All Forum Posts by: Jeremy T.

Yep, I too have found that will filter out many records that appear without a value in that column.  What I like to do is to leave it blank and include it in the data you append to your records (you do this in "purchase your list"). 

Yes, you will pay per lead for this information, and you should try to cross-reference this to determine the actual sale date if you can, but at least you aren't leaving out 537 potential leads.

What geographic filer are you using?

My apologies to @Bill Manassero that's a tough spot.

I know this is hindsight, and I hate being 'that guy', but this thread could be a Sticky for the importance of doing due diligence before piling your (presumably) hard-earned money into something you clearly had little knowledge about.  The questions you are asking of Memphis BP members are inquiries that need to be executed prior to placing a penny into a property. 

Hell, there is this burgeoning website, census.gov, which provides essentially any element of demographic data one could ever imagine down to census tract block groups (which, in cities, is a very small, concentrated area).  If data collected, analyzed and distributed by the government is not your thing, Trulia has a number of 'heat maps' that can provide a less-detailed, but more up-to-date (presumably) assessment of an area/region/zip. 

If any of you have traded equities/futures/etc with any success you know that THE key to longevity is 'cutting your losses'. Granted, in REI, liquidity is your biggest enemy as it relates to getting out from under this one. As such, (and I hate to be the bearer of bad news) you will likely have to wholesale to get rid of it with any sort of expediency.

Again, my apologies Bill.  Get the hell out of there, learn from it, and move on to the next one.

@Brian Gibbons 

Can you elaborate on this: "If you go through an RMLO, with any kind of rent to own or seller financed deal, any judge could call that deal some kind of a contract for deed as far as the intention of the real estate operator."

This is new language that I'm unfamiliar with.  In the post D-F/SAFE environment an RMLO is primarily used to vet the Tenant-Buyer's/Owner Occupant's ability to repay the loan, yes?  Is the portion quoted above a semantic ruling on the part of the judge merely because the real estate operator used an RMLO?  

What are the consequences of this?  

The reason I ask is because I thought the RMLO was a safe-guard employed by the REI to reduce risk (and, of course, to make sure the person they are putting into a home can afford the home).

Bill G. will likely be along in a bit to get everyone squared away.

Thanks for your help.

Mods you can close this thread, @Karen Rittenhouse just gave everyone the formula for success.

@Eric Renney 

I just ran some quick numbers for Lehigh Acres and you can put together a decent 'starter' campaign with a $1,000 budget.  I guess it's important to determine if you mean 1k/month or total.  I work under the assumption that you mean total.  

You want to mail to the same people no fewer than 6 times.  It is not as simple as dividing 1000 by 6, because you need to purchase a list.  

Also you need to determine what kind of piece you will be sending.  Will you mix it up with letters, post cards, etc?  Will you write your own copy, use generic copy, or outsource it?  

If you go direct mail, it will be easy to get discouraged, but you need to stick with it.  

PM me, I would be happy to help you put together a list.

@Troy Fisher 

I think you are on the right track...some questions and comments.  

How big is your "farm area"?  Is it a collection of zip codes?  A county?  Neighborhoods?  I believe that you can drill down even further to improve the targeting of your list.  PM me if you would like some help.

Even though this is an affluent area, if you are marketing to absentee owners, the motivating factor(s) for wanting to move a property quickly probably do not differ all that much from someone who is motivated to sell in a war zone.  Granted violent crime and other assorted unsavory tenant/neighborhood behaviors are not likely a factor in these properties.  That said, people who own 600k rental properties are not immune from getting sick, divorce, death, drugs, and unemployment.  

You may want to alter your copy a bit (Dan Kennedy has a good book on marketing to the affluent)...meaning the "My wife and I would like to $$$BUY$$$ your hou$e for ca$h" copy may not have the same magical and hypnotic effect on these sellers.

Again, I think you have the right idea in looking for areas with higher percentages of absentee owners.

@Max M. 

You could always try to cross-reference leads with the local tax assessor. Yes, this is far more time consuming than merely banging out a quick 20 CL replies, but if I were someone looking to sell, and I kept getting the same 'form' email or text, it would feel like spam, so your concerns do seem to be legitimate. While more time consuming, you can still systematize this process and outsource it to a VA if/when you desire.

@Jade Davis 

The chicken/egg scenario I spoke of is in regard to finding/vetting/building a relationship with a handful of cash buyers in order to market for properties that they would be interested in purchasing.  Thus you are building your "buyers list" in order to provide a much better target for property acquisition and significantly increase the likelihood of finding someone to assign your deal to.  

The buyers list strategy that the OP is denouncing is much different.

Wait, so you are telling me that the guru I paid 10k to teach me how to build my buyers list is taking me for a ride (even though I have nothing to sell them, and didn't have the extra 25k to shell out to learn how to market for sellers)?!?

FYI, that comment is hitting 10 on the sarcasm meter.  

While figuring out whether to try and find buyers or sellers is a chicken/egg scenario, even with my limited knowledge and experience, it makes me go a little nuts when I hear educators "teaching" people to build a giant buyers list prior to developing a strategy to actually acquire properties (which, IMO, is a pretty important aspect to these transactions). 

Hell I can jump up on stage with my headset and tiny mic and get a room of people fired up to employ my "ninja buyers list hack" vis a vis calling bandit signs and we buy houses websites.  You'll have a stream of buyers ready to pounce on the properties I present to you in part 2, aka: Property Acquisition Boot Camp (for the low low price of only $24,997.00!  Get in now, seats are going fast!)

Am I doing this right?

Granted, the evidence is merely anecdotal, but the vast majority of successful wholesalers report a similar situation to what you describe @David Darling 

@Peter Bussey 

Welcome to the site.

Having done copious amounts of demographic and socioeconomic research (it's sort of my thing) I'm interested to learn what parts of town you are currently investing in?

How are you finding the properties?

Are you preparing for the inevitable Steelers loss to another sub-.500 team this Sunday?