All Forum Posts by: Robbie Reutzel

You are absolutely correct that it's a seller's market.  I think the general consensus is that a correction is coming but nobody knows exactly when that will be. 

@ShaunReilly had a few good Facebook posts about this topic recently.  

In any case, it's safe to say there will be a dip coming soon; possibly as soon as in the next 6 months.  As far as interest rates, you may see a slight increase next month when the Fed meets again but probably a small one.

You may want to hold on until the dip.  Buying lower is usually not a bad thing.

Ehh, not very helpful I know but these things are never easy to predict.

Hi Dan,

BP is a great resource.  You're not a beginner but I would still begin with the Ultimate Beginner's Guide.  It may expose you to some modes of investment you are not familiar with.

I would also suggest the BP Podcasts.  They are full of useful information.

Lots of great meet-ups in the area. I am from Winchester so pretty close to you. There is the New England REIA in Chelmsford, Justin Silverio's quarterly meet-up in Reading, Black Diamond in Waltham and Worcester just to name a few. These are great resources to create relationships.

Good luck!

-Rob

Hi James,

Sounds like you're doing everything you can to get ready.  Congratulations on taking action!

I would suggest you buy J. Scott's book on Flipping Houses because, while it's a great read on its own, it also comes with the Estimating Rehab Costs book.  That is very good.  You can also probably find the Fortune Builders rehab cost checklist as well as a myriad of other online sources.

Also, if you find a really great deal and are able to accurately estimate rehab costs on it you will also give yourself the opportunity to partner with someone to flip it or flip it yourself.  

It's always nice to have multiple exit strategies.

Good luck!

Rob

Hi Daniel,

Welcome to the site. As you mentioned there are some great resources.  I would listen to the podcasts as well as go to the Wholesaling forum and do some searching.

I am a little bit unclear about your buyer's criteria. I can picture many properties that you can buy for $300K but some will be move-in ready while others will need $150K in rehab. Do they have their own formula for determining repairs, ARV, max offer?

A lot of newbies wholesale but I actually think it is one of the more difficult ways to get involved in the business. You really have to be able to determine repair costs and ARV accurately to carve out $5-10K on a deal.

Read the beginner's guide to get an overview of how to find deals but your two best ones will be driving for dollars and direct mailing to various lists.  Direct mail is not cheap but driving for dollars takes a lot of time.  

Good luck.

-Rob

Hello BP,

Looking for large multi-families (150+ units) in Tampa/St. Pete for syndication.  Both momentum and re-positioning deals are wanted.

Specifically looking for 8+ Cap, 12%+ COC, and 1.6+ DCR.

Investors are ready, I just need a deal.

Hi Josh,

There are decent cash flowing properties in Lowell, Fitchburg, Lynn, Lawrence, Methuen etc. 

The problem is that a lot of those are not going to be great appreciation markets and the neighborhoods in a lot of them are not great.  There are good areas around Lowell near UMass that are solid but for the most part the clientele and neighborhoods can be rough.

You could try to bank on a place like Methuen, which had the highest job growth of any town in the Commonwealth in 2014, but it's risky from an appreciation standpoint.

As many have said, in markets like these, buy based on cashflow. Appreciation is just the cherry on top.  

Hi Jovante,

Welcome to BP.  While many will say wholesaling is the easiest way to get involved in real estate investing keep in mind that it takes a pretty high level of sophistication in deal analysis and negotiation and a seller who is willing to unload a property at a very deep discount.  

I would advise finding a mentor who is willing to walk you through the process. Offer your time in exchange for advice. Make yourself valuable to the investor.

Realize though that in order to build a wholesaling business you will need to spend thousands/month on lead generation.  It's a numbers game to find deals. 

Good luck and start attending REIAs and network with everyone. 

Best,

Rob

I should also add that you should definitely have an attorney review any P&S you use at least. It's usually $6-800 for an attorney to write one up and worth every penny for the protection.

Hi Erica,

Typically you would present an offer to purchase with an earnest money deposit as well as a pre-approval letter or proof of funds (if an all cash purchase).

The offer to purchase lists various contingencies such as inspection, financing etc.  The inspection contingency usually allows the buyer to recoup their deposit for almost any reason.   Usually this due diligence period would last 7-10 days after which the parties execute the purchase and sale agreement and give more deposit money (5% purchase price).  

Many investment deals will just close at this point but retail deals typically take another 30 days for financing. 

You could go straight to a purchase and sale without the offer but you would probably want to make sure you have protections for inspection etc. 

Also realize that Massachusetts requires an attorney to do the closing. 

To answer your question, unless it's raw land or a tear down you can just use the MAR offer to purchase and cross out the sections that do not apply. It is very much geared toward protecting the buyer. You could also go straight to the P&S but I would not suggest it.

Completely agree with Dev. The marketing costs are underestimated by most newbies. I also think it is best to have several exit strategies.  Wholesaling and rehabbing is a good start. 

Also, not knowing where you are in MA, Dev's point about tying up all your money on one rehab project is spot on. In my area there are $5-600K tear downs that are routinely bought by cash buyers to throw up a million dollar mansion. Very easy to tie up your money or worse lose a lot of it doing that. 

Maybe try to use your successful flip to get other people's money and spread the risk.