All Forum Posts by: Barry Pekin

@Theresa Harris,

I don't see that as a problem.  In fact, assuming you have a good contract, you have the opportunity to renegotiate if necessary.  After all, this is all in the discovery phase.

Also, if the owner doesn't even know about this, then he's a great candidate for getting rid of the property at a great discount.  Think about it.  If you owned a property (perhaps far from home) that you want to get rid of, and you find out it's in such distress that there's this violation against it, you would probably be willing to get rid of it ASAP.

Good luck!

@Danny Kaminsky,

I recommend the book, "If you can't wholesale after this... I've got nothing for you."  It's an easy read and  a fairly good roadmap of the whole process.

@Vincent Plant,

They are assigning a contract to you.  You MUST be able to see the contract.  There's no way to accept assignment of a contract without seeing it.  What if the contract also said, "Hey, we also get your first born"?

The only reason the wholesaler would be hesitant to show you the contract is if they're afraid you're going to back out because you don't like how much money they're making on the deal, or they're afraid you're going to look at the contract and then go around them.

First, make sure you're happy with the deal regardless of what the wholesaler's going to make.  If it's a good deal for you, it's a good deal for you.  If it's not, then it's not.  If the wholesaler is making $1,000, I'm sure you'd be fine with that.  If it turns out that the wholesaler is making $50,000, you need to be ok with that as well.  After all, it doesn't affect your deal once you've determined it's a good deal for you.  Once you adopt that mindset, let the wholesaler know this and then stick to it.

Second, if the wholesaler doesn't trust you not to make an end-run once you see the original contract, then that's on them.  They have the house under contract.  If, after seeing the contract, you decide to do an end run, you can't because they have it under contract.  If they're still worried, you can also offer to sign an non-compete agreement.

That said, it's really on the wholesaler.  But if you want the deal, you can help them over this hump.

@Mark Tallent,

I'm not familiar with this law, nor am I local, but that seems like an odd law.  After all, you can get list data from other sources.  I use PropStream.  I'd look into if you can use that or something else.

@Matthew Spence,

If your biggest concern is getting a house under contract and then not having a buyer, then address that concern. Find buyers. It's not that hard. Start networking through local REI groups and FB groups. Look for houses being rehabbed and talk to the people there. Once you have a nice solid list, this won't be such a big concern anymore.

Next, think about what your next biggest concern is and work on that.  And so on, and so on.

For me, my next biggest concern was not having a good title company.

@Merari Alfaro,

The hardest part of wholesaling is finding the properties and getting them under contract.  I think the wholesaler who has the property under contract deserves 70% (or so).  That said, it's all in the negotiation. 

Now, if you take it to another wholesaler, and they're wanting a fee as well, you should pay them out of your portion.  The original wholesaler isn't responsible for additional costs incurred by you in the disposition process.

And, finally, finding cash buyers is usually the easiest part.  All wholesalers should have plenty of cash-buyers in their list.  They should know what they want.  That way when they get a property, they can immediately assign the contract.

Finding cash buyers scares some wholesalers in the beginning.  Once you start networking, you will find they're all over the place.

@Julius Lenon Jr,

This is why it's so important to be honest and transparent.  Let them know what you do and that you will be working with your network of buyer, and that in the end, someone else will be completing the purchase.  I haven't had anyone balk at this.

@Bryan Rodas,

First things first.  Be sure to get a good solid understanding of what wholesaling is all about.  I recommend the book, "If you can't wholesale after this... I've got nothing for you."

And, yes, I've heard the concerns that when you're wholesaling, you're taking advantage of the desperate and misinformed.  You can do that, or you can be honorable, truthful, and transparent.  I just met with a seller who reached out to me with a complete understanding of what I do.  He wants to get rid of his house.  He doesn't want to spend time/money to fix it up and make it showable.  I've met with others in the past who didn't know what I do.  I explained exactly what I do.  I tell them they can make more money on the sale of their house if they're willing to do various things (fix it up, list it, etc.).  Sometimes they opt to go that route (as they should), and sometimes they are willing to take less just to get it off their plate.

Good luck!

@Henry Urey Rivas,

@Nicole Heasley Beitenman is right.  I like to use PropStream because you have ongoing access to live data.  You can't get some things, but you can do searches on things like high equity, location (of course), absentee owners, out-of-state owners, etc.  If you're going to cold call, you can then use something like TruePeopleSearch to skip trace for phone numbers (free).

@Deonte Palmer,

That shouldn't be a problem.  Go with reality.  If everything is saying 4 bedrooms, and there are actually 5, go with that.  I just went to a townhouse where there was a loft.  The owner was telling me that some people refer to that as a bedroom, and some don't.  Who cares?  Just make sure you do a good job getting comps and go with that.