All Forum Posts by: Shawn Holsapple

Even though the hedge funds have been here in Indianapolis for a few years now, there are still plenty of opportunities.

I do a considerable amount of wholesale now, here in Indy, and I'll be glad to help you out anyway I can. Please let me know if you get any inventory here to sell. I'll take it.

I would suggest you get at least three bids from local contractors, this early on in your career. One way to find these contractors, is just to go to the local big box stores at 6 AM and find out who is there. You can also ask the guys at the contractors desk at the stores as well.

If all the work is overall simple, you can also just put a ad on craigslist under labor gigs and subcontract each of the sections out. I've had overall good success going this route in the past with smaller projects.

Of course hiring a contractor is a whole other subject, I'm sure there are several threads in this form about that.

Good luck!

@Steve Babiak makes some good points.

It sounds like forming a LLC outside of CA is much more economical. Here in Indiana, the annual fee is around $125 vs. CA is over $800 [I believe].

I based my setup on the Rich Dad Education books [The ABC's of RE Investing & RE Advantages]. I have a S-Corp as the "parent" company, then a LLC for flipping/wholesaling and then several more LLC's for the buy/hold properties.

As mentioned above, a good CPA should be able to help you set this up. If they haven't heard of this setup or tell you to just be a sole proprietor - run out of their office!

A good gauge I used for selecting my CPA is to ask them how many audits they have been a part of. If the answer is a proud "None" or very few, then they are too passive and not aggressive enough. Move on to the next one. You want a seasoned investment freindly CPA, preferrably a land lord or investor as well.

Remember - It's not what you make but what you KEEP!

Welcome @Rosalina Brenda Berk !

Let me know if I can assist you with anything concerning the Indiana market.

@Jason Eyerly all the comments above are accurate.

In Indiana, every licensee must be a broker by June of this year.

The only other way to get access to the MLS is to work at a brokers office as a non-licensed assistant. They can then set you up with MLS access. I'm sure there would still be a fee for this.

Like most of the other comments states, I would just bite the bullet and get your license if you plan on being serious investor. With that said, by doing so, you will be held at a higher level of professionalism - which we should all do anyway. You don't have to pay for a full year for MLS access up front, you can pay bi-annually.

I would find an investor friendly broker and volunteer there as much as you can. This "free" labor will gain you a ton of knowledge and maybe a deal or two just by osmosis. You could be the "picture" guy and get to look at several properties a week to get a quick idea of what is out there and how to evaluate them. I'm sure at some point they would start to pay you for this service... Just a thought.

I buy nearly 100 properties off the MLS a year and that nets a nice income by itself. Plus, I never have to show the pickett fences to Ken & Barbie on the weekends like my counter parts are doing to just make a living!

I hope that helps.

Welcome @Eddie Starr & @Kathryn M. !

What is the buying criteria for Indianapolis?

I get "buyers" like this every week saying this or that but in reality that are wanting outrageous returns and/or don't really have the funds.

I AM a broker AND a wholesaler with a good selection of SFH homes in good areas. Since this is a sellers market and inventory is low, the great deals that could be had just a few years, or even several months, ago are gone.

Please post or send me the buyers criteria to see if it is worth pursuing.

@Scott S. to BP!

It's good to see another Hoosier taking advantage of this great site.

For me, no money down looks like this:

I buy a as-is property well below ARV with cash [either my own or a private investor], fix it up & then go to a local State Bank or Credit Union and do a refi @ 75% of the appraised value. This will nearly always get me all of my investment back and sometimes a little extra cash from the equity.

Otherwise, the only other way is if you can find a seller to carry the financing and get them to take zero down [very unlikley].

@Andrew Sanders and @Justin Joseph did you work with Butch @ VE?

They buy a few from me a year and seem to be a good bunch.

@Shawn Mcenteer I have a great investor friendly inspector in Indy. PM for details if interested.

@Kevin Rehak I agree with @Jerry W. & @Sharad M.

You should just need a State purchase agreement and the rest can be handled by the title company/attorney.

I would, however, suggest never to give the EMD to the seller and only to the title company/attorney. In the event the deal falls through, this will make getting your EMD back much easier.