All Forum Posts by: Al Bunch

Old(er) thread, but I enjoyed reading it. Couple of thoughts.

Couple of thoughts:

I -love- buyers that will bid themselves up based on what they think will pass. I bid what *I* am willing to pay, if that doesn't work for the seller, I move on to the next widget (house, car, boat, restaurant, etc).

If your current agent isn't getting it and you're working with them, bring in a second agent start submitting through them instead. It -is- a numbers game in more ways than one.

A bunch of rambling:

A lot of the agents that post about what they'll accept from you, offer-wise, are likely just protecting their time and working off their personal beliefs and frankly it's not their money that's being spent to buy the property. Texas cranks out new agents every single day, I'm sure Illinois is the same, I'd go find one that's hungry and get them to submit my offers. Average agents are a dime-a-dozen - a really exceptional agent will work with you to understand your strategy and try to help you maximize your success (and theirs in the process).

Tune out the negative talk because there are a LOT of people that love to spread FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt). Find what works for YOU and keep doing it. Anytime someone tells you that you can't do it, take it as a challenge to prove that you can rather than accepting it as a limit on your abilities.

The Energy Cooridor is a stretch of I-10 from roughly Beltway 8 to Highway 6 where a lot of Oil & Gas company corporate offices and related industries have taken up residence.

@Adam Syphers I just put a start time of 6:30 - I'll be there until at least 8:30 - not sure how long others will be there though.

My direct number is in my signature - call or text if you're running late and want to make sure there are still people there.

-Al

Try a meetup group where you can just get some face time with others doing the same thing...then decide if you want to join a club or sign up for a mentoring program.

I set this up for folks living in NW Houston, but anyone is welcome to join in...I'm sure there's one like this in your area as well.

http://www.meetup.com/Northwest-Houston-Real-Estate-Investing/

Also - welcome to Bigger Pockets!

@Doss Mann I wasn't implying that you were getting away with anything. Right now the supply side is low and the demand side is high with respect to rentals. When the rental market turns and there are 5 vacant houses in the same neighborhood, landlords will have to work harder to get a decent tenant in the property.

Avoiding showings for unqualified tenants by phone-screening them is definitely one way to go about it. Personally, I'd prefer scheduling one showing Saturday morning at 10am sharp to multiple families (qualified or un) and create a competitive atmosphere as others have pointed out. If the future tenant misses the showing window, they miss their opportunity. This, to me, is the start of the training process for a new tenant and they're either training you or you're training them.

@Gary Clark I've only skimmed the thread, but I'm sure someone here has mentioned getting rental comps from a local Realtor so you can make sure you're priced right...and possibly even listing it with a realtor - even though it might cost you 1/2 month rent to get it rented, if it sits for another month vacant you'd just be paying the fee by way of mortgage payment anyway.

Just a quick reminder for any Houston folks - tonight at BJ's 6:30p.

Shhh....don't tell anyone I resurrected a one year old thread because I saw August and assumed it was 2013.

One word...

Strobist

If you're looking to sell the property, George is spot on. Control the light. If you just want snapshots, best advice is the widest angle lense you can get on a point-and-shoot.

Houston rental market is super tight right now, some of the neighborhoods I've looked at have an average from 1-5 DOM - that's an average, not a range...crazy! Landlords here are probably getting away with a lot more than usual - which will eventually catch up to them.

David Jackson No offense taken, this wasn't my deal, I was just looking at the numbers.