All Forum Posts by: Stinson Bland

Michael,

I work with some of the other HomeVestors Franchises in my market and act as a part-time buyer. I have a decent closing ratio but I am always looking to improve my buying skills… plus I like the extra income. Below is my agreement with other franchises:

• I am available for buy appointments 2 days a week both for half days. (Tues and Thurs: 1:00 – 6:00)

• I will meet with the sellers and make offers that I am willing to back myself. If the franchise that I am buying for does not like my offer, I simply pay them for the lead and close the deal myself or try to negotiate a better price for the franchise. I buy very deep and we've never had to do this.

• Our contracts have a 72 hours management approval clause. This is not a weasel clause, this simply allows the franchise owner enough time to get out to the house and double check my offer. We are upfront with all sellers about this and have never backed out of an offer.

• Rehabs: I am paid a minimal of $1K per acquisition and this is paid at the time of closing. I am paid a percentage of profit on the rehab projects once the project has been sold (minimum of $1k that was paid at closing): 10% up to $15k in profit, 12.5% up to $20K, and 15% for anything higher with a cap of $4K Commission.

• Rentals: I am paid $1K for C-Class rental acqustions, $1.5K for B-Class, and $2K for A-Class. Home values and rent prices dictate the “Class”. I've only purchased C-Class rentals and it was very obvious what "Class" they were.

The offices that I help send me all of the information needed for the buy appointment: contact info, comps, tax info, and any notes they have from the buy call.

Hope that helps,
Stinson

I really under estimated the cost of time and money needed to invest into marketing. Marketing is the biggest cost associated with my business. The bulk of my money and time is spent trying to find motivated sellers.

Doubling closing is going to cost YOU money (transactional funding has a cost).... Assigning the contract shouldl not cost you anything. Your end buyer or seller pays the closing cost if you've properly written your contracts. It's all in the paperwork and you should speak to someone who has REAL experience in your market. I spent a lot of time with my title office while completing my first few deals.

Regarding your sexing question, you should speak to a real estate attorney in your area. Luckily for me, my title office is also my real estate attorney and she's the president of one of my reia groups.

I wouldn't bet on "busting the comps" or getting it to appraise... But you should be able to shorten your DOM if you're competitive with your pricing.

I'm not saying it can't be done, I simply wouldn't bank on it appraising for much more than the comps.

Wholesaling is very much real, enjoyable, and profitable. There are a lot of real wholesalers in the Dallas market and some of them I assume make a decent living. There are also a ton of fake wholesalers in the market. These fly-by-night "wholesalers" fell for a guru pitch and are looking to make cash without putting in the time, money, and effort. These guys and gals come and go rather quickly.

I am a fulltime wholesaler and a part time rehabber. I personally know many fulltime wholesalers that easily net six figure incomes. In the HomeVestors system there are hundreds of profitable wholesale operations throughout the country. Many of these operations also rehab but rely on wholesaling for cash-flow. There are also many of these same types on this forum. I'd be suprised if more of them don't chime-in on the subject.

It is very easy to wholesale a deal (using very little of your own money) when the property is properly bought (deep). I really enjoy flipping properties to experienced investors and picking their brain about the business. I’ve also found private money sources simply by wholesaling deals to cash buyers.

I personally believe wholesaling is a great way to break into a local REI market. You'd be surprised by the amount of people you meet while marketing to buy deals and sell deals. If you have decent spreads and honest estimations on your deals; your name will spread quickly through the industry.

Wholesaling is by far my favorite topic to discuss in REI and I'd be happy to answer any questions I can regarding the subject.

In my opinikn, a good buyer can make money wholesaling in any market. A good salesmen can sell overpriced deals in any market. It's all about negotiating a price that allows a spread and/or having a buyers list that is willing to pay your price.

You will have a better reputation and have more "staying power" if you can buy deep instead of selling overpriced deals.

There are a couple larger firms in Dallas that are well known for "wholeselling" deals slightly under retail prices. They claim to move 25+ properties a month and I believe it.

Michael is correct... HomeVestors is very protective of our "We Buy Ugly Houses" slogan and they have a legal department that works diligently to protect it.

John, they have spent millions over the past 15 years building the brand and we continue to do so. I personally think we invest to heavily into billboards in the Dallas market. I think we have plenty of brand recognition in the Dallas market. As I said before, I believe billboards are great for branding but I do not think they drive a lot of leads.

If I wasn’t part of the HomeVestors system, billboards would be near the bottom of list when it comes to marketing strategies. The cost are extremely high and I think there are much better usage of one’s marketing budget. If I was starting a marketing campaign from scratch; I’d focus my initial budget on direct mail, internet marketing, and networking. As my business grew, I’d expand these campaigns and start to focus on branding.

There is another REI in the Dallas market who has done exactly that… he's probably the second most known home buyer in the area. He is also the brother of the founder of HomeVestors (Ken D'Angelo). :)

I agree with John and would like to see this event held on weekdays.

Jerry and Carlos are correct about your seller.

I browsed your listing and I personally think that your kitchen is killing your deal. The cabinets look a little cheap and I'm not sure what's going on with te ceiling. Buyers in that area are prepared to pay top dollar for a house but they expect a high quality product. You may want to drop your price or consider upgraded some of your more prominent finishes (cabinets, flooring, etc). I willing to bet lowering the price makes more financial sense once you consider time and money.

@James Hamling LMAO... that is the first thing I learned during my HomeVestors training. MMMMmmmm, the smell of money!