Biggest friction point between buyers and wholesalers?

Question

Getting more active again on BiggerPockets and curious what others are seeing in the Nashville market.

From my seat, deals that actually close here tend to win on clarity, not hype.

For those active in Middle TN, what’s the biggest friction point you’re seeing right now between buyers and wholesalers?

Luka Milicevic · Answer

Biggest friction is wholesalers sending out garbage deals with absolutely no margin. Presenting very incorrect comps to drive up ARV and severely underestimating rehab costs...by about half. "Easy 45k rehab" ends up being a 100k rehab.

Trying to wholesale properties off the MLS

I mean the list goes on.

There are very few good wholesalers left and you have to know who they are. I used to be on 100 buyer lists, but now I'm just on about 3.

I am buying most of my stuff from other investors in my network and not wholesalers.

Evan Polaski · Answer

While I don't invest in, nor live in, Nashville, your issues seem to be the same as probably every market... or at least Cincinnati.

At the end of the day, there is a reason wholesalers are almost always the most useless people in real estate.  The cost of entry is $0.  There is no education required to call yourself a wholesaler.  You don't need money to call yourself a wholesaler.  You don't even need deals to call yourself a wholesaler.Because there is no friction to get into the wholesale game, you have a million uneducated (at least as it pertains to real estate) people with no money knocking on doors and calling people trying to tie up properties.  And anytime you have more demand than supply, prices go up.

Anyways, like Luka noted, you have people with no market knowledge or rehab experience sending out "deals" with ARVs 30%+ higher than actual, rehab costs half of reality, and add in many that are trying to make more money on the assignment fee/dual close spread than the end flipper will make if everything goes perfectly...

At the end of the day, I love people that call themselves wholesalers because it is shows to me they have no understanding of anything.  They don't even know enough to know that by simply calling themselves a wholesaler, they are actively putting themselves in a pool of people that any real investors considers the scum of the earth (at least as it pertain to real estate, I am sure they are nice people in general)

Andreas Mueller · Answer

Most wholesalers suck. Let's all be honest. (Just like most Realtors, us brokers know this too.)

The legit wholesalers take it internally and flip houses themselves. Wholesale is now highly professionalized. You can't just limp in to it and expect to do well.

Too many gurus online, and even legit podcasters, promoting wholesaling as a way to get into real estate has ruined that sector of the industry.

It's quite hard to find a Wholesaler that has actual deals and is above board.

I wish more influential real estate professionals putting out education/content would promote house hacking as the way to get into real estate.

Hailey Hubbell · Answer

There are definitely a lot of bad actors in every market when it comes to investment opportunities! I have found that connecting with someone you trust is the most important thing when it comes to purchasing from wholesalers in Middle TN, and that typically goes hand in hand with someone who is from this area. I'm personally from this area and happy to connect farther- feel free to reach out!

Israel LoBue · Answer

Luka, you’re not wrong. That margin compression + aggressive assumptions combo is exactly what’s breaking trust right now. Inflated ARVs and paper rehabs might get clicks, but they don’t get deals closed, especially in today’s rate environment.What I’ve noticed is the same shift you mentioned: serious buyers narrowing their circle and relying more on relationships than blast emails. The investors and operators that still transact consistently tend to be the ones who underwrite conservatively and pressure-test numbers before anything goes out.From my side, a big part of what I do is helping connect investors who value clean data and realistic assumptions, so fewer people waste time on deals that were never going to pencil. Appreciate you sharing how you’re navigating it.

Israel LoBue · Answer

Appreciate that perspective, Brian. I’m seeing the same things locally. Expectation drift is real, especially when pricing or rents are still anchored to last year instead of today’s debt and exit reality.

From my side, the deals that move are the ones where everyone’s aligned early on assumptions and downside, not just the upside. I spend a lot of time connecting investors and operators who value conservative underwriting and clean communication, which seems to reduce a lot of that friction before it becomes a deal-killer.

Always open to comparing notes as well. Middle TN is nuanced market-by-market, so the more grounded conversations, the better.

Israel LoBue · Answer

@Luka Milicevic

Luka, you’re not wrong. That margin compression + aggressive assumptions combo is exactly what’s breaking trust right now. Inflated ARVs and paper rehabs might get clicks, but they don’t get deals closed, especially in today’s rate environment.What I’ve noticed is the same shift you mentioned: serious buyers narrowing their circle and relying more on relationships than blast emails. The investors and operators that still transact consistently tend to be the ones who underwrite conservatively and pressure-test numbers before anything goes out.From my side, a big part of what I do is helping connect investors who value clean data and realistic assumptions, so fewer people waste time on deals that were never going to pencil. Appreciate you sharing how you’re navigating it.

Israel LoBue · Answer

@Brian Hollingsworth

Appreciate that perspective, Brian. I’m seeing the same things locally. Expectation drift is real, especially when pricing or rents are still anchored to last year instead of today’s debt and exit reality.

From my side, the deals that move are the ones where everyone’s aligned early on assumptions and downside, not just the upside. I spend a lot of time connecting investors and operators who value conservative underwriting and clean communication, which seems to reduce a lot of that friction before it becomes a deal-killer.

Always open to comparing notes as well. Middle TN is nuanced market-by-market, so the more grounded conversations, the better.

Biggest friction point between buyers and wholesalers?

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