All Forum Posts by: Iris Burrows

Thanks @Rick Baggenstoss for adding me to the thread. I'm definitely interested!

Special request (since no one else has specified) I'd prefer that Thursday 21st and please count me in. Great idea. There are plenty of spots in midtown to accommodate us.

I haven't sent out all the letters from my list of 300 names yet, but in the first 150 I've received approximately 20 responses. Now they didn't all lead to deals and contracts but I've gained plenty of insight from the list I've purchased.  

1) My targeted area needs improvement.  Make sure, as another investor suggested to me (unfortunately after I already had my list), find out where the investors are buying and use those areas as your target.

2) When I have sent letters out, I have gotten responses in a soon as a day of reception, to a week or 2 weeks has been the maximum response time after receipt.  What that tells me is that everyone has gotten the chance to choose whether to open my mail, call me back or throw it away. So, I could very well send follow up letters shortly after that to those who did not respond at all. I've kept track of return mail (very few) and those who have called and said they weren't at all interested or the owners moved, etc. Just to save me time and money from sending follow ups to them again.

3) Letters work better for me. I've sent out 200 post cards from a separate list and got 1 response 2 months later. That's WACK! I'll take my 20 calls from a 150 letter pool any day.

4) Although there can be several factors why post cards weren't as successful to me as letter have been I've learned mostly that you have to find what works best for you. It's definitely trial and error, so pay close attention to the reaction of your campaigns. No response is also feedback.

Hope this helps,

Iris

I appreciate all the input. I listened to a BP podcast where they interviewed @Ben Grise. He's been in the business just a year and has already done at least 5 deals. He happened to mention that he uses different formulas for different purposes of real estate. For instance, the standard is the 70% rule. But there is more to consider when trying to flip to a landlord. That tid bit of information should also help me keep my numbers in check when I deal with sellers. 

@Barton Wallace, you said you regularly make appointments without having an offer on the table. My fear is that my numbers don't work and I get out to the house and they still don't work, for myself or the seller. I'm at a point in the game where I'm willing to cut some of my profit to better fit the buyers needs. Is that naive? Or is it that although I'm harnessing my negotiation skills, the sellers really aren't that motivated?

Hey BP community--I'd like to reach out to those who Invest in Atlanta with this post.

I've come across many investors lately who do not buy in 30331.  Someone did advise me before to take note of where investors are buying and target that area. Great advise from @Heather W. However, I'd already had my list, so sometimes you have to work with what you've got. 

Still, are there any investors out there who shop in the less favorable 30331, 30314, 30311, 30315...These are areas that perform better as buy and hold, but in some neighborhoods, property values are sustaining and increasing.

Thanks for you comments and connections.

Hey @Nathan. Great tip on driving the neighborhoods on my list. You obviously put plenty of energy into your work. 

Right now, I'm targeting absentee homeowners. I just got one other home under contract yesterday! Now I have to flip it. I'm pretty excited. I don't stand to make a bunch off of it, but I have plenty of room for the buyer as a selling point. It's ok, though. It's my first actual deal, I just have to make it happen.

Thanks for the details @Jim! I'm always concerned, too, about if I should even speak to a buyer when the seller and I haven't contractually agreed to a price. I'm certainly going to use some of the method you've shared. And God willing, your deal will pan out for you. As @jpaul mentioned earlier, even if the deal isn't a huge pay day, a profit is better than nothing. I think Phil Pustejovsky said, "a quick nickel beats a slow dime" and Anthony Robbins said, "50% of something beats 100% of nothing"

Keep the advice coming guys, I'm soaking it up!

@Rick

Thanks for your input. Valid points there of things I've been missing-building trust! I am a very personable...person, but I have definitely dropped the ball from the questions you've asked. I do believe that part of my issue is the sellers are not motivated-even though they call me. Another part, I keep getting other investors calling, which I think is the cause of their numbers being higher than I can take and still turn a profit. But you're right. I need to sell them on it! I need to really figure out what They need and provide the solution. I've worked in sales for half my life, i should know that this applies to motivated sellers as well.

Thanks a bunch!

appointment?

Hey BP Community!

I've been working diligently to make a deal these days. I've sent out as many letters as my marketing budget can handle, and I've actually gotten a great response rate. Many of those who have called, though, will not accept the offer I make. And the amount of money they are looking for is totally far from where I need it to be--even if I don't make a cent off the deal!  

I'm wondering, am I truly low balling these sellers or is it just the nature of the business? I use 3 different formulas to determine my max offer, 2 of them are just slight variations from the industry known ARV*70%-(repairs+ fees). I also take an average of 4 reputable home websites to closely gauge the ARV.

I want to be able to stick to my guns, believe that I'm running my numbers right and accurately doing my due diligence, it's just that no one is taking the bait. Anyone have any suggestions, opinions or feedback they'd like to share?

I'd appreciate it. Thank you

Congratulations David. Your story actually got me thinking about mobile homes, I didn't even think about that when I thought about wholesaling. I thank you for your indirect inspiration.