BiggerPockets

When dealing with homeowners in a short sale, you can get away with teh smallest of option fees, but yes, you should place some financial fee down, even if it is just $100 or even $10.

Same thing.

Tiara,

You mentioned Option to Buy contracts and dealing with Realtors in your 2 threads. If you're thinking of using Option to Buy contracts with Realtors, they probably won't accept them. They'll want you to use their tree killing, multi-page contracts.

On the topic of earnest money deposits and non-bank sellers, where Realtors aren't part of the equation, you really don't have to put down anything. Earnest money deposits can be called consideration.

Contracts need three things: 1) an offer; 2) an acceptance; and 3) consideration. Consideration basically means you're not getting something for nothing. A lot of people think consideration means giving money. It can be anything of value.

My Option to Purchase agreement says I will be marketing their property to find an end buyer. That's my consideration. I'm putting in time and effort to take pictures and videos and doing marketing in order to find an end buyer so they can sell their house.

I know a lot of you will probably disagree with me, but if I did give them any money, it would probably be the proverbial $10 most everyone else uses.

Demos

Thanks Demos and Will. I'll definitely take that into consideration

I see a few vacant houses (about 5 of them) in a nice neighborhood, they have the number to call for investors and landlords. I was thinking about putting them under contract and then calling the we buy ugly houses people (homevestors). do you think that would work?

Sounds good. Thanks Tiger.