All Forum Posts by: Dan Schweit

 its OK to elaborate ..  it gives all the folks that want to be where your at a clear road map of how it can happen and what needs to happen to get there.. like the folks with trashed credit and low income.. going to be pretty tough for them.  it just is what it is.. also I suspect your local and can over see your projects pretty easily this is also important for those beginning.. the risk of doing what your doing sitting in your desk in LA and doing a rehab out in the mid west or deep south takes on a whole nother level of risks that simply seem to get glossed over. 

Ok no money is a bit of a stretch but none the less this has been an epic year! I have put little to no money down and have increased my net worth substantially through forced appreciation, positive cashflow, and debt pay down. 

 I joined BP in January of 2017 and purchased my 1st deal on June 5th 2019 (I know i'm posting this one day late sue me I was working on my duplex). The Bigger Pockets Podcast got me from knowing nothing about real estate to where I am today. I have read more books over the past year than I have read my entire life. Huge shout out to BP and everyone who makes this community happen. You have changed my life! 

Here is where we are at!

Property 1: BRRRR, Single Family in Fayetteville, NC

Property 2: BRRRR, Single Family in Fayetteville, NC

Property 3: BRRRR, Single Family in Fayetteville, NC

Property 4: BRRRR, Single Family in Fayetteville, NC

Property 5: Sorta BRRRR still trying to figure out the whole refinancing thing, Vacation Rental Duplex (AirBnB) in Carolina Beach, NC

Property 6: House Hack, Vacation Rental Duplex (AirBnB) in Carolina Beach, NC - Closed on this one June 5th 2019!!!!!

Property 7: 1st property (Purchased before I knew anything about real estate) Turned into a Single Family Rental.

Last but not least I started a BP meet up group that meets monthly and we are awesome ... so come hang out 1st Tuesday of every month. 

Over 100K in forced equity and positive cashflow every month. I've got way to many people to thank but @Alexander Felice, @Clint Harris, @Shelby (Osborne) Johnson, @Joshua Dorkin, @Brandon Turner, David Green, Scott Trench, is a good start. Sure I've only actually met Shelby, Alex, and Clint but who cares I will find the rest of you and we will be friends. 

Thanks again for all the help. Looking forward to year two! 

@Julian Peter Yun and @Dan Schweit typically, Los Angeles is not a cash flow market.  Los Angeles and Southern California markets are generally for appreciation and if you buy in the right location you can and will have great appreciation!

When I'm working with clients I let them know that it is not very realistic to live in Los Angeles for free, however, they can live at a subsidized price, get debt pay down and achieve good appreciation.  If you're willing to work to find the right property in the right location it is financially well worth it in the long run.

If you need assistance I'm happy to help.

@Dan Schweit many sellers prefer to take a chance on the market, thinking that competition will drive the price up (which it generally does here). I've found a few deals for clients only through the MLS, you just have to know what you're looking for and be ready to move. You wait too long in this market and it will be gone. I will say that an agent will usually know if a listing before it gets to the other sites, it usually takes about 24 hours to syndicate if the seller has agreed to let that happen.

Hi Dan,

Part of my research is to sample closings that look like flips nationwide.

I've sampled California a few times in the past year. So nowhere near a complete report but good information.

So just in the City of Los Angeles I'm showing 418 potential flips.

Of those, 231 were originally listed on the MLS - that's 55%

Glendale is 7 of 18 were originally listed on the MLS - 39%

Manhattan Beach 6 of 7 were originally listed on the MLS - 86%

Long Beach 57 of 95 were originally listed on the MLS - 60%

My take away is there are a lot of flips to be found on the MLS

The other take a way is that there are a lot of properties to be found using other prospecting methods.

@Dan Schweit what you're saying seems to make sense until you dig into it. 

If someone brings me a property to sell, I can quietly sell it to another investor for a discounted price but that's not in the best interest of my client or myself.

When I put the property on the market, it's going to reach a wider audience and is more likely to bring a higher price. That is how I serve my client. The higher sales price also results in a higher commission for me.

As for finding deals on the MLS, it's absolutely possible. I work closely with an investor that has very strict purchasing requirements and typically only buys property at 30 - 50% below market, which is very hard to find. Yet in my small, expensive market, I helped him add four properties and 18 units to his portfolio, all from the MLS.

The vast majority of agents don't understand how investments work. They look at an investment with deferred maintenance or bad tenants and think it's a disaster that nobody will want to buy. If you are a student of the market, you'll recognize these "gems in the rough" quickly and can pounce on them before anyone else.

 How do you think an agent gets their investors in the 1st place?

 An intelligent agent would never sell a property prior to listing it. As an agent you build your career by finding off market deals & putting them on the market. That is how you market yourself. Any agent who isn't doing that has no idea how to properly build & market their business. Considering the top 10% of agents sell like 90% of the inventory logic would dictate that at least 90% of the deals make it to the market.

@Dan Schweit I found my first deal on the MLS. It was listed for about a year and I noticed another price drop, a drop that put it well below comps. I put in an offer about 20% lower, was countered, and then gave the sellers my best and final offer. To my amazement, they accepted. For the longest time, I tried to figure out why the property didn't sell. Thought maybe the house was haunted or maybe something happed there, but nope. Turns out that timing is everything. The sellers were just ready to move on with their lives. The listing had become stale and everyone in town assumed there was something major wrong with it, but it was really in great shape. I spruced up the front and added parking, very valuable in this location. Now it's cash flowing and I have my first buy and hold for long term. I'm sure this strategy of finding motivated sellers on the MLS is too slow for most investors, but for me, I'm only looking to pick up a rental every few years, so I don't think it's a bad place to start. Just get out there and start making offers. You never know what might happen. Good luck!