All Forum Posts by: Colby Hager

All this advice is solid.  I happen to fall on the other side of when to find the end buyer, but that's just me.  One thing everyone left out that was part of the original question is looking to have no money out of pocket.  9 out of 10 times, finding a legit deal as a wholesaler takes some upfront cash no matter what the guru's are selling

I don't use deal machine so take this with a grain of salt.  

I don't think you need an app with a monthly subscription to track property addresses of vacant houses if you are budget conscious and haven't done a deal yet.  You have excel?  You know how to look up who owns a property?  

Seriously man, one of the things that frustrates me about the ecosystem of real estate investing is the number of gadgets and services that you don't need but guru's and real estate influencers make it seems like they are THE key to your success. (not a commentary on deal machine specifically b/c idk about them)

Maybe others can chime in on the benefits of deal machine that I'm unaware of.  I can think of better ways for you to spend $50-150 per month if you are just starting out.  

@Orlando De Los Santos  

Oh man, where to start...so much could be said.  I'll start with one item and give you more later if you want. 

We'll start with the glaringly obvious...

Lead sources for Wholesaling

Those three that you mentioned aren't going to be enough.  Everyone and their mom has access to those and is sending out crappy postcards that all look the same and say all the same thing.  These lists are stale, the homeowners on these lists have already been touched by so many other investors, unless you just luck up with perfect timing (which can happen), you are going to be frustrated before you get going.  

How can you niche down?  How can you hone in on a certain type of seller?  Do you have the ability to craft a message that resonates and converts?  Have you taken the time to truly build the avatar of your ideal customer?  95% of the people I see posting haven't.  They think they can sign up for a service for $39-$99 a month that will just pop out deals worth thousands lol.  

If this is you, stop.  Do better.  Think about what I'm saying and make an adjustment.  If you have done these things, good, you have done more than most.  I didn't see you mention a website to generate leads.  This is most investors' number one source for leads.  

Do you have a real budget for lead generation?  And by real I'm not talking $300  per month.  Most people want to get into wholesaling because they are told by the gurus they don't need money.  If you really want to do this business without money, its doable but VERY VERY VERY difficult.  So what is your monthly advertising budget?

To be honest, you are wasting your time building a cash buyers list until you actually start generating some leads.  I can talk more about calling cash buyers later if you want (most of them lie and the ones who don't are sick of people calling them with criteria questions but no actual deal)

@Daniel P Buteau

Brother, don’t take this the wrong way ok?

If you have to ask about a template on what to say to the person you are mailing to, then you haven’t taken the time to understand who you are trying to reach and you aren’t ready to mail.

Understanding who you are trying to reach and why might be able to help them is key.

If you really want to have success buying properties, it isn’t JUST about making money. It’s about helping actual real people solve their problems.

Take a minute and think about why someone is facing a potential foreclosure. How they got there, where their head is now, what are all of their options and why are they good or bad, what their hopes are for the future etc... write it all down. Understand how you might be able to help them. Understand why they might call you.

One thing I know for a 100% fact - it isn’t “we buy houses cash”

90% of the houses I actually buy have stacks of those postcards and those people aren’t getting the contract and most of the time, they don’t even get a phone call.

Go look at all the templates. They are all the same crap. If you must use a template, use one pisses people off. Seriously. One that is going to offend most of the people who see it. Think “Final Notice” I wrote an entire article on this concept.

And if you do send out a bunch of postcards, make sure you understand exactly how to find the gold when a ton of them get returned.

Good luck!

What @Jonathan Greene said.  

@Amna Malik

CallRail

You may want to reconsider direct mail altogether and start thinking about moving into digital advertising.  However, if you must use direct mail, there are two strategies that will give you the best results.  One is to send them something directing them to your website where, if you have done a good job, they will convert. The other is to niche down your list so much and send them a mail piece that is ultra-compelling because you know exactly who they are, why they want to sell, what their problem is, how they are feeling emotionally about their problem, and how you will solve their problem.  The issue with this direct mail option is that most people won't and can't pinpoint their target customer like that.  So what do they do?  They send out WE BUY HOUSES postcards and hope for the best lol.  When I buy houses, I look at piles of those postcards in my prospects' houses.  Why didn't they call them?

@Bella Gilbert

Build a website like mine that converts at a high rate and then do everything you can to get motivated sellers to land on your page.

I would 100% take off that equity filter.  I doubt it's super accurate and plus...you don't want to talk to someone who would give you their house for bottom dollar but has 62%?  

Are you willing to do deals sub-2?  If so, you may not need to include the 3 year filter. 

You may want to check into a company called Broker Breakup.  They offer exactly what you are looking for and can help you learn along the way as you do deals.