All Forum Posts by: Robert Williams

Hey Bobby...yes, that's that million dollar question: "How do you find properties that have good value?" If you're interested in wholesaling, you'll have to do marketing to find motivated sellers. The whole idea behind wholesaling is to secure a great deal from a seller and then to sell that deal to someone else for a profit.

Wholesalers do everything from using targeted direct mailers (e.g. "yellow letters", postcards, etc) to placing bandit signs. There's tons of information on how to market for sellers here on BP. I'd start with the "Free Beginnner's Guide" which includes a section on wholesaling.

Direct marketing to sellers will also yield you the best flip and rental deals, but you can also use a traditional real estate agent to find good deals. If you're not working with an agent, I'd use Redfin to see what properties are coming on the market. Don't use Zillow or Trulia...information on those websites is hopelessly out of date.

Hi Bobby,

Welcome to BP. The DC market is great for all of the real estate investing avenues you mentioned; wholesaling, flipping, and renting. My wife and I have numerous rental properties in DC that we've acquired over the years and we wrapped up our first true flip late last year.

You can make good money with any of those methods. As you know, rents in DC are pretty high so finding an income producing property is not that difficult. It's more challenging to find good flip deals since competition from developers is really high. Obviously, wholesaling is the best way to go if you don't want to put up a lot of cash, but there the challenge is creating a marketing systems to get the properties.

If you get into wholesaling, please put me on your buyer's list. I'm always looking for the next deal!

Sincerely,

Rob

Hi Jeremy,

Welcome to BP. It sounds like you've got a ton of training under your belt, which is great. It also sounds like you've run into one of the biggest obstacles that most investors face--finding deals. I'm just starting a direct mail campaign and one source for homeowner lists that I've found to be extremely helpful is: www.listsource.com. I'm sure if you search the BP forums that you'll come across other list providers that people recommend.

-Rob

Hi Casey...welcome to BP. A great goal to have is to read the "Free Beginner's Guide" in the "Learn" section of this website. That will give you a ton of information about the different ways you can invest in real estate. It's never too early to get started and, no, the area is not too expensive if you start out as a wholesaler.

Hi Deniz...welcome to Bigger Pockets. I'm also both an active real estate agent and an investor. I can say with complete confidence that you will find everything you need to be a successful investor in the forums and resources sections of this website (for free). I would not pay for any investor training seminar.

The ones I've attended have been very short on detailed, actionable information and long on sales pitches to get you to sign up for their next level of training.

Being both a licensed agent and an investor has its benefits. You'll be able to write your own offers on properties you want to purchase, you'll pocket the buyer's side commission on any properties you purchase on the open market, and you'll save some money on the commission when it comes to listing your own properties for sale. The biggest consideration is that you will have to disclose your status as a licensed agent, even if your buying properties on the investment side.

Hi Jacob...I work with a lot of RE attorneys, but they all work for title companies. Try Todd Ewing at [email protected]. He's the founder of Federal Title and is also a partner at Tobin, O'Connor, & Ewing law firm. If he can't help you himself, he'll at least point you in the right direction.

Welcome to BP, Marc. Glad to have you on these forums!

Hi Betsy...welcome to the Bigger Pockets community. One of the best pieces of advice I can give you is to check out the Bigger Pockets "Beginner Guide" and from there read some of the great articles about landlording, all of which can be found in the "Learn" portion of the website (and are totally free!)

Hi Devonte',

Yes, some lenders will work with you as soon as you have a job, provided that the job is full-time and stable and that you have a credit history (credit cards, car loan, etc). Generally lenders will want to see your two most recent pay-stubs, so that means being in a job for a little over a month.

If you don't yet have a credit history or if you're working with some conservative lenders, they may want you to be on the job for six months before considering you for a loan.

If you don't have a credit history, start establishing one now. Generally, lenders will want to see at least three lines of credit on your credit history.

Regardless, it's GREAT that you're thinking about real estate investing now! I wish it would have been on my mind when I was just 20!

Communication is a critical element of any real estate agent/client relationship. Frankly, you're the client and your agent should be responsive to you regardless what means of communication you prefer. I would have a conversation with the agent outlining my expectations (I need same-day responses to my email queries) and your reasoning (because good deals generally don't last long on the market). If the agent improves and meets your expectations, great! If not, move on to another agent.

As an agent myself, it is NOT cool to work with multiple agents in the same territory at the same time unless that's something you've discussed with all the agents involved (e.g. some sort of bird-dogging arrangement). Agents only get paid for their time when a deal actually closes and if an agent is meeting all your needs and basically doing all the physical legwork of looking at properties for you, they deserve to get the closing. Of course, the key is that the agent is meeting all your needs, including communication responsiveness. If they're not, find another agent.