All Forum Posts by: Account Closed

Pedaling for profits it is!! Nice one.

@Mike Nelson

David Krulac dubbed it pedaling for dollars, which has a nice ring to it :) I am just starting to get going on some direct mail marketing but I have a pretty small budget, which is why I haven't been using the county assesssors site to pull up homeowner info. My county charges (going from memory) about $200 to keep your account current plus $1 per name, which is a little steep for my liking. Alex Anderson pointed me in the direction of city-data to access this info, and it seems to be meeting my needs currently. Most importantly, its free!

Nice job on the podcast btw! I'll be checking out Accurint. Thanks for your reply.

@Travis Daggett

Thanks for your help. @Alex Anderson pointed me to city-data.com to research owner info, which is what I've been doing. I cross referenced a few family and friends addresses for accuracy and all of the info is correct. The only problem I have is that sometimes the deed is in the name of a trust and not the actual homeowner, and its the homeowners name that I need to put on the envelope. Another issue is that the information is current as of 2009 I think. Anyways, thanks for your insight.

@Sharon Vornholt

Thanks for your insight. I see what you mean, however, its hard for me to wrap my head around the fact that someone would accept an offer that's that far off from what they'd get putting it on the open market. But I do trust what you are saying and I will take your advice. I guess the main point here is that motivation is the main driver of getting a good deal.

Read this and thought it sounded a little wafty, so I just wanted to clear up that I live in a one bedroom apartment and not in a million dollar house.

I am new to marketing, but I did ponder about this very situation earlier today and how I'd approach a seller. In my market, I think this is definitely something that would need to be discussed when negotiating with a seller. I say I think because I have not yet begun my marketing campaign, but here is my rationale: The 1200 sq.ft homes built in the 40's and 50's across the street from where I live run about 800k starting and will definitely need work. Any Joe Shmo can go online nowadays and get a ballpark of what their home is worth, so how is a seller not going to bring up a six figure difference in price between what Zillow is showing and my offer? I think each market is different and what will work in one wont necessarily work everywhere else.

I like it... think I'll ride that one for a bit :)

I am on city-data a lot and I had no idea it gave out owners names. Thanks for your help!

@Brandon Foken

1 solid response after 400 letters is a tough pill to swallow. That is discouraging for a guy like me who is beginning to get a marketing campaign going in a similar arena (Los Angeles) using your tactic (driving for dollars). Keep us updated on any new approaches and how it ends up working out for you. Good luck!