Need Help: Analyzing This Property. Where Do I Start?

[Alex Quinlan]

Hello Everyone!

I’m trying to get better at analyzing deals, but I’m hitting a wall and could really use your insight. I picked a property at random just to practice (this one on Zillow: 3107 Walton Ave, Cleveland, OH), but honestly, I got stuck quickly.

Here’s what I’m wrestling with:

• How do you actually practice analyzing properties if everything on-market has probably already been passed on by experienced investors? Is it even worth practicing with these, or am I wasting time?

• How do you really find accurate rent comps? Zillow’s rent estimates seem all over the place. I understand the idea of comparing bed/bath/sq ft nearby—but how do you actually find those properties on sites like Zillow, Rentometer, etc.? What tools/websites do you personally use that give reliable rent data?

• How do I know when I’ve found a true comp? What exact filters or process do you follow to determine that a rent or sale price is actually comparable?

• How do I know if the property is overpriced for the area? I understand “knowing your market,” but what does that actually look like in terms of steps? Where do you get your data from?

Also:

• Are there any solid Excel-based property analysis calculators you'd recommend for doing the math once I have the inputs?

And finally, if anyone has a few minutes, could you walk me through how you would analyze the property I linked above? Even a high-level overview of your process would be incredibly helpful—I want to see how experienced investors break it down from start to finish.

I know these are beginner-level questions, but I’m serious about learning and want to do this right. I just don’t want to waste time spinning my wheels using bad data or the wrong process.

Thanks so much in advance!

[Jaron Walling]

@Alex Quinlan I'll try to answer this for you; "How do you actually practice analyzing properties if everything on-market has probably already been passed on by experienced investors?"

I struggled with this logic when I started out in 2018, and I'm here to tell you not every house has been combed through by investors. Opportunities were better in 18', but my budget was equally constricted. Every dime I had went into my first live-in flip. I had no emergency fund or reserves. That's was experience. 

Both of our markets have local and lots of OOS buyers, but most people don't have a team to get deals done as easily as you believe. If you're not talking to contractors, agents, wholesalers, private money lenders, or walking potential deals you need to change that. Establish relationships that want to help you buy your first investment. People know you're serious when you shake hands, do what you say, and pay on time. That's your advantage. Leverage it. 

Change your mindset and look for clues. Longer DOM, bad photos, listing wording like "fixer", "as-is", "DIY", "rehab special", "mold", etc. all of these things push people away because people gravitate towards shiny objects. Generally speaking that's not where money is made with REI. At a minimum you need a skeleton team to lift a property up, add value, and a strategy to follow based on the $$$ invested. Any property can be a deal. Your neighbors house could be a deal. It's always about location, seller motivation, talking to people, and buying it right. Build some spreadsheets and understand how to pull the strings to make a deal. After that you pull the strings in real life and try to mimic what you did on paper. That's that fun part. Cheers.