Nationwide or Southeast Regional Cash Buyers?

[Copelon Kirklin]

I've been building my cash buyers list locally but wonder if there are any strategies I'm not applying to secure nationwide buyers. Specifically, those interested in the New Orleans, LA area.

[Kimberly Jones]

I have been selling corporate owned REOs on a national level for over 5 years. Outside of corporate buyers, I have not run across many out of town investors buying in New Orleans. The few I do know have someone local running the show. That said, I HAVE sold properties to investors who were relocating here and they came to me either through referrals or local craigslist ads. Here and there I have run across investors who were raised here and have family here, but now live elsewhere. They always come from local sources as well.

Those of us who have been working New Orleans for a long time have noticed an uptick of "gurus" coming to town with their workshops and seminars and we all see the results with a steady stream of newbie investors joining biggerpockets.  You will also find a good number of out of town companies on Craigslist looking for local birddogs, but they usually turn out to be wholesalers, not actual buyers. The vast majority of these out of towners want a piece of the market, but they have no interest in investing here. 

I have bought, rehabbed and sold properties in many states and one thing I know for sure, New Orleans is different from anywhere else. Getting things done here seems to take a bit more effort. Rehabs are a nightmare for most of us. I cannot imagine trying to work here without actually being here. Add to that the fact that NOLA doesn't have the best reputation between the crime and the corruption AND we were almost wiped off the map not so long ago. I have cash buyers in just about every state, some of whom buy several properties a month in various states. None of them will entertain buying in New Orleans. Essentially you have to love this city in some way, shape or form, to put your money here. 

If you are looking through transactions to find the cash buyers, you will find them all in the same spot, regardless of where they live. If you are looking to lure investors here from other places, you've got your work cut out for you.