How to Find Off Market

Question

Ive been told by a few people that the opportunity really comes from off market real estate. What are your strategies for finding off market deals? A few I've been thinking about are community boards (in local businesses or community places), social media groups/marketplace, and word of mouth. Is there another avenue I should be aware of?

Doug P. · Answer

Cold calling, door knocking, direct mail, signs, flyers, networking, PPC, SEO, blogging, guest posting.

I've bought nearly all of my properties by calling FSBOs.

Start with things that are free or nearly free like running Facebook Marketplace ads, calling FSBOs, posting signs, and networking with everyone you meet and see if you get enough leads to keep you busy before delving into the things that take a lot of time (cold calling, door knocking, SEO) or money (direct mail, PPC).

Oleg Donets · Answer

@Stacy Unger, it depends on your marketing budget. If you have at least $2-3k per month, I'd highly recommend investing in one of the following:

1) Pay-Per-Lead

2)  Search Engine Optimization

3) Pay-Per-Click

4) Facebook ads

All four are inbound marketing channels that will help you find off market deals.

Of course, each of those have their own Pros and Cons. However, each of them is a great source for off market deals.

David Krulac · Answer

I did a study of where I sourced real estate purchases, and I've bought and sold over 1,000 properties.  58% came from verbal auctions, 31% were from government auctions like tax sale and sheriff sales, FSBO were 19%, Estate/Probate 15%, Sealed bid auctions 15%, Word of mouth 13%, MLS 25%.  There is more than 100%, because some purchases were in more than one category.  But the overall point is only 25% came from listed properties, which I look at every day.

Min Zhang · Answer

You’re definitely on the right track, Stacy! Off-market deals can offer more flexibility and less competition if you can find them. The strategies you mentioned like community boards, social media, and word of mouth are all great ways to start. A few other approaches people use include driving around looking for distressed or vacant properties, sending direct mail to certain owner types, or building relationships with local wholesalers who already have deal flow. Public records can also be helpful if you’re open to a little digging.

Happy to keep the conversation going!

Arman Ahmed · Answer

@Stacy Unger

You’re on the right track! Driving for dollars has worked well for me — especially when paired with a tool like DealMachine. I also pull niche lists like tired landlords or vacant properties and hit them with mail, texts, or calls. Relationships with local agents and wholesalers help too. Consistency is key with off-market!

David Lecko · Answer

Thank you for using DealMachine!

How to Find Off Market

Most Popular Reply