All Forum Posts by: MATT WARDEN

You can surely partner with someone, even if you are not bringing cash or credit to the table. But depending on what you are bringing to the table, your % in the profits will be different. If he is taking all the risk, then he's probably not going to be keen on a 50/50 split.

Am I really thinking inside the box by suggesting that it is silly to limit yourself to REI when there are better options in your area?

No one is saying you can't make money. Of course you can make money. The only question is whether your $x is best put into RE or some other investment. That is the question real smart investors ask.

And earning better than 10% on your investment, right?

I am generally confused when things like this come up, and they come up a lot around here.

If I were thinking of opening a Starbucks, because they sure are money makers, but my immediate location was a horrible market for a Starbucks, I either:

(1) would open it elsewhere (and accept associated headaches with remote mgt), or
(2) not open a Starbucks.

Why is the real estate business any different? It almost seems like people are dead-set on being a REI regardless of whether it makes financial sense.

I know people who have converted from gas to electric baseboard heat. See:

http://www.google.com/search?q=electric+baseboard+heat

and

http://www.shopfnc.com/qm2500.htm?gclid=COvVjqjW-IwCFQVpFQodj2tiDQ

The latter will help with some ballpark dollar values, although surely they vary widely by model/brand.

Let's say you put only $2k into it to get its value up to $95k. You are at $86000. Sale of the property will cost you around $5.5k. You are at $91500. Add in closing costs/points on the purchase and holding costs, and I'm just hoping you end up in the positive...

REI, am I missing something? Why do you think this could be a good deal? (Disclaimer: I know nothing but light theory about flipping.)

Yes, if you buy a mass-produced product, you're going to get a mass-produced product. The scale is even greater on the Web. These affiliate sites are worthless. If the only way you're willing to get on the web is with an affiliate site, then you don't need to be on the web.

Do not worry about buying more REI stuff until you fix your credit.

In the meantime, I would just stick with reading this forum and checking out books from the library. If you come across things you don't understand, ask. If you don't want to ask basic questions in the forum, feel free to PM me.

People have caught on to the "build it and they will come" myth. I took the OP to mean that he will drive traffic to the site through direct marketing techniques to sellers, and therefore the site needs to be geared toward sellers. If he meant that he will bank on a high Google ranking, let me suggest that the OP's money can be used better elsewhere.

No, please do not use these sites. They are useless leftovers from the portal-hype era. They promise nothing except to create a barrier between you and your customers. Just the other day, I was searching for a lawyer and kept ending up on various pages of one of these sites. Needless to say, I kept searching until I found a lawyer with an actual website.

Either a website is useful in your marketing plan or it isn't. These cookie-cutter sites cater to people who are somewhere in the middle. They feel like they should have a website because everyone else does, but they don't consider it a core part of their plan. All they're going to get is the privilege of filling out that line of their business card.

Again, either a website is useful in your marketing plan or it isn't. If it is, then you need to shell out the money to actually create a good website with good content. If a user will find value in your website, then when you build it they will come!

Exactly. Have a business problem and then decide that a website can solve it. I have talked to too many people who do it backwards. If these people are approaching me to do their site, then I tell them to come back when they've solidified the site's purpose*. I would suggest that the OP do the same.

*I've found that such people typically turn out to be horrible clients, because they do not know what they want starting out, and will continually add on and change things throughout the life of the project.

He won't plug it, but I will. Buying his book was the best $50 I ever spent. If you are getting into rental properties and you don't have his book, you're risking much more than $50!

For example, if MikeOH hadn't responded to my first couple of posts as bluntly as he did, I would not have realized how much I needed to learn and would not have gotten my act together so quickly. Surely, no one likes to feel like an idiot, but sometimes that can create motivation. And I think the thing to keep in mind at all times is that the experienced investors here clearly are trying to keep you from losing lots and lots of money. The ends definitely justify the means.

I see much less "you're an idiot; you should buy my mentoring product so you aren't such an idiot" posting here relative to other similar forums.