Announcing BiggerPockets Reviews - What is important to you?

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Announcing BiggerPockets Reviews - What is important to you?

Mindy JensenPro Member

BiggerPockets Money Podcast Host · Longmont, CO · Member since 2014 · 7k+ posts · 10k+ votes

Hey hey hey fellow BiggerPocketeers!

BiggerPockets is always looking for ways to improve the site - and what we hear over and over is:

What is the best solution for X? and Has anyone used X company?

We've heard you. And our answer is BiggerPockets Reviews!

BiggerPockets' Editorial Team regularly reviews products and services that directly affect you, the investor. These are objective reviews from us - they are not paid for or sponsored by the company.

BUT

We want to make sure we're sharing what YOU want to know! So please tell us WHAT you want to know and WHO you want reviewed.

Feel free to comment here or send me a message on the site or via email at [email protected].

[email protected]Podcast Guest on Show #261

7 Reply

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Joe SplitrockPro Member

Moderator

Rental Property Investor · Sioux Falls, SD · Member since 2015 · 9k+ posts · 18k+ votes

Originally posted by @Sergio B.:

Great idea, seems very useful for initial information on a product or service. As a possible consumer, I would also like to read peer reviews and a rating system "a la" Amazon. The way is designed now a reader probably won't come back to revisit down the road. Good tool for my toolbox regardless, maybe phase 2?

I am not a fan of Amazon style reviews. Amazon reviews are highly manipulated. Most of the top reviewers get the product for free and the companies themselves use armies of fake people to boost reviews. The other issue is people coming on to leave angry reviews based on just a single experience. If they do allow member reviews, it should be limited to PRO members or people who have a certain post count.

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Sergio B.
Real Estate Investor · Miami, FL · Member since 2013 · 122 posts · 51 votes
6y
Great idea, seems very useful for initial information on a product or service. As a possible consumer, I would also like to read peer reviews and a rating system "a la" Amazon. The way is designed now a reader probably won't come back to revisit down the road. Good tool for my toolbox regardless, maybe phase 2?
1 Reply
Eric Teran
Architect · Alexandria, VA · Member since 2016 · 317 posts · 371 votes
6y
@Mindy Jensen I appreciate the BP team getting this started. I read a few reviews and they were very detailed. How local can we go on our request? Can it be a lender or realtor or contractor, etc. that is only specific to a certain region like the DMV or LA Metro area?
1 Reply
Mike Kostner
Bloomfield, NJ · Member since 2016 · 24 posts · 33 votes
6y
In the forums, I would like an option to jump to my last read post. It makes it easier to follow a conversation.
6 Reply
Patrick Pierre
New to Real Estate · Garden Grove, CA · Member since 2020 · 64 posts · 56 votes
6y
I second @Sergio B. a peer review option would be great like Amazon with a star system. And of course, those reviews should be vetted to make sure they're legit.
But personally, whenever I see a review by peers who's used a particular product, that review has more weight than anything else.
4 Reply
Paul Ouellette
Property Manager · Bangor, ME · Member since 2014 · 12 posts · 4 votes
6y
@Mindy Jensen
Provide a list of names, phone numbers and email addresses of reputable private money lenders.
2 Reply
Joe SplitrockPro Member
Moderator
Rental Property Investor · Sioux Falls, SD · Member since 2015 · 9k+ posts · 18k+ votes
6y
Originally posted by @Sergio B.:
Great idea, seems very useful for initial information on a product or service. As a possible consumer, I would also like to read peer reviews and a rating system "a la" Amazon. The way is designed now a reader probably won't come back to revisit down the road. Good tool for my toolbox regardless, maybe phase 2?

I am not a fan of Amazon style reviews. Amazon reviews are highly manipulated. Most of the top reviewers get the product for free and the companies themselves use armies of fake people to boost reviews. The other issue is people coming on to leave angry reviews based on just a single experience. If they do allow member reviews, it should be limited to PRO members or people who have a certain post count.
12 Reply
Yalis A.
Realtor · Newark, DE · Member since 2018 · 2 posts · 1 vote
6y
Some sites like VRBO and Amazon have rules that won't let you post a review if you never used the product or service, makes sense on the surface. Sometimes issues happen that skirt around using the service, e.g. cancellations or business deal went sideways. These get missed in reviews because of those rules, but unsatisfied customers aren't allowed to post their actual experience. Real Estate has many ways a deal can break, as long as reviews can cover those it would be all encompassing. I'm not a pro yet, an addition of reviews will help rookies like me tremendously. It will give BP an added level of reputation for the businesses (lenders, contractors, etc) that promote here. I'm always using caution as sifting through who can harm and who can help.
1 Reply
Greg MoranPro Member
Investor · Washington, DC · Member since 2017 · 136 posts · 59 votes
6y
Howdy Mindy,

I would love to add a positive review for QuestTrust Company from Houston, TX. I use them as the custodian for a Self-directed IRA that holds my RE investments. I've had the for about a year now, we've done 3 transactions, and each one has been well facilitated. I always get to speak to a person when I call their office, and they have enough staff to answer any aspect of SDIRA investing in RE. I also chose QuestTrust because of their emphasis on providing education to their clients through webinars, events (all online lately), and forums. Their prices (.PDF) are not the cheapest, but I've learned that in life you get what you pay for, and QuestTrust provides a great value.

Love to see what others think about them!

Respect,

-Greg
0 Reply
Mindy JensenPro Member
OP
BiggerPockets Money Podcast Host · Longmont, CO · Member since 2014 · 7k+ posts · 10k+ votes
6y
Originally posted by @Paul Ouellette:
@Mindy Jensen
Provide a list of names, phone numbers and email addresses of reputable private money lenders.

A Private Money Lender is someone you know, or someone who knows someone you know. You're probably looking for Hard Money Lenders, have you tried the Hard Money Lending Directory? www.biggerpockets.com/hml
[email protected]Podcast Guest on Show #261
1 Reply
Bob Floss II
Attorney · Northbrook, IL · Member since 2017 · 719 posts · 549 votes
6y
@Mindy Jensen I would like if reviews can be limited in some way. A reviewer needs a certain number of posts, activity, etc in order to leave a review. My issue is I want reputable reviews and not randoms either posting fluff reviews or posting bad reviews about competition.
5 Reply
Robert Shreffler
Member since 2020 · 17 posts · 4 votes
6y
um, this may sound dumb. but looking at top menu, there is no vendor reviews. so how will we know how to get there without the link in Mindy's 3 day old post?
0 Reply
Paul Oscar
Member since 2020 · 9 posts · 54 votes
6y
@Mindy Jensen
How about a webnar on passive investor/syndication?
0 Reply
Kyle J.
Rental Property Investor · Northern, CA · Member since 2012 · 5k+ posts · 5k+ votes
6y
Originally posted by @Robert Shreffler:
um, this may sound dumb. but looking at top menu, there is no vendor reviews. so how will we know how to get there without the link in Mindy's 3 day old post?

At the top Menu, look under Education > Reviews.

Or just use this link:

https://www.biggerpockets.com/reviews
1 Reply
Ruth Blue
Realtor · Pigeon Forge, TN · Member since 2018 · 230 posts · 111 votes
6y
@Mindy Jensen
BP reviews sounds interesting.
How local would you go and how would the list of companies/ products/ services reviewed be fair. There is potential for some venders agencies to take advantage.
A review system where 3 or 4 like items reviewed with comparables could be interesting.
0 Reply
Steven Ko
Sunnyvale, CA · Member since 2018 · 191 posts · 178 votes
6y
@Mindy Jensen I agree with peer review but heavily vetted. A toothbrush on amazon with 10k reviews and once you start reading the reviews, 90% of them seem fake. We recently had a post where someone asked about a program and then what felt like a bunch of spam bots came on.
0 Reply
Kenneth Kussman
Investor · Irving, TX · Member since 2015 · 101 posts · 23 votes
6y
@Mindy Jensen
Financing a purchase
What Are the signs that a neighborhood is going up in demand or down in demand
0 Reply
Dwight Porter
Houston Texas · Member since 2019 · 12 posts · 3 votes
6y
My review is for the new calculators. Please change them back to the old style. The functionality placement of the inputs is not user friendly. I can't enter my exact down payment amount. I have to select a predetermined percentage. I have to download the PDF to visually see a complete picture of my numbers. Some of the entries are missing (Unit breakdown price).
2 Reply
Alli McGee
Product Manager at BiggerPockets · Denver, CO · Member since 2019 · 29 posts · 64 votes
6y
Originally posted by @Dwight Porter:
My review is for the new calculators. Please change them back to the old style. The functionality placement of the inputs is not user friendly. I can't enter my exact down payment amount. I have to select a predetermined percentage. I have to download the PDF to visually see a complete picture of my numbers. Some of the entries are missing (Unit breakdown price).

Hi Dwight,
Thanks for your feedback. You can access the old calculators here:
Old Rental Calculator
Old Flipping Calculator

Furthermore, if you have additional feedback you'd like to give us on the new calculators, please fill out this survey.
Thank you!
0 Reply
Dave Van HornPro Member
Fund Manager · Wayne, PA · Member since 2009 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
6y
Got a lot of ideas on this since we buy out of state & bulk REO property/vacant 1st mortgage tapes. We're always trying to find the best of the following, so a (relatively) nationwide database of these types of companies would be invaluable:

- Law firms (Real Estate and/or Foreclosure attorneys)

- Investor friendly Title Companies

- General Contractors (grass and snow maintenance can be difficult as well, so landscaping could be a worthwhile facet of this too)

- REO Agents

- Property Preservation Companies/Mold Remediation Companies

- Alarm Services

- Tax monitoring services

- Investor friendly insurance companies
Podcast Guest on Show #273
0 Reply
Daniel Boruch
Rental Property Investor · Toronto, ON · Member since 2020 · 8 posts · 6 votes
6y
@Mindy Jensen
I hate how it doesn’t have notifications on the app itself. Yes, I get email of response or friend request on the forum but, I don’t even know my password lol.
When I log into app, there is not notification tab, like there would be on Facebook or something.
I would appreciate that.
1 Reply
Alex Kreeger
Member since 2019 · 63 posts · 60 votes
6y
@Mindy Jensen allow a quick way to scroll to bottom of threads. When I read a post that has 250 comments, I want to be able to see most recent ones, not ones I’ve read the last few times I’ve looked at the post!
1 Reply
Rick Wade
Member since 2019 · 56 posts · 40 votes
6y
Mindy
I would like to see the ability to review companies that offer their services on this site. Whether or not they personally advertise on BP. I have had mostly good luck on this site with people that are a part of this site. With that said, there should be a place to review both good and bad for anyone trying to promote themselves here.
Thanks
Rick
1 Reply
Aigo Pyles
Flipper/Rehabber · Memphis, TN · Member since 2020 · 758 posts · 285 votes
6y
Originally posted by @Kyle J.:
Originally posted by @Robert Shreffler:
um, this may sound dumb. but looking at top menu, there is no vendor reviews. so how will we know how to get there without the link in Mindy's 3 day old post?

At the top Menu, look under Education > Reviews.

Or just use this link:

https://www.biggerpockets.com/reviews

this sounds interesting

0 Reply
Sharlene Mulchandani
Cincinnati, OH · Member since 2020 · 299 posts · 476 votes
6y
@Mindy Jensen I really like the idea of BiggerPockets Reviews and it will be a big help for all members on the platform!
I had a question regarding the companies that will be reviewed though. Will they include all relevant companies in the industry or only those that have partnered with BiggerPockets?
3 Reply
Mindy JensenPro Member
OP
BiggerPockets Money Podcast Host · Longmont, CO · Member since 2014 · 7k+ posts · 10k+ votes
6y
Originally posted by @Sharlene Mulchandani:
@Mindy Jensen I really like the idea of BiggerPockets Reviews and it will be a big help for all members on the platform!
I had a question regarding the companies that will be reviewed though. Will they include all relevant companies in the industry or only those that have partnered with BiggerPockets?

Very good question. We're always looking for suggestions for companies to review, although cannot guarantee we will be able to review every company suggested.
The reviews are factual and not based on opinions. We are hoping to add the member-supplied reviews in the near future.
[email protected]Podcast Guest on Show #261
1 Reply

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