BiggerPockets

My advanced reply is Where and how much...lol
I do not think a lot care if you say if you are an investor, could probably just say you looking for a house to buy and theirs looked like a possibility. If I call a seller I usually just tell them that I need Price your are selling the house, how many bedrooms and bathrooms you have. Others have their own way and you will probably get you own as well. You can make your own line and try it out on a few sellers and see if it works for you. :type:

I would concentrate more on listening then on what to say to be honest. As a question then be quiet. As KnickKnack said above you want to gauge their motivation.

Once you know why they are selling and when they have to be out you can really run with that info.

As for saying your an investor - I generally do not use that word as that may make them think I am made of money and will pay more - but I do let them know I buy homes or put them under contract - whatever I was trying to do with that one.

But I find most investors say and talk to much.

Thank you for all the responses.

Where in county records does it tell you if they have equity? I heard this many times, but can't seem to find it on my county records site?

QUOTE: Where in county records does it tell you if they have equity?

REPLY: You don't :)

As Jeff said you can find general info about a property but you will not find any info in the county records that says this home has equity - that would be nice though :)

Equity is a funny thing and many on here may have an opinion but Equity on paper is the difference between what it is "worth" (lots of definitions of that) and what you paid (or owe). Equity in your pocket is the difference between what you paid (or owe) and what someone else will pay.

Scott is right on the money, it (or anything else) won't tell you how much equity is in the home, only what they paid.

Finding out how much they paid is helpful but as I stated earlier, it does not factor in if they pulled money out of the home and in fact owe more on the home then county records show. I'm finding this all over my area.

I found one I thought was a sure thing, home was bought for $27k, comps put it in at $195k...sounds great right? The part I did not know until a little more digging is that this guy pulled out a TON of cash at some point and (not sure exactly how much) it is now a short sale. He had equity and pulled it out of the home creating a mortgage that today is more then the value of the home. Go figure. Just be smart and use county records for the basics.

Jeff

99% of FSBO's are a waste of time to find a wholesale deal. Well let me say FSBO's with a sign in the yard and who are doing marketing. I have gotten some deals that had little tiny FSBO signs in the window, but normally if there's a sign in the yard then its not a deal.

They are good practice, though, for the real deals. Getting comfortable asking sellers questions and listening is something you need to learn to do, and practicing on FSBO's is as good as anyone. Its not as important that you use the exact right words or even ask the right questions necessarily. What's important is that you get the information you need.

The primary information you need is how much equity they have and their motivation level. Equity and motivation. That's what wholesaling is all about.

Try to determine the equity they have by how long they've owned the property and/or what they owe on the property along with the estimated repairs factored in. "How long have you owned the property?" is a simple enough question that many times leads to a rabbit hole of information.

If they bought it last year, then I know its probably a no deal, but if their grandpa owned it for 25 years and left it to them when he died then I know I'm talking to someone with equity. Many times people will freely tell you if they owe anything on the property and how much they owe if they do owe anything.

Repair estimates can be determined by asking "How's the roof? the plumbing? the kitchen?" or "Does the bathroom need any updating or remodeling?" Most of the time they will understate the repairs needed so factor that in. It will be uglier than they portray it as.

As for trying to research IF they have equity without talking to the seller directly, it depends somewhat on your market. In my market, which has been fairly stable with a 3-5% appreciation rate over the last 20+ years, a house that was bought over 10 years ago will normally have enough equity for me to be able to buy it at a low enough price to wholesale it. So when I'm researching a property, if the last deed date was before 2000 then I know I have the potential of equity.

Now determining motivation is garnered from asking "When do you need to sell it?" and/or "How much do you need to get for it?" The answer to these questions gives you a very good idea of what they're motivation level is.

You are looking for MOTIVATED sellers with EQUITY. The best call is from someone who says "Yeah my dad paid it off years ago before he died and I need to sell it as soon as possible."