Should I save up money to pay for a title search before doing my first deal?

[Karl Washington]

Hello, I haven't done my first deal yet. I'm worried I won't have enough money to pay the title company for doing a title search if my deal falls through for whatever reason. I also heard that I should tell the title company to wait to run title until I find a cash buyer. Would you all agree? If I do need to save up, how much should I save? 

[Lydia R.]

Quote from @Karl Washington:

Hello, I haven't done my first deal yet. I'm worried I won't have enough money to pay the title company for doing a title search if my deal falls through for whatever reason. I also heard that I should tell the title company to wait to run title until I find a cash buyer. Would you all agree? If I do need to save up, how much should I save? 

 It depends on what state you are in. For example, here in TX the large title companies dont charge you for doing a title search. If the deal falls apart then it falls apart and title company eats the cost. But every market is different, and also every title company is different. Usually the smaller companies cannot afford to take a loss on title searches for deals that dont close. Maybe call a few different companies and find out what the cost is. If its $100-$200 and you cant cover that then you might want to wait to get started until you are better capitalized. One of the biggest reasons that wholesalers quit is because they start with only a few hundred dollars and arent able to keep going when they discover they need more than that to get started. I think having at least $1000 saved up should be the bare minimum before you get started. More than that if you are in an expensive market.