All Forum Posts by: Brandon Turner

One of the best ways to find good contractors is to get referrals from other house flippers and investors. Ask a Realtor who the major investors are in your area and call them and ask for referrals. It looks good on them when they give their contractors other work. Everyone wins. Good luck!

Oh, and as for price - I try to spend under $400 for new fridges, stoves, and dishwashers. Used: under $200. Again, these are on the low end. Sears is generally my favorite place (they are nicely priced, quick, and they load it for you!)

I'm not a fan of HomeDepot or Lowes for appliances, but I will in a pinch

I personally don't go with any one in particular, but I usually want the brands to match at least. Any of the big companies, in my mind, are probably ok (Kenmore, Maytag, FridgidAire, etc). In lower end rentals, I don't care as much. I'll usually buy used in those properties, and even buy used in some lower end flips as well.

Hey Dominick - I always recommend talking to long-established Realtors and find out who the "big players" are in your town. One of the best buyers for wholesale deals are going to be house flippers and investors - and Realtors love to make connections. So start networking with Realtors, get introduced, and then those "big players" will teach you exactly what you should be looking for - and they'll be thrilled to do so.

Good luck and keep in touch!

Hey Gerry Attard

I'm always up for some creative strategizing!

Obviously, Manhattan is expensive, but I bet there are some good Bank Repos in some of those Condos. Or if you don't mind looking outside the city a little ways, I bet you could find a duplex that might help offset the mortgage costs.

Are you looking to put 20% down and get traditional financing?

Keep in touch!

Hey Pat! Nice to meet you! I don't live anywhere near North Carolina (though I hear it's lovely) but feel free to reach out any time with questions, comments, or just to mull over a possible scenario with a wholesale deal.

I think you are definitely on the right track in finding a mentor. I suggest finding ugly houses that are currently on the Market for sale and talking with the Realtor who is listing them. Find out from that Realtor who all the "big players" in your town are, in terms of house flippers or investors. Maybe arrange an introduction, preferably at one of the houses they are currently working on so it minimizes any hassle for them. The best mentor for a budding wholesaler is definitely the investor who is going to be buying those wholesale deals from you. They will teach you exactly what they are looking for, and will love you for it.

Good luck and keep in touch!

This is great J, thanks for putting this together! I think I may have to do the same on my blog!

Hey Danny,

To sell on installment usually means that the person might carry the mortgage themselves (meaning no bank!).

This can be awesome, but usually if someone is offering to do this it means they know its going to be in their best interest to do so, which means they probably are going to want a larger down payment or want you to pay much more. Just keep that in mind. Usually sophisticated investors who try to take advantage of newbies will offer to do installments. So be careful.

Option: I'd say yeah, probably they are referring to a lease option. Same principle as above.

Both are great options, but usually if someone else is the one offering it - they are pros.

Good luck!

Hey Shannon, Here are a few of my thoughts:

1.) It's not always easy, but sometimes it is. A title search will usually show it, but that costs money and time and such. Asking is a great way to find out as well. And, in some areas (like mine) you can look up on your county's Assessors Office website and see how much the property was purchased for and what the lien amounts are (this can often give you an idea).

2.) It's never an exact science. The bottom line is - you need to make money and you need to be conservative. I don't even really think in those terms at all. I usually just look at the final price (after repair value) and subtract out the repair work, holding costs, closing costs, and my profit. If it makes sense, its worth moving forward. 60%, 65% , etc are just guidelines for real quick spur-of-the-moment calculations (in that case, use whatever number you want. It's not a big deal - if it works, and you begin to move forward, it's time to dive into the math and find out exact numbers.

3.) Depends on what you mean by "find the house." If you have the deal under legal contract, you can either sell (assign) the contract (if you used the words "and/or assigns" in the offer (which is what most wholesalers do) or if you didn't use those words (like with Bank REOs, which won't let ya) you can do a double closing, which means you buy the house and then re-sell right away (within minutes). The down side of a double closing, however, is that you are forced to pay your country tax when you sell, so you need to factor that in.

If the deal is just something you found but don't have under contract, there isn't a whole lot you can do (that I know of). Perhaps just honor system, I guess.

4.) Sorry, can't help ya here! It's something on my list to learn. Let me know when you find out!

I'm with J. A good real estate agent will be able to tell you what the after-repair value is. That said, real estate agents are often WAY too optimistic. So if they say "Oh, I could get you $150,000" I'd assume less than that.

Also, I'd make sure you figure out those "fixed costs" as perfectly as possible, and make sure to budget for cost overages (things are always more expensive than you think and they always take longer than you'd expect! Especially on your first few flips.)

Oh, and don't forget to factor in holding costs and the cost of financing. If you are using a Hard Money Lender - it could add a lot of money in fees and points.