New at wholesaling

[Cecilia Gonzales]

Hello BP,

My name is Cecilia Gonzales I live in Fresno, Ca and i have been a member of Bigger Pockets for about 3 months now and i finally built up enough courage to introduce myself. So i have been learning and listening to great advice from different types of videos, podcast, friends and so on. I decided to get into Wholesaling through a friend of mine and truly liked the idea of making quick money and at the same time helping out a motivated seller. My favorite part is having the freedom to spend with family. Although i have not got any deals yet! I sometimes get a little discouraged. I WILL NOT GIVE UP!!!! I will continue to work hard and attend as much meetings possible and Networking as well. So any advice would be helpful and truly appreciated.

  Thank you all :)

[Sean OToole]

@Cecilia Gonzales you are on the right track, and using the exactly the right service. :-)

If you are finding vacant, or unkempt homes and your letters aren't getting a response then there are a few things to consider:

1. To some degree this is a numbers game. If you have reached out to 2 owners with no response, then that should be no surprise. Especially in the beginning, as you get better at understanding what folks in that situation need, and how to entice them to respond you'll improve your response rate. But you should expect it to be low at first.

2. It's also a persistence game. Reaching out to somebody once really isn't sufficient. The old rule of thumb in direct mail is that it requires at least 3 pieces to get a response. At some point they may call you just to ask you to stop sending letters - but at least then you are talking.

3. On direct mail, make sure you are verifying that is still their current address and that they have recently changed their address, have their mail on hold, etc. Lots of ways to go about this, but as an easy way to get started consider sending at least one letter with tracking.

4. While lots of successful investors just do one thing, and do it well, I'm a big fan of using multiple marketing approaches. Call, mail, door knock (leave letter / card), find them on social media and connect, etc. If you've identified a abandoned house, get after it and don't give up until you reach them by plane, train or automobile.

5. Learn how to skip trace. Ask the neighbors if they know how to reach the owners. Use tools like ancestry.com, accurint, TLO or peoplefinders.com, to track people down by finding their relatives, past addresses, and other clues.

6. If after all that you find everyone is dead, and there are no heirs, then come back and ask about adverse possession. ;-)

Hope that helps!

Sean