Investor · Charlotte, NC · Member since 2011 · 58 posts · 9 votes
Hi, I am looking to put together a new list to run a direct mail campaign. I am thinking of mailing to those recently going through divorce who need to sell joint assets. Has anyone ever done this? What response rate can I expect? Also, where were you able to get the names for the list? Is there a part of the courthouse where one can get them?
Is there another list you would recommend instead of that? I mailed to eviction cases with little luck, got a little better with code enforcement. Looking to send out a few more letters. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Hi Robert - Have you tried expired listings or absentee owners? I've found both to be excellent lists. You will need access to the MLS for the expireds. The absentee owners list can be purchased from ListSource or Melissa Data. You might also be able to get them at no cost from your county clerk or tax assessor's office, so you will probably want to check there first.
Hi Robert - Have you tried expired listings or absentee owners? I've found both to be excellent lists. You will need access to the MLS for the expireds. The absentee owners list can be purchased from ListSource or Melissa Data. You might also be able to get them at no cost from your county clerk or tax assessor's office, so you will probably want to check there first.
I can get in state and out of state owners from a paid service, so I will check into that. Also, the expired listings sounds like a good idea too. I appreciate the tip.:)
Robert - we send to our divorced list a few times per year. It's not a great list for us, but it's okay.
Our VA maintains the list by going to our county courthouse website and looking up the current divorce proceedings and then checks the addresses on the proceedings to see if the people own the real estate they live in. Since we pay our VA $1 per hour, this list is very cheap to develop and maintain.
Evictions perform better for us than divorces. When you say you had little luck, how many did you send out and did you send something more than once. IMO, if you don't mail to the same list at least 6 times, you are not squeezing all the leads out of it that you might. One shot deals typically don't work for any list.
Our vacant house list and absentee owner lists are #1 and #2 for us.
I have an eviction list of about 300 names and was sending to about 100 per week in rotation. I do not think I had 6 rounds yet but at least 2 for most of the names.
For the vacant house list, how do you find the list other than driving by houses with 'for rent' signs?
Also, for absentee owners, do you care if it is in-state or out-state?
I have an eviction list of about 300 names and was sending to about 100 per week in rotation. I do not think I had 6 rounds yet but at least 2 for most of the names.
For the vacant house list, how do you find the list other than driving by houses with 'for rent' signs?
Also, for absentee owners, do you care if it is in-state or out-state?
for to the eviction hearings and hand out your business cards.
Robert, I can't say that I have heard much success with a targeted list to people going through divorce. I have however used absentee, vacant properties, pre-foreclosure, and now looking into probate and found success.
For the absentee owners, out of state works best for me in my market which is Hawaii. But that doesnt meant that I only mail to them...I mail to the whole list.
Vacant properties for me is old school. Drive for dollars. The property and info on owner is on the tax assesors site here locally.
hi Robert,I think direct mail is absolutely fantastic, but mailing to folks that are getting ready to go through divorce, not such a great idea in my opinion. A real estate transaction is complicated enough without having the sellers using their position in the property, to spite their partner!
As far as dealing with evictions, forget the direct mail, hanging outside the eviction courts doors and you will find more than enough landlords pissed off enough to sell their properties cheap and quick LOL!!!
Since we pay our VA $1 per hour, this list is very cheap to develop and maintain.
good luck
Ben, what VA company do you use to get the $1/hour?
Probably someone out of Philippines or India who just learned about computers. It will probably take them 10 times as much to figure how things work and how to do the project. And you will have problems communicating. And the time difference. :mrgreen:
But seriously, if you find someone who will do a decent job even for $3, kudos for you. I tried and figured wasting time trying to explain how to do and what to do and then double-checking it was done properly, wasn't worth it.
Check odesk.com or guru.com for this kind of services.
Nic - we use odesk, which I highly recommend for 2 reasons - First is the time tracking system they use to show what the VA is working on while they are logging time on your account and Second - they bill us and handle paying the VA.
George - not our experience at all. You do need to be prepared to spend time with them upfront to make sure they are properly trained. Just like anybody working for you, proper training and management is the key. Using Jing to make videos of you doing the task have made training them very simple.
The time difference is not an issue - they are used to working with people in the US so they know they need to be available during US working hours.
We currently have 2 VAs - one to do the data entry and a second to return all calls to seller leads. I only talk to pre-screened sellers who are ready to deal.
My VA is $8/hr! I need to look into this.
I really like my VA and we communicate very well over email, but I've never thought having him screen my calls. Did you give them a script? Do you trust them to answer questions the seller may have?
Yes we do trust them, because we spent time up front training them. We had them practice with lower quality leads at first, just to get them up to speed. My partner or I would listen in on several phone calls to make sure they were handling them appropriately.
After about 20 calls, they've heard probably every question there is.
Hey Ben, I know this is an old post, but I am wanting to hire someone on odesk to return some of my missed calls, as its becoming very hard to stay on top of them all. Who would you recommend at odesk that you use to return calls?