All Forum Posts by: Jon Gibbens

Hey Austin, I do currently wholesale here and there. I go into every contract with the "fix and flip" mindset, however, information gained in the due diligence phase can push me to either portfolio the property as an income generator or wholesale the contract/property. I also have a tendency to default to wholesaling when occasional large issues arise on my ongoing projects that I need to shift my attention to as opposed to recently acquired contracts/properties. It's a great exit strategy, and for some, it's a great business model. In my experience, a lot of folks new to REI believe that wholesaling is easier than fix/flip and try to do it to "build capital" for fix and flipping later, and it is easier AFTER you've built a robust network within the REI community. However, for those without that network, wholesaling is significantly harder than fix/flip due to the difficulty of finding an end-buyer. My point is not to discourage you, it's to tell you to absolutely immerse yourself into every facet of REI, build that network and never stop studying/learning, the environment is ever-changing.

Hey Agustin, my recommendation would be to watch as many videos and read as much as you possibly can about wholesaling to start. Jerry Norton has a ton of really great content on YouTube for wholesaling. It may also be beneficial to join a wholesaling group or club, although most of the legitimate ones tend to cost money to be part of. Start with free online content, then if you do decide to join a group, be sure to do a lot of due diligence beforehand, check reviews, ratings, speak with current members (if possible). There are a lot of scammers out there that start fictitious groups or agree to "mentor" you, so be very cautious with who you "partner" with as well. 

I wish you the best of luck in beginning your wholesaler's journey! 

I wouldn't trust the value provided for either, I use propstream for a multitude of things, but I always run my own comps. The best way to do it is to use something like redfin to see what has sold in the same zip code and same neighborhood boundaries as your subject property within the past 3-6 months. Filter by +/- 12 years on year built, +/- 150 sq ft and see if there are any like comps that have sold and for what they've sold. 

The issue with using comps on any type of software, especially propstream or dealmachine is that they tend to use an "estimated value" of the homes that they are using for comps, not actually comparing to what has sold recently in the area or what is currently listed, not accounting for DOM (day on market) or other market shifts that play into realistic valuation of a property. As an example, you may have a property that one of those systems says has a "value" of X (let's say $500K), and they have all sorts of nearby "comps" that are in the same value range. However, when you pull up the current market, you see that nothing comparable has sold in the past 6 months, and that the currently listed properties have been on market for far too long, meaning this is an area where there are no buyers, no appetite for these homes. The home can be worth as much as you'd like it to be, if there is no one to buy the home or dispo it to, it might as well be worthless. 

I hope that all makes sense! Always run your own comps, don't trust software to do it for you.  

 I appreciate the suggestion, Bruce. I've made some wonderful contacts already, and am more than happy to share those details with anyone that wants to converse offline. 

 I do ask my agents to do a lot of work, and they get to represent me on the buy as well as the sale of every deal that we work together. The agents I work with do extremely well for themselves, as do I, thanks to that hard work. I don't expect anyone to work for free. Interesting feedback, Harrison, thank you. 

Hello,

I need real estate agents in these markets who are proactive and able to submit deals quickly every day;

• Austin, TX
• San Antonio, TX
• Dallas-Fort-Worth, TX
• Houston, TX

If that's you, or you know a great agent that would be open to working with an investor, please let me know!