How to find deals? I live in the Atlanta area.

Question

Hi, I have a question I am sure everyone wants answered!  How to find deals?  That is the hardest part right?  I drive for dollars to find vacants but I cant seem to get anyone to reply to me.  I saw some posts about Phil of Freedom Mentor.  I think that guy is awesome.  He stated he never got a loan for a house.  So, he must find highly motivated sellers.  How does he do this?  I live in Atlanta.  Love to network with folks in the area.  Thanks, Steve

Damicco Robinson · Answer

Hello @Steven Van Ginkel and @Joe Jaques!! As someone who is extremely active in the Atlanta market, my piece of advice would be to work on perfecting your deal analysis in terms of speed and efficiency. To elaborate more, even though the market is one fire, there are still deals to be had within the Atlanta market; however, per everyone else's sentiment, larger more experienced investors are locking the good deals up immediately.

If you can become the investor who is able to accurately and efficiently analyze a deal within a matter of minutes/hours you would put yourself in a much better position to be competitive. Savvy investors are receiving deals and analyzing them within minutes and then immediately going to view the property. Upon viewing the property, if their rehab estimate comes back anywhere within the ballpark then they are immediately making an offer. The offer made is not just the bare minimum they're willing to pay but the absolute most they're willing to pay. Per Joe, these properties are definitely going into a bidding war but the investor that offers the max he's willing to pay and is the quickest, he has a great chance of locking the deal up.

Please feel free to reach out to me directly. I can be a great asset to help you find you solid deals!!

Brenden Mitchum · Answer

@Joe Jaques nailed it.

@Steven Van Ginkel, you'll need to find yourself a niche. You have to get very creative here in ATL to find a deal since most are gone long before they hit the market. Find out where you can get an edge on the competition or where the competition is overlooking. Then, focus on that and be ready to pull the trigger as soon as an opportunity presents itself.

Happy to chat more or answer questions about the ATL market anytime!

Joe Jaques · Answer

Hi Steve,

I can relate. I'm looking to make my first purchase in ATL (not the best timing). The experts all get their deals off-market, usually through their network of agents, wholesalers, bird dogs, etc. Even property managers, lenders, or contractors can inform you about a possible deal.

However, as Duane mentioned the current market is so hot that even the off-market deals are being scooped up. With such little supply and great rates for buyers, the competition is at record levels and bidding wars kill cash flow. Not much else to do but keep searching, build your network, and be ready when deals start to pop back up.

Best of luck!

Duane Alexander · Answer

Welcome to investing in Atlanta. It's going to be a difficult journey due to the hyper competitiveness here, even in the off market sector. I am in the same boat and feel your pain.

Steven Van Ginkel · Answer

Thanks for all the responses and all the connections.  I have been the guy who gets a loan, buys a houses, does a rehab, refinance, rinse repeat.  It is kind of slow...but I am learning a lot of lessons though.  I have been at it for about 20 years off and on.  I have subscribed to a few wholesalers but I would really like to get access to vacant properties near to where I live.  For example, I know of a nice little vacant on a corner lot...small house about 1000 square feet.  It has been vacant for months.  When I do skip tracing on it, some out of town LLC has a claim on it with no contact information.  Wow, if I could actually contact these people and do a subject to, lease option, owner carry or whatever, I would give them a sweet deal with plenty of cash up front and a good purchase price.  This way, I can do a lot more details.  I would take on more leverage which is good.  I still want to take it slow at first..one property at time for now.....ok, back to the day job!!!  Thanks again.

Micah Redden · Answer

I Posted this yesterday but BP didn't like it for some reason and removed it:

@Steven Van Ginkel &  @Duane AlexanderThink about it like this, if it were easy to do it, everyone would and there would be no money in it.

There are countless ways to try to uncover motivated sellers, all have their pros and cons. You have to find which method works best for you based upon your investment strategy, your financial resources, your time availability and your personality.

Direct Mail, Cold Call, RVM, Text, Door Knocking, PPC, Online Ads, etc.

Regardless of the method, no one is going to make it easy. It takes time, patience and persistence to uncover motivation.

Don't get discouraged. Focus on one method until it works for you.

How to find deals? I live in the Atlanta area.

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