I think for a lot of realtors, it comes down to a wiifm (whats in it for me). We know what’s in it for the investor but from a realtors stand point, the juice usually isn't worth the squeeze. I think if a realtor is working with a new investor, the wiifm comes into play heavily or vice versa, a veteran investor is working with a realtor who is new to working with investors and hates the amount of work they have to put in.
I've been on both sides and I think I wrote some things on this before, but this goes both ways. It also depends what kind of an investor you are. Are you only hunting just HUDS and bank owned and sitting around on a few wholesalers lists? Or are you a wholesaler who is mailing out yellow letters, calling or mailing on expired listings?
I would really look at your business model and see how a realtor might make money consistently from your business model. If you are that bank owned buyer with the 25% conventional loan hoping to get something and have a realtor drive you around to everything in the city for months on end, then yes, your realtor will not call you back.
So here is how I would approach a realtor. You can do coffee or just call them over the phone. Ask if they are interested in working with an investor and then talk about yourself and then talk about the wiifm and what you can do for them should they be interested. If they say yes, then tell them exactly what you would need them to do, such as run comps, possibly drive out to houses and let you in. Find a realtor that doesn’t have kids and obligations. You want a hustler who works all day and night. Not someone who is in bed by 9 pm and busy at soccer practice from 6-8. Find someone who owns a smart phone, can email or text you at all hours, and has docusign to shoot offers off. You want someone who is comfortable putting in 20-100 offers a week and doesn’t mind their phone blowing up with negative comments from bank listing realtors who are annoyed by the low ball offer you put in. Tell them you would like to a do test run for a few weeks and if you guys don’t mesh, then you guys will go your own way. That is quite a bit to ask, but you are basically entering into almost a partnership. So heres the wiifm part for a realtor to get him to do all of those nice things. You need to go to BAT for your realtor, as if it’s your brother in law who lives in your basement and he needs a job before he can move out and you are out there asking all your colleagues if they are hiring. If you have that kind of devotion to your realtor, they will have that devotion to you.
Wholesalers –
I hear this all the time on BP podcasts where you mail out yellow letters, meet the owners and find that they are better off listing the house. If that is the case, go to bat for your realtor. Tell the owner you know one of the best listing agents in city and if it’s ok with the owner, you will have them call them. If this starts leading to a lot of leads for your realtor, then I bet your realtor might even cover the costs of your yellow letters.
Flippers / Wholesalers -If you are an investor, obviously promise that you will list the houses that you flip with them but also let your realtor know that you will spread his name amongst the REI meetings for other investors who are looking for a good realtor. Realtors work on referrals and its big for them.
If you are a wholesaler, and you have a good deal that maybe you got as a bank owned that you put under an LLC (I don't know if this still works, I think Brandon ripped on this concept on this last time), and you are going to wholesale it off to a buyer, then TRY and package the deal with your realtor. It's simple, if you have a HOT deal that is getting the attention of multiple flippers, then sell it to a flipper with the condition that they use your realtor to list the house after they are done with it. Just say my realtor helped me find this deal and I made a deal with him that he would list it. There wouldn't be any paper work for this or anything. More of a "your word" sort of thing. If you are going to do this, make sure your realtor knows how to list a house. If you get a total newb realtor, it could be bad for your reputation. It's not hard to list a house, but look for a realtor who uses a professional photographer and will do an open house. Those are all big things that do help sell a house quicker and that is what we want when we flip a house. If you are a flipper without a license, then you won't care buying a wholesale deal with this condition. Even if your drinking buddy Larry who usually lists your house is a realtor, you still won't care. It's business and the inventory levels are small. If the deal isn't hot and you find a flipper who is personally licensed and they don't like that idea, then it is what it is and you tried, but at least you tried.
These are just a few things you can do. Don’t be offended if a realtor turns you down as you may turn down quite a few realtors yourself. This is no different than finding a contractor where some will do a bad job and some will do great. Interview several people as you are trying to build a solid team.
