evict a tenant, in NY it can take over a year. I would keep this in mind when investing in these rougher cities. Rough application pool + high holding costs (taxes, mortgages, etc.) + long eviction times = nightmare.

The lack of job diversity would have me second guessing as well. It's an economy that's dependent on tourism and gambling. The tourism industry is down worldwide since the pandemic and I would assume the gambling industry is also with the capacity limits that are being set. That's something to seriously consider when it comes to finding quality tenants. 

Again, I want to be clear I haven't done this research, these are just my observations from visiting frequently. I'm sure with the right systems in place and the right team put together you can have success. I only tell the reasoning for why I wouldn't in case there are somethings you haven't considered. Don't let it stop you from doing what you want but take them into serious consideration.

Best of luck!

Yes, it's still effective. Real estate is and will always be a game of personal interaction. If you can get them on the phone or face to face, you have a huge advantage over the competition.

I highly recommend purchasing Vulcan 7 if that's the route you're going. They're VERY expensive but it will be one of the best purchases you make when it comes to lead generation. Their data for Expireds and FSBO phone numbers is the best out of any other company who offers a similar product. They also have a dialer and CRM. IMO it's worth every penny.

Want to know an even better and more efficient way to generate leads without cold calling? Door knocking. A fairly old concept that most agents don't take advantage of. If you're selling a home, are you more likely to give the listing to someone you have seen in person or someone calling you over the phone who you've never met? Door knocking is extremely effective and I recommend every agent to start doing it, if you're not doing it already.

Hope this helps. Good luck!

Hey BP,

As we're almost midway through September, I'm curious to see how landlords across the country are dealing with rent collections this month so far.

It's a difficult time for landlords with the eviction moratorium extending and millions of jobless Americans no longer receiving the extra unemployment benefits. Has this impacted your rent collections this month?

The feedback I've gotten so far between my clients/friends/professional network has been a mixed bag. One landlord with 8 doors is at 100% collection for Sept while another with 3 doors is at 0% (to be fair and objective, 2 of the tenants were problem tenants pre-pandemic).

IMHO (could be wrong, won't be the first/last time), I see rent collection becoming much difficult in the coming months. It's more important now than ever to PROPERLY screen your tenants. People know they can't get evicted and will hold you hostage with non-payments once they get the keys. Screening tenants was always important but it's even more important to your business now more than ever.

September is really the first month post-pandemic where bills/rent/mortgages/etc. have to be paid without significant government assistance so I'm interested to see how you're tenants are treating it.

Thanks in advance!

It's absolutely possible. It's going to require you finding the right management company and investor-friendly agent. The property manager is going to be what makes or break you. Even if you have the best property manager out there, you should ALWAYS still be managing things to some extent. No one is going to care for your investment more than you will.

You're going to need more people on your team but if you can nail those two positions down solid, the rest of your team will be easier to put together. Property managers and real estate agents should (big emphasis on SHOULD) have referrals for other positions you'll need such as real estate attorneys, insurance agents, contractors, etc.

While those two might be the most important to make long distance investing work, finding quality contractors will probably be the most challenging. I also personally would never go the "find friends/family in the area to be your boots on the ground" route. Nobody enjoys doing work for free no matter how close of a relationship you have. There's plenty of other downsides to it such as jealousy, risking relationships, etc. I personally wouldn't do it but I know people who do and have had success doing it... so it's one of those "to each his own" kind of things.

I'm pretty sure Zillow has always done this. I can't speak for the landlord features because I've never used theirs but they have done this since I was using their Premiere Agent back in 2017. The legality of it all will vary from state to state.

For all of Zillow's shortcomings lately, I actually didn't mind this feature. It was beneficial as an agent for those buyers who change their criteria a million times before a purchase.

You have to remember that you're using THEIR service. It's easy to click an "Accept Terms and Conditions" button when you want to sign up but you have to remember there's a lot of things in those terms and conditions that many people don't bother reading. If a large company like that is doing something you might not agree with, chances are you already agreed to it (whether you're aware of it or not).

 I'll add a couple thoughts that might guide you more efficiently in your journey:

1) Cut down the markets you chose by at least half. There's no need to invest in 10 different markets when you're first starting out, you're spreading yourself way too thin. Choose 3 markets that best fit what you're looking to accomplish and narrow in on them.

2) A minimum 15% CocROI is wishful thinking for a new investor especially in some of the markets you listed. It's not impossible but it requires a lot of experience, great marketing plan for off-market properties, a great network, etc. These things take time to develop which is why it's more difficult if you're just starting out.

3) Do NOT fall for the "I'll get a huge discount if I buy cash" bologna. All cash purchases are better for time-sensitive transactions but in most cases you're not going to get some steep discount just because you buy in cash. A seller isn't going to leave $50k on the table (hypothetical number used as an example) just because you have a cash offer when they can keep that money by just waiting a few extra weeks for a conventional loan offer. IMO, the only time where it makes sense to purchase all cash is for fix and flips (again, it's just my opinion). You will have much more leverage and will build wealth much faster by leveraging your $400k instead of buying in cash. In simplistic terms, would you rather have 2 properties that you brought in cash with the $400k or would you rather have 10 properties with that same $400k by using conventional lending?

I hope this helps shed some light on what you're looking to do.

@Stephanie P.

You nailed this btw. Her situation improved significantly over the last few weeks after shopping around.

W2 employment is GOLD to lenders right now. It’s the first time they’re seeing unemployment at this rate so they’re valuing it more than I can remember.

What helped my client a lot was she was furloughed, not fired/quit/etc. Therefore, she still has the opportunity of returning (which she is going to now, at least until she buys the home).

It was difficult finding lenders who would accept the months of no work. We ended up going with a local credit union (which have always been more lenient than traditional banks) who valued her work history and savings.

@Todd Powell

Cool story, former all-state wrestler also many moons ago. I love it because it's the one sport you can't blame refs, teammates, coaches, etc. You get exactly what you put in. It goes hand in hand with REI (among many other things in life). Best sport in the world!

Baseball.

You don’t need a Grand-Slam to win the game.

You can build up a ton of momentum AND still win the game by hitting singles.