BiggerPockets

I spend a lot of time here on BP and I happen to notice a lot of people who are new to investing who sign up and say things like the following " I am new to investing so I think I am going to just start wholesaling to get started ".

Now tell me this, where do people who dont know too much about this think they are going to just start wholesaling? I mean come on!!! Someone please tell me I am not the only one who is somewhat offended by comments like this. The reality is wholesaling is not something that you can just do if your new. There are so many elements to what we do that a new person would have no clue whats going on.

I would like to hear other thoughts on this subject just to make sure I am not taking crazy pills.

Richard,

OMG!!! You are so right. I forgot about the late night courses that all armchair investors can get. How can I buy that course right away!!

Thanks!! I needed your post, it made my day.

Originally posted by Ross Pesek

On the other hand, it sounds like you two might be wholesalers.

I am not a wholesaler. Being a wholesaler involves real work but the gurus make it sound easy. They appeal to those who are looking for some magical way to make money in real estate when they have no cash and no credit. The guru gets them to buy some program that will reveal the secret.

Truth is that there is no secret. It takes time and effort - aka work. You still need money but not as much as you would to buy properties yourself. You need money for basic business expenses, and contract deposits.

At every real estate club meeting I have people come up to me who are "going into wholesaling" and want to add me to their buyer's list. Those people rarely come back for a second meeting since they are gone from the business in short order.

That being said, wholesaling CAN be a good way to break into the business if you don't have some weird fantasy about it being an easy way to go. You need to learn the business. Most of your time needs to be spent building a large buyers list and finding out what those buyers want. Too many people do it backwards - they spend their time looking for properties. They find something they think is a screaming deal (they're usually wrong) and then desperately search for a buyer.

Soak up the information on the forum and be prepared to work. Attend your local club meetings and make as many connections as you can.

Good luck!

:cool:

Because I am considering the wholesaling field myself I also wondered about this.

I can understand why it is attractive to begginers since it does not require the financing or even actual purchase of a property in some cases.

But like I have learned in the last two years finding the deal is hard work. For wholesaling the challenge is both finding the deal and then finding the buyer in a limited amount of time.

The gurus need to sell, period. Unfortunately there are some gurus out there that actually provide good material and some that sell junk. But these two have gotten mixed and they are hard to tell apart.

Curt, Mike and Richard as you have notice the recent trend. I have noticed that tons of people who come on hear say that they are going to start out wholesaling. How is this possible? I have been an INVESTOR for 8 yrs own more than 25 properties and still am wondering how can someone who either lost their job or never had a interest in this can come in and start making money. Everyone is trying to become a wholesaler, but you do not hear any of them saying that they want to start out becoming a landlord. This is a MAJOR problem because until you purchase a few you will never know the real ins and outs of this business. Borrow or use 401k, but purchase and then you can start receiving cash.

The funny thing to me is I wonder how many of these NEWBIES have spent money with the tape and book sellers. You are how they are able to purchase properties now. DON'T YOU GET IT. Buy from me and find others to help you figure out the rest.

Believe it or not I see this PHENOMENOM getting worse as the MARKET gets worse. That means we are going to have INEXPERIENCED people trying to do what it took years to perfect. Well I wish you all well, but anything worth having does not happen over night.

SUCCESS BREEDS SUCCESS

For those who have responded in this thread, If wholesaling is not the right first step, then what is?
I work full time, so investing would be a part time thing for me now.I have good credit, plan to be debt free in jan 2010 by payin off last cc and have about $8500 in savings.I value the opinion of others and just want to know what you would suggest to someone like me who now has an interest in REI.

Originally posted by Curt Davis

Tamarra,

Keep in mind that whatever is said that you can do whatever you want. Some of us feel that people might want to consider actually buying investment property first so you can go through the process yourself. This will help build credibility with your potential buyers.

Besides, if being a wholesale investor is what you want to do then owning some property will be a great experience for you both personally and professionally.

My ultimate and preferred goal is to have several rental properties where the monthly cashflow will allow me to pay all my bills and still have surplus.I see acquiring properties as the end and not the beginning because I feel i need to build a bigger cash reserve.

Hello Tamarra

You seem to have a real understanding, but in todays market that does not cut it. You have to be able to show me something. You are selling me a home and when I ask you the question do you own any yourself and you tell me NO, I will definitely take that into consideration. When I first started had little money and GREAT CREDIT, now I have PLENTY OF HOMES and REALLY GOOD CREDIT. It was something that I wanted to do and I am fulfilling my dream. Never even thought to wholesale properties, it just happened because I was making so many contacts in my everday dealings.

Please send me your contact info and I am going to send you a lead in your area. See just that fast things can start to happen.

SUCCESS BREEDS SUCCESS

It's easy to "be" a wholesaler.

Making money at it is a different matter.

Easy? There is nothing mysterious about it. It doesn't take specialized skills or expensive education. There are no deep secrets; it's all out in the open, just read this site.

It takes an investment of time and effort, and you must be able to think and use some basic math. It requires at least basic human relation skills.

Easy? Some people can not make themselves take risks, or move out of their comfort zone, or make themselves complete a project. For them it wouldn't be easy.

But there are almost no barriers to entry, so it's easy to get into. You must slog along and put in all the hours of work and research, but none of that is mysteriously complicated. It only involves time (which everybody has) and effort (which anybody can do)