All Forum Posts by: Jonathan Greene

Your costs for PM and Section 8 requirements will likely make it not a great first investment from afar. Section 8 is very consistent on the pay side, but tenancy can be an issue in some. Out-of-state investing is hard for first-timers and when you add on more things like Section 8, need of a PM, maybe no plans to be there, HOA requirements and potential assessments if it's a condo or townhouse, it's a lot to bite off for a first one.

Great points by @Daniel Haberkost above. Your issue isn't your plan, it's smart and you've done the research enough to make one, but with limited capital you don't want to already be thinking 2-3 ahead. Get one, maximize it, refinance out of it and then decide what to do. I wouldn't go in, knowing you are cash-low, thinking about the second and third property. That usually corrupts the focus on your first major investment.

No, don't sign that. It is their way of protecting themselves if you see 100 properties and never offer, but that's part of the game. If you don't have your license as an investor, you have to make real-life friends with an agent who is also an investor. In the beginning, you can just ask to see what they are interested in and then toss in some of your own. If they are more an investor than an agent, they may like to have another set of eyes.

A cold approach as a new investor is mostly a waste of time for agents so you have to understand their side going in. And you already do if you know that, right now, you don't have a ton to offer. But maybe you have things to offer outside, not as a payment or any side deal, as a person. Depending on your main trade, if it's not investing, maybe you can help them out as a friend.

I hope this helps. I wouldn't sign any agreement unless it was for a specific property that you were bidding on only.

In every corner of real estate, those that are willing to walk away will always close the best deals. That doesn't mean you have to be rude to walk away, it's all about valuing your time and price and not spending excess time in a back and forth when you know your numbers. Too often as a new investor, we can't let go of that property we love so much. And then we pay for it later. All because we weren't willing to walk away.

My strategy as an agent and as an investor has always been the same. This is what I have to offer, I am confident in what I am offering, this is my only offer. No hard feelings if you don't take it, here is my card or contact info, just give me a call when you decide. Then, I never, ever adjust my offer. I still think negotiation is valid, but it's often just a game because neither side wants to walk away. For me, it's a waste of time to go back and forth over and over again. I don't like to spend all this time going back and forth over $1,000 or one cracked window.

As an investor, I submit my offer with an explanation of why my numbers are the way they are and that's it. I don't keep calling them, I don't even worry about it. I will check in two weeks later, but they usually call back before then if they were really ready. Once a seasoned seller knows you will negotiate, they will keep going and expect you to follow. When you lay out why your terms are just as important as the price and give a detailed background on the comps and compare them, there isn't much they can say. And PS, no one else in your market is likely to give them all of that information. That's why your offer is your only offer.

Some people find this too hardcore or not friendly, but it's not like that at all. It will save a ton of time over the year and give you more freedom to make more offers instead of waiting on one. I know that a lot of people hug the deal because they are hard to come by in their area, but that still doesn't make it a good deal if you can't get it at the number you want. You can still be friendly and build a relationship with a seller by not caving or wavering. In the end, I think that most sellers respect this more and trust you more when you say "this is my offer and this is why" and then you stick to that, no matter how long they take to get back to you to do the deal.

@Matt Palmisanothat's a great point and is one of the biggest problems with Bro Investor. They toss the jargon around, but don't even know what it means. They want more from others and have nothing to offer.

@Brandon Hicks it's too hard to read another post when you can just post a quick question like, "Newbie wholesaler. How do I do it?"

@Matt M. there is a whole 'nother thread on the self-promotion thing, I agree. I also don't think it helps new investors to think about how they can get 100 units making $100 profit each. That makes no sense to me. It's like dominos, one falls and they all fall.

@George W. very true. NYC Investors are hounding me for all the deals because everything sounds like a good deal comparatively. The metrics are very different though. They are used to square feet and different valuation styles and it does not apply when coming out here in the same way.

It's just not a good use of time to post a question, but not give any background because all of us come in there asking questions anyway. The best responses for newbies come when they give all the info upfront. They are the ones who benefit the most right away with top-notch answers from the community.

I wouldn't submit that and I don't think the realtor is off-base on this one. With foreclosures or REO, the price can be pretty close to the bottom. You should always be able to submit lower offers, but when you tack on a seller credit, it's very unlikely. It depends how the foreclosure is on the market. They may know there is no chance and from their point of view, if you are going to ask for a seller credit on foreclosures moving forward, they may not want to do it. I agree with @Edgar Butler though, discuss it with them and just ask why they know it won't work. On some auction sites they do give the opportunity for seller credits, but you have to realize that most foreclosure deals are fully as-is and the bank does not care about seller credits. Asking for a lower price and seller credit on a foreclosure is a double-dip to them.

Very risky inside an HOA community. I would not do it. Neighbors in HOA communities report everything in my experience, but that was in FL mostly with tight HOA. If they see someone exiting and entering all the time they will eventually figure it out. You would need certain window height and exits to be fire legal also and you could be held liable if something happened to the illegal boarder tenant. (I am an attorney, but no longer practice. This does not constitute legal advice.)

@George W. in some ways it does provide more opportunity, but you know that in NJ the influx of Bro Investor has pushed prices, specifically for multis, way up. Every multi near me gets 15 bids and 10 of them are overvalued because Bro wants to win. It messes up the block value by adding value, but when they bomb and have to sell out back down it goes and that screws with appraisals big time in a one-year span.

Bro Investors make a surprisingly negative impact when trying to wholesale because when the first wholesaler in the door says everything wrong, that seller (one who is old school and not in need of selling) will hide for another year thinking we will all try to Bro Dawg approach.