All Forum Posts by: Jim Bowser

Thank you for reaching out! I do wholesale to cash buyers. I will add you to my list and let you know as soon as I have located a property in your area. I will be in contact soon!

I don't think Josh has ever been to Detroit. Metro Detroit is very, very nice, and the city is transforming in a positive way almost daily. But, as I am sure you know, Grand Rapids, while it is in Michigan, is on the other side of the state from Detroit. If you ever want to get involved in the super great Detroit Metro market, let me know.

In these situations, how do you ensure that the seller is not taking the interest deduction?  You do not see their tax return  and they do in fact receive the 1099. Would this be part of the agreement between the seller and you as purchaser that you would take the interest deduction?   Then you would be ok if the IRS questioned it, and it would be the seller that would be in error and have to repay it.   Without an agreement, it seems like you would be the one that would be found to be in error  

Certainly, best of luck to you! From what I have read and heard on the BP podcasts, if you do it right, direct mail works and it can be analyzed scientifically with predicted results. I know it is a significant investment but they say that it is worth it because you will get results. But you have to be very careful selecting the list that you are sending to and you have to keep sending it to those same people monthly at least six times. Further, you have to be very diligent in properly receiving the calls that you get or obviously you're wasting the money. At least that is what, I have gathered from my study of it. Do you have any prior experience with direct mailing? I would imagine since you have been wholesaling in your area for two years, you have a pretty good knowledge of the housing base in the area that you are targeting. Please keep us informed how it goes.

I would suggest going to some local real estate investor meetings in your area and mingle with people that are involved in real estate. Talk to them about what they do and what's involved. I think you'll find that even though somebody doesn't technically have a boss, they still have deadlines and still have people that are in a position to control the outcome of what they seek. That being said, maybe being in business for yourself, such as in real estate, might be something that is appropriate for you. Good luck!

This may be a little off topic and if so I apologize but I often hear that Zillow, Trulia, RealtyTrac and the like, which are not MLS, are estimates and cannot be relied upon. But if they're listing actual sale prices, wouldn't that generally be accurate? They also give information as to the details of the home so that you can come up with comps. I agree that the MLS is best, but aren't these others fairly good substitutes as to actual sales?

I can speak from personal experience having purchased a home for my own use that had bathrooms and several bedrooms pink. Change them immediately for your own mental health! Spending any amount of time in them or around them will drive you crazy. Certainly you're going to limit your purchasers with all that pink. Most are going to think about all the work they're going to have to do and money they will have to spend if they buy the house, which is going to limit their interest.

I agree that it would be difficult to be successful wholesaling by getting your leads off the MLS or using an agent. There's just too much competition for those properties to get the kind of deal you're going to need to carve out a profit for you and also for the cash buyer that wants to flip the property. That being said, however, if you have a good agent who understands what you are looking for, they may be able to send you deals before they go on the MLS.

They're not illegal in all communities.  You need to check your locality for the legality of bandit signs.  Are they really littering if you monitor their condition and take them down when you are done?  What's the difference with the political signs, garage sales, lost Pets???

I, for one, cannot understand all the complaints against and actual hostility toward wholesalers. They merely provide investors with information about potential deals. This is a tool for investors to find deals! Investors review the information as presented by the wholesalers and either ask for more information and verify or say not interested. In my view, wholesalers are very valuable to investors. And if some people are saying that not all investors are competent, you can say that about practically any other line of work as well. If people are saying that sometimes wholesalers are wide eyed and not realistic about what's involved in wholesaling, that is true about most things when people first get started. Let's show a little tolerance, shall we?