All Forum Posts by: James Ihssen

Price Drop! Please give me call for more information! 630-870-9479

@William Allen

Thank you very much! I enjoy sharing information on these forums and appreciate it when other people notice!!

Have a great day!

@Brandon Rainwater

Congratulations on finding Bigger Pockets! This place is a valuable resource for beginners and a great place to meet new people and network with like minded individuals!

Here are some recommendations for you to get started:

Find and connect with other Bigger Pockets members that are in your area: http://www.biggerpockets.com/meet

Set up keyword alerts to be notified of the topics that interest you: http://www.biggerpockets.com/alerts

Read the Excellent Beginner’s Guide: http://www.biggerpockets.com/real-estate-investing

Check out the Bigger Pockets Podcasts: http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/category/podcast/

Best of luck to you!!!

James Ihssen

@Aaron Stewart

Congratulations on finding Bigger Pockets!  This place is a valuable resource for beginners and a great place to meet new people and network with like minded individuals!

Here are some recommendations for you to get started:

Find and connect with other Bigger Pockets members that are in your area: http://www.biggerpockets.com/meet

Set up keyword alerts to be notified of the topics that interest you: http://www.biggerpockets.com/alerts

Read the Excellent Beginner’s Guide: http://www.biggerpockets.com/real-estate-investing

Check out the Bigger Pockets Podcasts: http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/category/podcast/

Best of luck to you!!!

James Ihssen

@Lynn Maher  Congratulations on taking the very important step of reaching out and seeking guidance!  Everyone here has provided valuable insight that should be valuable to you.  

I will throw my .02 cents in here.  I would pay off the cc debt first and foremost, then you can build a better credit profile.  Go to a bank and get preapproved for a loan for investment property.  This will give you an idea of what you need to make your first investment.  

With your income from your job, you should be able to save up money for the down payment for your first investment purchase.  From there, assuming you make a smart purchase, you could leverage that cash flow along with future savings from your day job to keep buying new properties.  After you get a few it begins to snowball if you are disciplines and diligent.

Best of luck!!

James Ihssen

Chad, 

I would take a look.  I have learned that private money folks want three questions answered, whether they directly ask them or not. 

How much do I have to give up?  How much will I get back?  What happens if I do not get it back?

Answer those questions for them and you will be one step ahead.  Also, I am not being judgmental, but most investors want to see someone with experience under their belt.  Not to say you cannot get it done, but experience goes a long way towards attracting private money.  

I get that this can be a potential catch 22, but that is a hurdle that most first time investors face.  You could consider a partnership of some sort with an experienced investor.

Also, it helps to have a specific deal lined up.  Without a deal in place, it is hard to even offer specific money terms to a potential investor. 

In your case I would suggest meeting with them, and not asking them directly for money but establish a relationship and ask "Can I call you to present an opportunity when I have something in place?" Also, ask them how they would feel about making x% on their money, but do not offer your max so that you have room for negotiation and sweetening.  Also, even if they say yes by the time you have called them their interest may have waned a bit so when you reach out again you can say "With this deal I can offer x+1%"  This will pique their interest again. 

Another approach is to give them more than they ask for in terms of percentage.  The bottom line and most important thing is that you need to Deliver Results.  Imagine if you could call your private investor and present a check to him and tell him "Here is your principal plus x+2%" because the deal went so well!

I guarantee they will turn around and give you that cash right back to reinvest!! The goal is to build long term relationships that are mutually beneficial.

These examples are geared more towards shorter term private money, which is a lot less risky than your potential lease option approach requiring a potential term of 3 years or more.  Basically the private money lender is taking on the potential landlording risk.  

More risk should be more reward but honestly I have never considered this approach (using private money for lease option deals).  Not to detract you or be judgmental, but finding a seller offering owner financing may be a more viable means to execute lease option deals.

Hopefully these tips you can find useful going forward.

Good luck!!

James Ihssen

@Lorena Ramirez

Foreclosure properties can be purchased at many stages of the foreclosure. By the time the foreclosure process has more or less been completed for a particular property, it is then REO or bank owned. Those will usually hit the mls and there is a specific 'flag' that all mls listed foreclosures are tagged with in order for easy searching for agents.

Find a good realtor in your market and they can set you up with an automated search that runs at any interval you specify (daily, weekly, even 3x a day, etc.) to pull foreclosures for you. 

If you are looking for foreclosure properties at an earlier stage in the process you have a few options.  One is at the 'courthouse steps', which is basically right before the bank takes it back.  There are many good deals to be had at these auctions (especially in certain counties, Cook is super competitive) but you need cash, and a lot of confidence as you never get inside the property in advance.  Cash is due in full within 24 hours of purchase typically and you have to be VERY CAREFUL regarding liens and other items recorded against the property.  With Confidence and LOTS OF DILIGENCE, great deals can be had here, I have had great success at these types of auctions.  BE VERY CAREFUL though without going into a lot of detail I have seen people bid on liens that were not first position liens which means that they were in a secondary lien position and could/will still be most likely completely wiped out if/when the first lien holder eventually forecloses.  This strategy is not for the beginner. 

Another option is to reach out as soon as the lis pendens is filed at the courthouse.  This is the very beginning of the foreclosure process, often called preforeclosure.  Basically, you can search lis pendens filings at your local jurisdiction and then send a letter and/or call the homeowner and try to negotiate a deal with them directly.  This is a safer bet as you will get to view the property and negotiate (if there is equity).  Even if there is no equity, you can approach the homeowner and walk them through the Short Sale Process with you in place as the buyer.  Keep in mind there is competition to this approach, as the homeowner who has a recently filed foreclosure will receive many mailings from people attempting to do the same thing.  The key here is 'touches' meaning you want to 'touch' the homeowner 6 or 7 times.  You cannot just send out one piece of mail and forget about it.  You have to be confident and also empathic regarding their situation though, as many times they are angry or possibly embarrassed about the situation.  

These are the main strategies to acquiring foreclosure properties.  Hope this helps!

James Ihssen

Bruce, 

I would be interested in wholesale properties that you have in northern Illinois.  These forums are a great place to find buyers for your wholesale activities.  You will just have to build a buyer's list and find a way to manage the flow of information.

Best of luck!

James

@Jerry Bruckenheimer

That is a great post and some amazing things that you did for them!

I am a former military man (US ARMY), and I agree that it is stressful moving while in the military!

I just want to drop you a note and say good karma will come your way!!!

Congratulations on finding BiggerPockets!  Plainfield is a great area for flips. I track many deals down there and I am active in Aurora, Montgomery and Oswego, which are just a bit north of Plainfield. 

In fact I was surprised at how relatively close Plainfield is to me.  Once I realized this I added it to my property search criteria. 

Good Luck and keep on learning!!

James