Wholesaler · Orlando · Member since 2026 · 15 posts · 3 votes
I’ve been spending a lot of time lately studying properties and learning how investors evaluate deals, especially in the Orlando/Kissimmee/Polk County areas.
I’ve been focusing on understanding ARV, rehab estimates, and what makes a deal worth pursuing.
For those with more experience — what helped you most when you were first starting out?
Was it analyzing more deals, networking, or something else?
Analyzing deals consistently is a great foundation. What helps isn’t just volume, but analyzing and then tracking what actually happened - what it sold for, how long it sat, whether it needed price drops. That feedback loop sharpened my assumptions a lot.
I also think it’s helpful to underwrite conservatively and get comfortable passing on most deals. Early on it’s easy to want something to work. Being willing to say “this doesn’t survive realistic numbers” builds discipline, and reduces risk.
Networking definitely matters, but I think strong fundamentals around ARV, realistic rehab ranges, and understanding buyer expectations in your specific market make networking far more productive.
This is extremely helpful, thank you for taking the time to share that. I've been focusing a lot on analyzing deals, but tracking what they actually sell for and how long they sit makes a lot of sense. I can see how that would sharpen ARV assumptions over time.
When you analyze deals in your market, what’s been the most reliable way for you to estimate rehab costs accurately, especially without seeing the property in person?