Flip This Wholesaler

I was at Gasparilla(sp) in 2001 visiting a friend in St. Petersburg.

One of the best times I've ever had.

Looks like a sweet view.

I have that same book(power of focus)great book btw. I agree on your comment about Bob. Im trying to duplicate his model in my area (SoCal). Im getting closer to my first deal, I can smell it

Brandon- I've only been to the parade once. Had a good time, but I'm not a big fan of crowds. Especially drunk crowds. I guess that means I'm getting old. :(

Anon- let me know how it goes. Sounds like a pretty solid model to me. A bit different from what I'm doing, but I'm going to look into it as well.

Wow! I thought the desk problem was unique to me. Beginning of the year? You're just getting started. Props to you for doing something about it. One of these days....

I'm reading Power of Focus right now too...definitely good stuff. I lived in Tampa 4 years but never saw Gasparilla...but I don't do drunken crowds either :-)

LOL on your comment about needing to make lower offers. Seriously? You got a $21K duplex!! :-) Have you been checking recent sales and noticing that some are closing for less? Or are you just pushing yourself to go lower to test things out?

J- yeah, that's pretty pathetic, isn't it? It's a sickness. I get so irritated with myself and try to keep things organized, but I always somehow end up with a massive pile of "notes" all over the place.. It's one of my worst habits. Feels great getting it all organized, though- I can think better when everything is in order...

Shae- I look at the sold listings all the time and am seeing some really great discounts. These are deals that I would never have gotten because I would be afraid to offer that low. They don't happen all that often, but I just need one of those a month (as opposed to 3 or 4 small ones), and I am golden. Bottom line- I want some grand slams in my near future. :)

What signs are you putting out to get your cash buyers calling? Do you do all REO's? Do you do any driving looking for homes. I saw a good tip for finding buyers in a wholesaling book I just got. Getting a list of all the mls that just sold in an area. Look for buyers that show up multiple times.

Good luck!

Hi Scott,

I am currently just going after REOs.

Here's a post I wrote about the signs (with a picture)..
http://flipthiswholesaler.blogspot.com/2008/11/how-i-find-cash-buyers-in-crappy-market.html

(you may have to cut and paste)

The mls is a great way to research buyers. I try to run a list every week or every other week to see who the cash buyers are, and then hunt them down. :)

Steph

Steph,

Love your blog...I read it as often as I can!

Just a quick question, when you and your buyer sign the assignment form, do you have it notarized? If so, do you do this at your title company? Just curious since I have heard differing opinions on this.

Thanks,
Steph (not from Tampa)

Hey Steph!

The contract between me and my buyer is a regular purchase contract- not an assignment agreement. 99% of the banks will not allow you to assign their contracts, so I have to do two separate closings (me buying from the bank, and then me selling to my buyer).

I have done several regular assignment deals, though, and I never had the assignment agreement notarized.

Hope that answers your question.

Thanks for reading..

Steph (from Tampa) :)

Yes, it does, thanks! Make sense that you would not need the assignment form for your REO deals.

Wishing you even more success!

Steph (not from Tampa)

Dumb question, but do your transactions with the bank show up in the public record? If I were looking up the history of a house you'd sold to somebody, would you show up as a previous owner? If so, I imagine people would mistake you for a cash buyer if they were using that suggestion from ScottB, no?

Nice job on the car wash!! :)

Anonymous-

Yes, they show up in public record.

If you do a little bit of research. though, you can tell if someone is wholesaling or if they are buying and holding or buying and reselling.

Alison- thanks! I was thinking of you while I was en route. Thanks for the kick in the pants! :)

Hey Steph,
You are doing a bang-up job in 2009. Keep up the good work. Got a question for you, if you don't have any properties to market, how do you get cash buyers on your list? In other words, what will make them want to be on your on you list if you have no deals and are a newbie? I still feel like one because I have been doing this since September and have yet to make much progress:-(
Sincerely in Christ,
Leesa C.
Eph.2:8,9

Hi Leesa,

You need to find out who the active buyers are in your area, and find out what they are looking for.

It only takes one good buyer to get you started.

You can research the cheap cash sales in the mls and then drive by the houses and see if there is a rehab going on or a "for rent" sign in the front yard. If so, ask the investor if they are looking for more deals, and if so, what specifically are they looking for.

You can also drive through your target neighborhoods and call "for rent" signs and ask the landlords if they are looking for more rentals in that neighborhood, and if so, what are they looking for....

You have to get out there and do some investigating, and start talking to the players in your market to find out what they want. Then, go find it for them.

Hope that helps,
Steph

What quantity are you buying your signs from Laird? They've quoted me at $1.63 for 50 signs which is still cheaper than on line when you factor in shipping. And what size do you cut them down to? I couldn't tell from the pic on your post from Nov. One more thing where do you get the stakes? Muchos gracias.

Hi Richard.

I buy them 100 at a time, then cut them right down the middle.

I get mason ladder from Home Depot and cut it into 8 stakes. I think it comes out to 25 cents each. Cheap, but it's a pain in the ass to cut them.

Steph

Hey Steph.I dont know how you get time to answer our ?'s but we appreciate it!I have 2 wholesaling courses. Steves and 1 other. I've been thinking about doing RE for a long time. I actually did complete one transaction several years ago.Sandwhich lease option.Deal fell through and there was an investigation.I had to pay the $ back so now I'm a little shy getting into wholesaling.I decided that I am going to dive in head first again and hopefully everthing works out this time. I have a few ?'s but I'll put it in another post cuz this one is prob getting long and boring

Anyway.How do you get your buyers into the homes? I'm assuming none of them are occupied so that may make it easier. 2. When you do an assignment which I read you dont do often when do you collect the fee? I guess one big question I was wondering about also is do you have your buyers show you a pre approval letter or a bank statement if their cash buyers?

WTH are mason ladders? Honestly, I'm not metro!

Scott- I just give the buyers the lockbox codes. The houses are vacant.

Not sure about your 2nd question. If you are asking when you get paid on an assignment deal- you get paid at closing. Some people say they get their assignment fee up front, but I have never done it that way.

My deals are done via simultaneous closing- I sell to my buyer at the same time I am buying from the bank, and I get a check for the difference at closing.

I can usually tell if someone is a real buyer or if they are full of shit, so I don't ever ask for proof of funds. Also, I require a non-refundable 2k deposit (or more if I don't trust them), so that usually weeds out the jokers.

Richard- it's in the concrete section. Called "mason ladder". I took a picture last time I was there because I was going to write a post about making signs. Never got around to it, but I will put the picture in my next post so you can see what they look like.