Residential and commercial real estate sales · Crofton, MD · Member since 2015 · 7 posts · 4 votes
Hey guys,
So I've recently been pulling probate files at the county court houses. I've pulled about 200 leads and have began a mailing campaign. I send out a personalized letter to the Personal Representative, and haven't been getting any calls back. Any ideas?
Hey guys - I have worked probates for about 8 years. I love this niche.
You don't know how long the person has been deceased when the executor/ administrator actually opens the probate. It may be as long as 9 months to a year so I start mailing when they file the probate. That is an indication that they are ready to move forward and that is when I start mailing. These folks are ready when they finally get mentally ready to tackle the task.
I only use white computer generated letters. People in this situation are very sensitive so you have to handle them with kid gloves, but it is an extremely lucrative niche.
Mail to them every month until you buy the house, someone else buys the house or they are removed from your list for another reason. Remember that 85% of your deals will come at or beyond the 5th mailing.
It's been a while since I did a probate mailing. A couple of things. I wouldn't mail them early on, it comes off insensitive. I would also do more than one mailing with more than one type of mailing (letter, manilla envelope, handwritten, postcard, etc.). But I don't remember having much success with probate either.
Hey guys - I have worked probates for about 8 years. I love this niche.
You don't know how long the person has been deceased when the executor/ administrator actually opens the probate. It may be as long as 9 months to a year so I start mailing when they file the probate. That is an indication that they are ready to move forward and that is when I start mailing. These folks are ready when they finally get mentally ready to tackle the task.
I only use white computer generated letters. People in this situation are very sensitive so you have to handle them with kid gloves, but it is an extremely lucrative niche.
Mail to them every month until you buy the house, someone else buys the house or they are removed from your list for another reason. Remember that 85% of your deals will come at or beyond the 5th mailing.
If you want to sell a lot of hamburgers or pizza, start by finding a hungry crowd (with enough money to buy your product).
A list of 200 is a good start, but statistically not significant. We really don't know if you are reaching a saturated list that's not hungry to sell, if there are too many others mailing the same list, if you're letter turns people off or indifferent, or if you don't touch them with enough frequency. .
Is your letter targeted to a given problem or just a generic "I'll buy your house for cash (that I really don't have)".
I suggest you call and knock, too. You'll learn a lot from the experience, too.
First of all, to use any postcard to mention buying a house from the family of someone that has died is in poor taste. Don't ever send a PC.
I only send white computer generated letters because they look professional. I don't want to look like someone that works out of their car with a legal pad. It's important (to me) to look like I am a real business person.
I'm wondering if you can tell me what you search for when pulling probate files?
Even though both lake and cook county Illinois claim they file the information online I can not find information on the executor, estate address, executor address, etc.
It looks like I am going to have to go to the courthouse and want to be a little prepared as to what I am searching for.
I'm wondering if you can tell me what you search for when pulling probate files?
Even though both lake and cook county Illinois claim they file the information online I can not find information on the executor, estate address, executor address, etc.
It looks like I am going to have to go to the courthouse and want to be a little prepared as to what I am searching for.
thank you
Lee,
I can't say what the protocol is in other States, but in Maryland the information is listed online but requires payment. For free information on the executor, estate address, and executor address, you have to go into the court house. I look for:
-estate type: RE (basically general real estate...you don't want small estates)
-Status- OPEN
Once you have found the type of estates you are looking for, you really just have to sift through legal documents, which will be take some time to understand, but will be beneficial. Definitely look to see if there are any liens on the property, or damages.
I think it all boils down to the messaging - what is the language you are using when reaching out to those Personal Representatives?
Call to action is important, in terms of what you want them to do next. Many people that would not otherwise pick up the phone would go to a website that is tailored to probate, a site that educates them on the process, builds empathy and convinces them why to sell to you.
I can site some examples of such authoritative probate sites, if you are so inclined.
I live in Maricopa County (Phoenix, AZ) and our info is not so easily available. I am considering paying US Probate Leads for the info.
I am also considering signing up for your mentoring program as I am planning on transitioning from my full time airline pilot career to realtor and investor over the next nine months.
Signed up for Sean Terry's Flip2Freedom academy but don't feel mailing thousands of postcards $$$ the same ones everyone else is sending, to the same list everyone else is using. I prefer the route you are going. Although I may still DM to some out of state owners (we have a lot of them here in Phoenix).
In my county you can only look at 10 records at a time at the court house per day and it's a bit of a drive. From a Kiyosaki B quadrant perspective does anyone have a system in place for this when going to the Courthouse is mandatory?
My name is Cynthia and I'm a new investor focusing on probate. I have been following Sharon's Vornholt's advice and tips since l have started. I have pulled over 200 leads and have received a couple of phone calls but nothing yet. The more visits you make to the courthouse, the more documents you research the better you become. If anyone would like any sample letters feel free to contact me .
@Sharon Vornholt I messaged you this I have been reading through the blogs on probate lists and am quite intrigued by what you have to say. I work for a real estate company out of Seattle, WA and have sort of evolved into this wholesale role. I flip properties with my partners but more so prefer selling fixers to my investor clients. The few mailer campaigns I've done have been ineffective - it does make me feel better when reading from you it takes 5x to really get a sale, on average. Today I bought an absentee owner list through my title company via listsource. Im confident in the filters I used but would love to know what mailer company you use and what your mailers look like. If I read correctly, you dont use hand written letters? Could I get an example of your letters for probates? And if possible, your letters for absentees?
Good info on this thread. Where do most of you start, the obits? In the past I've used online obits, then checked if they owned property and if so I would then go to courthouse.
Also, do you just pull dozen or hundreds of files in a day? I believe in Boston there is a limit now of 5 in a day.. and in another nearby county they seem very difficult when asking for the files. They would only give me 9 and acted like I was being ridiculous for asking. Very difficult to compile a substantial list