All Forum Posts by: Evan J.

Hey there,  I'm based in Fredericksburg and do some investing around here, although I'm more heavily invested in the Richmond market.  I'm looking for more opportunities closer to home though.  I'm always looking to network with like minded people, so feel free to drop me a line to chat sometime.

Bigger Pockets is a great resource that really helped jump-start my career, welcome to the community, you'll learn lots!

I call the number on bandit signs, flyers, brochers, and "we buy houses" ads all the time in search of new wholesalers and deal sources.  I've made great connections this way, but there's one thing that bothers me: the number of people who don't even pick up the phone!

The truth is that when a prospect contacts you, they are ready to talk–and likely ready to sell. If they can’t reach you, they’ll move on to your competitor.

If you aren't picking up the phone, or even calling back within a few minutes, then how are you going to convince me that you're going to find lots of motivated sellers for me?

If you waited an hour or more to call them back, you can pretty much consider that lead dead.

Let me ask you this: what would a 21x increase in lead conversion mean for your business?

Unique opportunity in Central VA. Currently, three different living areas all under one roof w/separate kitchens. Huge deck, new roof, appliances, cabinets. Comes with horse paddock and 5 private acres. Vacant units are currently owner occupied and will be vacated with sale. Great investment opportunity or occupy and rent out additional spaces to cover your mortgage. The possibilities are endless!

A lot of the wholesalers I've worked with, especially the ones who have given me pretty solid deals, use Investor Carrot, and I'm curious about it.  I'm thinking of trying it myself in a local market.  Has anyone used/does anyone use Carrot and what has been your experience?  What is pricing like, how is lead quality and conversion rate, and how do you incorporate it into your strategy?

As an agent I'm quite experienced with digital marketing on other platforms.  How does Investor Carrot compare to other tools?

I get it.  When I was managing only 2 properties I did the same, it was worth my time to find tenants myself, even though it took longer.  Now that my time is worth more I delegate and outsource a lot of tasks which has been great for scalability and business development.

By the way, I use Rentec for management and application processing.  It's pretty cheap and I think there's a way to set up an online application page which should save you some time--you might want to look into it.

So did you end up making the move?  It's a great place to live!

The rental market is extremely hot (I showed 5 rentals in Stafford today, by end of day 2 had pending applications!) Do you list on the MLS or do you do manual syndication on Zillow, Trulia, etc? I know Zillow has an option to allow prospective tenants to click on a requested timeframe, although you'll still have to respond to the email. If you're tech savvy you can probably set up a WordPress site where they can fill out a simple form for basic screening, which will still require work but is more effective than responding to every single email.

The other option is to list on the MLS, which will have agents bringing you their clients. This is going to sound like a shameless plug, but it is true that agents will bring you much higher quality tenants since they will be pre-screened. The other advantage to an MLS listing is that you'll experience much lower vacancy (provided you've priced correctly) because your property will be recommended. Think about it: If you have a 3 bed 2 bath townhouse in Woodbridge and list on Zillow/Craigslist, you have to wait for tenants to find it themselves, then sift through all the junk inquiries. Listing on the MLS means every agent who has a qualified tenant looking for a 3 bed 2 bath townhouse in Woodbridge will show it, then walk the person through the application process. All you have to do is review the submitted applications and choose the best fit.

It sounds like you already have a good system in place for background and credit checking, so you probably don't need a property manager just yet.  But you definitely could benefit from increased efficiency in the tenant acquisition phase.  It's all about the systems and processes!

As an 'investor friendly agent', to me it means that I thoroughly understand the principles of RE investing enough to understand the goals of other investors. I became an investor before I became an agent, and it was extremely apparent that many agents don't really have a solid grasp of how investors make decisions. I heard a lot of talk about "appreciation potential" and "the rent will pay your mortgage", but nothing about actual cashflow and ROI. I run the numbers with my investor clients exactly the same way I would on my own deals.

I don't cut my commission.  If an investor really can't afford to list at full commission and is comfortable selling without assistance, they can use a flat fee brokerage instead.  I'm not insulted if someone decides to go that route; I've done it before myself.  I figure that if the investor lists with a 'discount agent', they'll get about the same amount of service they will selling themselves through a flat-fee brokerage, so why spend the extra money if they're comfortable selling without assistance?  I don't make money from the commission on their single transaction; I make money from their referrals, which they'll send if they're impressed enough with me!

If a firm is engaged in rehab and resale of residential properties in Virginia and performs the work using it's own employees instead of employing a third-party GC, is that firm required to maintain a contractor's license?

Provided that the work is done to code, of course.  Owner-developers are exempt from licensure in some cases--I'm wondering if that applies to flipping.

Depends on how much and where you drive.  If you are in a high-traffic area, a well-designed and attractive car wrap could be worth it.  A wrap costs about $3-5000 and lasts about 3-4 years...you only need one deal in that timeframe to recoup your investment!