One of the ways to find leads is “word of mouth”. It’s really important that everybody you know is aware that you are into real estate. You’re the person they know that buys houses. You never know where your next deal will be coming from. We spend a lot of time and effort to generate leads, and sometimes it is right in front of our faces if we just went out there and talked to more people about it. When I was new in the business, I was real self-conscious about it and shy before I did a lot of deals. You are what you think you are and by talking about it, it is more likely to happen to you. Make sure that the people you hang out with know that you are a real estate investor and looking for deals. You don’t have to let them know what kind of deals you are looking for, but let them know you are always looking to buy houses and getting deals on property. As those people stumble across deals or hear of other people selling houses, they are most likely to refer people to you. It is also a good idea to mention to people that you pay for referrals. My business card says on the back of it, $200 or $250 will come to you if you bring me a house for sale. If we buy it, you get $200.
Secondly, you should have business cards with you. Leave them around. I have two different types of business cards. I’ve got my business card that says on there that “we buy houses, cash reward paid, find me a house, we pay $200”, etc. Those are the ones I leave around at a restaurant or at a gas station on top of the gas pump, or wedge them on the sign. If I go to the bank I will leave a couple of them on the counter. I just give them to people randomly and let them know I buy houses. I have another card that is a little more professional that has my name, business name, and my logo on there. I give that one to lenders, bankers, and tenants. The bright colored ones are best for leaving them at gas stations and restaurant. There is another type that looks like a folded $100 bill that people will pick up even if you leave it on the ground. You just never know where your next deal comes from. Most deals come from our direct marketing, but every now and then, you get a call out of the blue from someone who has your card.
Another cheap way is to put a sign on your car. Of course, it depends if your Spouse will let you do it. For a long time, I had a magnetic sign on my car that said, “I Buy Houses” on it with my phone number on it. I didn’t get a lot of calls on it, but once in awhile, I would. They are pretty cheap, too. I paid about $20 or $30 for two of them. I’ll never forget the first day I put those on my car. I did get a call on the first day I put that on my car, from a seller and will never forget it. Of course, I didn’t get a call every day, but remember, one deal can make a huge amount of money.
Another cheap or free way to get leads is to use the classified websites that are available. That is a great place to get the word out that you are a house buyer. There are real estate and service sections. Try different areas and post your ads there that say, “We Buy Houses, Any Price, Area, or Condition” or even go into more details if you like. When someone is a motivated seller, you don’t need to be a fancy writer. Just get your ads out there.
There are even services out there that will get your message sent to people with IPhones. That’s not a free way, but it’s about .03 a message sent to IPhones.
You can also recruit bird dogs on a website. I have a website that I use to recruit bird dogs. Granted, when you put up a website to have people come to bring you houses, I don’t get a lot, but I get some. Some of them do go to work and have found me lots of deals. Don’t be afraid to put the word out this way.
Go ahead and put up a website or a blog for free to get the word out. It doesn’t have to be fancy, just put your information out there with a picture. In 2 hours’ time, you can get a blog set up. It’s real easy. It will be good enough to get some people to pick up the phone and call you. Good Luck!
Nick Cifonie is a long-time real estate investor, speaker, and mentor. Nick has bought and sold millions of $’s in single family homes and multi-family properties, using techniques including bird-dogging, wholesaling, lease-options, subject-to transactions, buy and holds, seller financing, retail flips, assignments, options, auctions, and has even flipped property on EBAY! Nick is the current host of the popular “Real Estate Investor TV”, a fun, educational series found at http://www.rei-tv.com
The Internet is practically a treasure trove of ideas and information that can help an aspiring investor. There are web sites that offer a crash course on real estate investing while others provide instructional materials such as e-books, articles, and various write-ups. For those who aren’t fond of reading written manuals, do not worry because watching instructional videos on video-sharing sites can definitely help improve your knowledge of real estate investing.
Reading the blogs and online journals of successful real estate investors can also boost one’s skills in flipping houses or buying and rehabbing fixer upper homes. Many of those who made it big in the business are sharing their secrets with fellow investors just to be of great help to these people.
Over the years, the Internet has played an important role in the development of real estate investing. Aside from providing brokers and realtors with all the resources they need to succeed in the business, the Net has also helped homeowners sell unwanted properties and market them to attract buyers and meet potential business partners.
Investors can also count on the Internet to find financers for their business. As we all know, real estate investing mainly involves buying and reselling homes. An investor wouldn’t succeed in the business if he couldn’t find the means to buy the property that he wants to resell at a higher price. This is why he needs the assistance of a hard money lender and the Internet is the perfect place to look for one.
For the benefit of those who don’t know anything about a hard money loan, here’ a quick explanation. A hard money loan is a form of asset-based loan financing secured by the value of a collateral property. It usually has 65% to 70% maximum loan to value ratio. For instance, if a borrower uses his $100,000 property as guarantee for his loan, he can borrow up to $70,000 from the lender.
Meanwhile, Rehablist.com is a fine example of a web site that gives individuals various information about real estate investing, as well as provides them with the opportunity to advertise the property that they are selling. Through the site’s “free real estate advertising” service, owners of undervalued, distressed, and fixer upper homes can be sure that the homes they are selling will get the maximum exposure they need. Thus, homeowners don’t have to wait that long to earn extra money by selling unwanted real estate assets. All they have to do is register with Rehablist.com.
Rehablist also provides leads to the best hard money lender in town. The site brings together hard money lenders and real estate investors who are looking for someone to finance their business. Like the Internet, the site is indeed a treasure trove of resources for real estate investing.
To know the secret to conquering the housing business, simply visit Rehablist.com.
Amando Montelongo has made flipping houses a popular business for many entrepreneurs and small business owners. The TV Show Flip This House and Flip That House and other home improvement shows has also helped promote this industry.
Considering that many new businesses come and go in the small business realm, even with the ups and downs of the ever changing Real Estate market, buying and selling houses can and will always be a good venture. With any new business, it is always good to do market research in any realm to try and ensure success. It is recommended that if you enter the Real Estate market, it is a good idea to not only do research but also ask others who have bought and sold Real Estate so you can get a good idea of what things to do and not do.
There are many resources for help in today’s world. You can go to public libraries, use the Internet, join social groups on and off line, hire a Real Estate coach, talk in Forums, Blogs, chat rooms, college courses and of course, just simply introduce yourself to an actual Real Estate sales person and ask them for assistance. Most people are happy to share tips about what they know to others so don’t be shy for asking for help.
You may be hesitant to get into Real Estate if the current market seems bad but realize that this is the time to find excellent deals for not only a fair price but an excellent bargain. If you can buy a property at a low price, later, that can be sold for easy profit for you.
Don’t be afraid if a Real Estate market is not doing well on any given year. Just do your research and check your financial situation and calculate how long you can hold the property and do an estimate of when you can sell the property for your profit.
If you want to make money in real estate investing in 2008 then its going to take a different approach then when the market was running steadily along. I like to basically take the approach of doing rehabs to pay down your debt and to build your cash reserves and then focus on buying rentals and using flips to pay them off.
Unfortunately, I would not recommend flipping to anyone due to all the hassles involved now. Finding a buyer is difficult and when you do find a buyer your only option left to sell on 100% financing is FHA which in combination with lenders being so tight right now its tough to get a home sold. So if you want to invest in real estate how would I recommend you get started now?
I believe as a brand new investor you need to focus on buying 1-2 properties this year and holding them as rentals or rent to owns to eventually resell when the market changes again. Here is the step by step break down on how I would do it as a brand new investor.
1) Talk to your commercial banker. Get pre-qualified for an 80% loan.
2) Find your source of funds for the 20% down. I recommend an equity line or a private lender.
3) Find your deal
4) Buy your deal and place your tenant in it
5) After 6 months go to another local commercial banker and refinance for what you owe and place a line of credit on your equity. Do not pull out all of your equity. You may want to pull some out for profit but do not pull it all out.
6) In a few years when the market changes sell the homes and take home a substantial profit due to the low prices that are out there right now.
This is how I recommend a new investor who has a stable income and a credit score over 620 to get started. Once the market picks up again then you can revert to doing rehabs to flip for profit but for right now be conservative, buy what you can comfortably handle, and understand that any profit you make will come off of credit lines and refinances in these houses.
Now, what if you have no credit and no cash and you want to get started in real estate investing? This will go into detail about how to wholesale and assign contracts. Here is your guide.
1) Network and get to know every investor in town. Find out what they buy and ask if they would pay you to find a good deal
2) Find out which attorney in town understands investors and how they work.
3) Find a deal and put an escape clause in it.
4) Sell the deal to one of your investors.
5) Build cash and fix your credit with the profits until you can eventually buy a home.
This is how I recommend a new investor get started in 2008. The game has changed but there is always a way to make money if your willing to believe that you can make money, and you supply the action necessary to make it happen. Go to my blog where I share more tips and information that will help you to make money in 2008 with real estate investing.
Shane Wilson is a full time real estate investor. He runs his own real estate investing business blog at http://georgiabuyer.com. There you can find free information, advice, and tips to help make your real estate investing career a success.
<p align=”justify”>Flip is a simple word which means buying a property and reselling it quickly, as opposed to holding on to a property long term as a leasing. Flipping comes in a number of varieties, most of which are legal and profitable, some of which are not legal. </p>
<p align=”justify”><strong> </strong><strong>Method 1: Wholesale </strong></p> <p align=”justify”>In the wholesale marketing, the fix and flip, is very popular, which means there are numerous investors looking for rehabs. You can better buy the property in cheap and sell it for just a few thousand dollars more to another investor without doing any work with the property. You won’t make nearly as much as the rehabber, but you will realize your earnings rapidly. </p>
<p align=”justify”><strong>Method 2: Pre-Construction </strong></p> <p align=”justify”>Pre-Construction is the strategy in the real estate investing. In very hot real estate markets, prices are appreciating as much as 3 percent per month. If you time things right, you can put an agreement on a pre-construction house or condominium, then flip it to somebody else when the development is complete. Try to use this strategy with more careful because you may get lose money if you failed to plan previously about the pre-construction charges. </p>
<p align=”justify”><strong>Method 3: Scouting </strong></p> <p align=”justify”>This is another approach in the real estate investing. The Scout is an information gatherer, so not theoretically a property flipper. Scout is the one who finds potential deals and sells the information to other investors. Many people get started as a Scout for other investors why because it does not take any money or even prior knowledge to look for troubled properties. Usually the Scout finds a property for sale and gathers the necessary information about the property and then provides this information to investors for some broker fee. The broker fee will vary depending on the worth of the property and the profit potential. The Scout can suppose to make five hundred to one thousand dollars each time he provides information about the property that leads to a purchase by another investor. </p>
<p align=”justify”><strong>Avoid Illegal Flipping </strong></p> <p align=”justify”>It is best to avoid illegal property and I don’t support such to advocating this approach, because it is illegal. But somebody still approach such method in some countries. We just take a look how an illegal property-flipping method works. </p>
<p align=”justify”>Some investors buy property in cheap, run-down properties in mostly low income neighborhoods. They do careless renovations to the properties and sell them to simple buyers at exaggerated prices. In most cases, the investor, evaluator and mortgage broker scheme by submitting fake loan documents and a bogus appraisal. Finally the result is buyer who paid too much money for a house and cannot afford the loan. Since many of these loans are federally insured, the government authorities have investigated such practice and arrested many of the parties involved in this incident. As a result of this, the public perceives is flipping to be criminal. Hence we advise you to be honest in flipping a property </p>
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Fix and Flip or Hold. This method will entail using an Agreement of Sale and Purchase coupled with a short sale whereby you get a super price to buy now. Since you are the Buyer and not getting an option to assign, it is strongly recommended to do a very through inspection yourself or hire a certified home inspector.
The intent here is to buy at a super price and then invest monies to fix it up to a polished state and resell to retail Buyer or an Investor that doesn’t want to fix, but rather hold and rent.
The trick here is NOT to “fall in love” with the property and overspend as if you are your family were going to live there. Do the basics and give it a good polish so it functions and looks great. It needs to attract a Buyer, appraise correctly and be able to earn you a profit.
You can also do the same and hold onto it and use it as rental for yourself, live off the cash flow and take advantage of future appreciation. Many Investors just want to live off the rental income.
Another abbreviated method is to take a real junker with lots of potential and just merely do a serious cleanup so it presents in a much better fashion and then just wholesale it as is.
This method can also be done under the Option and Assignment just knowing that if you walk away, you will have done the work for someone else at your expense.
To learn more about the amazing value of fixing and flipping properties, please visit our website or contact us for more in depth information. Have questions…please contact us.
Clint Cohen is a renowned national expert and guru mastering in real estate investing and creative real estate solutions. Clint is also a national award winning builder, remodeler and developer with over forty years of successful business operations. Married and a father of two grown daughters and two cats.
Clint has authored several books and has created, written and implemented many proprietary forms, agreements and exclusive paperwork for all his business ventures. An author, writer, reader, teacher, developer, trainer and lecturer complimented with a very expansive and extensive collection of true and real life experiences. http://www.truthofrealestate.com/profits
As a postgraduate, I have learned much knowledge about real estate. Although the industry of real estate has broken up, I feel most of the people still have the chance to get rich by flipping real estate. Here are some steps you should take before you decide to invest in real estate flipping.
Loan-acquire a loan that is much lower than the one you currently have for the home you live in, and buy another home for about 70 percent or less than its true value. It’s imperative that you have the appropriate amount of capital to even begin to make money on real estate flipping.
Locate-choose a desirable location. If you buy a house cheap, put a lot of money into it, and then can’t sell it because there’s a nuclear power plant a mile away, you may find yourself with a beautiful house but no potential buyers. Do your homework and talk to real estate agents in the area about the viability of the market. Don’t sink hard-earned money into a house until you know that the market is solid and there is reasonable potential for a quick sale.
Choose-seek out dilapidated homes in nice areas that have no major structural defects. Choose to do only cosmetic improvements, such as painting, landscaping, new flooring and carpeting, installing new bathroom fixtures or replacing kitchen appliances. Taking down walls, building new rooms, or gutting out basements may not yield as high a profit and you may wind up losing money. Stick to the types of improvements that won’t drain your wallet.
Improve-become a home improvement expert and do the work yourself. Improve your skills by purchasing home improvement and repair manuals, talking to people with experience flipping real estate, searching websites for information, or taking classes online or at your local home improvement store.
Rent-rent the house out after you make the improvements if the market is slow and you can’t sell it right away. You can sometimes ask two times what your mortgage rate is which will allow you breathing room to make the mortgage payments and also set aside a little money for flipping your next home.
Extend-form relationships with real estate agents and contractors who may eventually be in a position to do business with you for less than their standard fees. Also, learn all you can about building and code regulations in the area in which you are purchasing the home.
After finishing all steps, you should inspect the house from top to bottom, fix only the worst cosmetic blemishes, and then sell it as a handyman special. Buyers usually underestimate the cost of renovating and come in high on their bids so you can still yield a large profit.