People hear a success story and want to copy elements of what they perceive has made that person successful.

There should be time element associated with your ROI. 6% in 30 days is much better than 20% in 6 months.

I originally went to law school to focus on environmental law, specifically in the area of commercial land development.

Marketing to expired listings is certainly a viable plan, the key is to be able to get in the door, read people (figure out through questions what they want/need and what problems they have) then structure a deal that can solve their problem and get you a good deal.Negotiating and structering are key elements to your success in this strategy.

Chris I meant Clay pipes but different parts of the country used different things during different eras because of cost,availability,closeness to the area where constructing,soil conditions,etc.Either way in my mind a critical inspection is to scope the line all the way out to the street.Some plumbers only have a 25 ft camera and others have the big one that goes hundreds of feet which will reach out to almost all mains at the street before running out of camera line.On environmental stuff mentioned you sure can have situations where next door is a laundry facility or gas station that is now vacant.The contaminants leach over into your soil.Now the EPA is demanding you clean it up which becomes very,very expensive.What to look for comes with experience.I have found it is better that I learn from my plumbers and other professionals I use and they often share tips for free.Here in Georgia inspectors do not have to be licensed (it might have changed recently)but in the past they were not required to be.I have found I have more knowledge than many inspectors and all they do is charge a bunch of money and then refer you off to the people I have already learned from.My guys will take a look at it for free because they know it is future business I will be giving them.I just call them in if I have a question.

Hello NateThere are only a few elements required in a contract.1) Both Parties must understand the agreement2) The agreement must be in writing3) It must be for a legal transfer4) There must be consideration5) Both Buyer and Seller must be 18 or older.All of the other clauses are boiler plate CYA.As for the terms of the note most escrow companies will have a basic note to use.

This brings in a second payment piece:  the discount element.  

The properties will be structurally sound, a good location, and a good surrounding market but are poorly managed that are in need of minor cosmetic repairs such as, out dated inefficient kitchens, bathrooms, appliances, old windows, old inefficient lights, high expenses, old non-separate metered heating and cooling units, along with ugly curb appeal/landscaping.We will not purchase commercial properties that have the following issues:-A structural problem (interior bearing walls, foundation & exterior walls)- A significant environmental issue (underground leaking tanks or mold)-A neighborhood that has an oversupply of commercial properties and have a vacant rate of more than 15%.

Some of the key elements to determining our stategy included: the type of property we wanted to buy, amount of time commitment we had to work on the investment, level of risk involved and amount of money we had at stake ie return on investment expectations compared to other options (risk vs reward), skill set including knowledge of market as well as comfort with the team we had assembled, and return seen in both scenarios. 

@Mindy Jensen- I'm still learning how to use elements of the site so thank you for that suggestion.