All Forum Posts by: Riley F.

@Jeremy T. 

Sorry for all the responses, I am on an ipad at tagged this to the wrong person - I am sending out 700 at a go on a monthly basis. I am going to start mailing to more folks after I test this first campaign out and get my mistakes out of the way when they are relatively cheap.

@Account Closed 's company - address in the signature. Only good things to say about them thus far, and while they may be a little more expensive than doing it yourself, my time is more valuable than the $15 an hour that I save stuffing envelopes myself. My $0.02.

Oh, and @Jason Eyerly , what service do you use?

@Account Closed 

Thanks for the info. I have a couple of questions for you as I've considered this.

• Do you worry about an opportunity to build rapport with the seller on the first call by using your answering services? 
• How has it worked out?
• How many letters are you typically sending at one time?
• How does the pay structure and phone number setup work?

Thanks in advance for your info and time.

@Brant Richardson 

I am mailing for both. Trying to build up some cash reserves right now for my next couple of purchases, but you can't buy them all.

Will be sure to put anything interesting out to you.

Hahaha, @Michael Quarles , thanks for the response. Live and learn on the zipletter - you really don't know what you don't know when you kick off.

Which post card would you have sent? Also, it seemed like I was limited to something like 100 characters on the back side, which didn't seem like quite enough to put anything meaningful.

GRRRRRRR

EAT

@Brant Richardson 

Just realizing that I didn't respond to you. Details are the guy was moving out of town, wanted to unload quickly. Contract was for $32, I believe, assigned it for a decent profit.

I've since sent out a batch of yellow text post cards (batch #2), with a dismal response rate, 3 calls total.

I have a color post card that went out over the last few days (batch 3). Next up are zip letters and type letters. Testing as I go, but very disappointed by the text post card results. Will probably mail this list 6 or 7 times before I refresh my list. Will also stop mailing exclusively absentees and start mailing equity holders. This will be a much bigger list, and I will probably do it in batches of 500 staggered weekly. 

As promised, I will keep everyone updated.

@Richard Redding 

I didn't intend to focus on the building, just trying to give pertinent information. A new construction with granite and stainless in the ghetto isn't an A prop - this I certainly understand. School district for me is a 6/10 good schools.

I was listening to Brie's podcast this morning and I started thinking about which class, over the long run, is the best for rental income (and headaches) : A, B, C, or D. I don't want to quibble about definitions, so in your response you can just explain what you mean by the class that you prefer to invest in., and what class you would consider that in your area.

I currently own B-/C+ properties, which are largely blue collar rural neighborhoods, the buildings are about 40 years old, are duplexes, suitable size, but certainly not where I would live given the choice. One of the things I am noticing is that repairs are generally required each month, at least for the first 3 months. Though I don't expect it to persist, I suspect that they will certainly exceed that of a Class A fresh rehab or new construction. It would seem to me that the caliber of renter is slightly lower than what I'd like or what Brie is seeing in Chicago, but the numbers, at least on paper are very good, approximately 30% CoC in KCMO, depending on variables. Also, I am certain there is an eviction somewhere on the horizon if I keep up with the class, not sure when.

I know that real estate is local, and that this is going to vary greatly from market to market, but I'd like to hear your opinions.

I'lll see you there.

I said that I would keep everyone updated on my progress. Below are the details on response rate:

Sent Letters: 723

Responses: 33

Response Rate: 4.56% (Not including @Brant Richardson )

Cost / Incoming Call :  $18

I don't find cost / incoming call to be a very representative metric, because so many of them were just tire kickers.  "So you wanna buy my house - well make me an offer smart guy!" As time goes on, I'm sure I'll have more representative metrics, but it just goes to show that you really don't know what you don't know when you take your first steps in any real estate strategy.

From the first mailing, we've put one under contract and have a couple other possibilities pending. I've sent another batch of post cards that builds on the first, which will hopefully hit mailboxes in the next week or so. 

Will post another update once I get underway with the 2nd.