All Forum Posts by: Frank Wong

Hi Mathew,

I agree with Russell.  It's very rare that an agent has investor clients both looking for the same thing.   So don't worry about that so much.  You want to find an agent that is an investor themselves.  This is the hard part because not many agents invest in property.   This could be one of your main questions.  What type of investments do you specialize in?  What have you done for yourself?  

You will need to be honest with the agent.  Tell them your experience, how much money you have to invest, what you are looking for, and goals.  If this is a top-tier agent, the agent will be able to tell you exactly what you can or cannot buy or if you are realistic or not in your first meeting.  If you are a serious buyer, and a top-tier agent will do whatever they can to make it happen for you.  But this is a two-way street.  Don't waste their time as Daniel said.

I suggest you search for properties yourself and send them to your agent for advice.  My investor clients and I always collaborate.  They send me things all the time, I quickly analyze them and tell them yes let's dig for more info or let's not waste our time.  

Hi Nicholas,

I understand that you want to find another job because you lost passion for it.  I am not sure the exact pay but aerospace engineer seems like a strong income.  Unless you go into real estate sales there is not much money in the other RE fields.  Most salary positions in RE is not going to be more than your current salary.

You said your end goal is to be an investor. Well like the others have stated you need money.  You have a good job now that provides it. You have a huge advantage right now.  Work hard, save, learn, and invest. Your goal will come quicker than you think.

I get the argument about quitting because there is no passion.  The way I see it. You are 24.  You just entered into your adult working life. Time to get to work and focus and not jump around to different fields. You have studied this hard and work this much in school to stop after 2yrs of working??   In the real world, people have to do jobs that they don't like.  To get what you don't have in life you have to do what others are unwilling to do.  

You are right money is not everything but money will buy you time to figure out what will make you happy.   

Yes, so far I think its one of the best products for rentals.  Waterproof, easy to install (click on version), not expensive.  I like to put the planks that are a bit thicker 7-8mm with an attached pad to it.  It looks better and it feels much better than buying the 2-3mm.  The cost is much higher so it depends on your budget.  For my rentals, my rule is never go cheap on the floors.  It's the first thing people look at and touch when they walk in the house.   Putting something of higher quality will also save me money in the long run.

Hi Syed,

Like I said in my post-Tirzo agent should write the offer as a learning experience.  The point of the post is to show both sides of a transaction. Sellers view and Buyers view.  I think sometimes we look at our own side without looking at the entire picture.  If you can understand the other side you might be able to put a deal together.   

Yes, there are a lot of crappy agents out there.  A good agent needs to explain in detail the process what the value of the property is and how to get the deal done.   I have no problem writing an offer that is low but you as a buyer need to sell me on it.  Please give me a list of costs and show me why.  This way I can go to bat for you trying to submit your offer.  

In Tirzo case, maybe he should go take photos of the house.  Take photos of all the damage items and make a list.  Get bids on all the work that is needed.  Now you have a package. Now you have something concrete to present to the sellers.  

In many cases, it's not that the agent is lazy and doesn't want to write the offer. It literally takes 15 mins to put an offer together and set it up for DocuSign and done. The agent doesn't want to ruin his reputation in his profession. Its a community of agents. He doesn't want to be known as the low-ball guy. He may have to do another deal with the REO listing agent in the future. This is the same in a lot of professions. You don't want to be the lawyer who represents a bunch of frivolous lawsuits and lose your reputation in the courts.

Now if you as a buyer have a strong case in why your offer needs to be written.  The agent could just suck.  If that is the case find someone new.

Hi Tirzo,

You said the home is listed at $205k, ARV is $270k, you want to put in an offer at $135k and this is a bank owned property. Look at this from the seller's point of view and if you owned the home. Why would the seller even accept $135k or even take its seriously if they haven't even tested the market at a lower price point? House has not been tested at $185k, not $170k, not $160k, not $150k and you want them to accept $135k. Seriously.

Now your buyer's agent should explain this to you, the agent should also explain why it should be sold at a higher price. The agent should also let you know the bank owned sellers are not desperate.  They can hold onto the asset forever hence 290 days.  This is not 07-09 when banks needed liquidity.

You have the right to fire the agent and the agent has the right to fire you.  If you are serious and you are a cash buyer.  Your agent should use this as a learning experience.  Write the offer have it get rejected and then you learn from it and grow.  This is the reality of the situation that I see. 

Hi Yaric,

Find out who the top producers are in your area. This will be the teams with the most listings or firms with the most signs (not hard just look online and see where all the deals are closed from).  Try to get on their team if you are not on their team or work for that brokerage firm.  You want to be a six-figure agent you need to surround yourself with them.  You want to make six figures in your first year.  100 percent you can do it. You need to realize this is what you need to do.

1. Learn the basics. The contract, terms of the offer, how to structure an offer. Items needed for each offer.  If you are on the right team they will teach you.  If not spend a week with the transaction coordinator for a week buy them coffee or lunch and learn. 

2. Give up all your weekends and do open houses for everyone in your office.  This gets you a chance to meet a ton of people. You get buyer leads and seller leads.  Learn everything about that house before you do the open house.  Don't be unprepared, that makes you look inexperienced. 

3. Learn sales skills,  Youtube has a ton a free content.  Learn for free and master it.  

4. Something that is always overlooked. Dress Sharp!  You are in an image business.  If you look sharp people will assume you are sharp.  At least this gets you passed the visual detector for clients.  Sharp doesn't mean an Armani suit.  It means a nice fitted dress shirt, nice fitted dress pants, nice clean dress shoes.  Image matters. 

It's hard it's very hard in the beginning.  Every agent that is still doing it today always says it was worth it. 

Another note.  It's great that you are so ambitious to want to start your investment company and want to wholesale. Honestly, your main focus should be to dominate as an agent and make as much money doing that.  Don't get a side track on other things that will suck up your time. Master 1 item is better than an average of 5. 

Good Luck

Colin ,

Things to do if you are in contract.

1. Look at the condition of the property.  Check Roof, HVAC system, Plumbing, Electrical. Get a termite inspection.

2. I would also have the sewer lateral checked.  One item that most people miss.  You want to make sure you don't have a $5-8k bill lurking.

Things to do before you are in contract

1. Review the lease and see if the rents are under market.  You can cross reference this on craigslist and check what similar apartments are renting for in the area.  

2. Check similar comparable units in the area.  See if there are comps that are in similar condition and see if there are some that are nicer.  This will give you an idea on the upside.

Hi Adam,

If you don't know the ends and outs of contracts you shouldn't be looking for a high split flat fee broker.  Steve is correct.  You are not trying to get rich quick.  What you need is to work for a high producing team that will guide you and mentors you.  All the firms he mentioned are great options.

I see this way too often.  A rookie agent or agent who does 2 deals a year trying to get paid like they a top producer.  Stop thinking about what the broker is taking from you. Instead look at it as a trade-off.  You are giving a bigger portion of your commission to the firm to learn.  This way you don't screw up a deal and you fast-track your way to success.  Once you know what you are doing and don't need any help from anyone.  Now go an negotiate a high split for yourself.

Hi Adam,

It sounds like you are looking for a mom and pop brokerage firm that will let you hang your license for a flat fee per deal or let you keep a high % of your commission.  If you go this route you need to understand two things.  Gotta make sure the firm you are working for is reputable. Second, you need to know that you will get zero help.  These firms expect you to know everything hence why you are getting a high split.  In my market having a big firm name is not a big deal and I personally don't care what a agents firm is.  I treat all agents the same.