All Forum Posts by: Lori Greene

The only service of its kind. Fast becoming the "go-to" place for investors needing an accurate property value quick, Real Estate Comps Today is changing the face of home valuation for consumers.

After years of complaints from their real estate investing students on the inaccuracy of home value estimator sites like Zillow, sisters Jan Kerr and Lori Greene created RealEstateCompsToday.com, an unconventional site where consumers anywhere in the US can order a detailed Comps Report from a Local Realtor without having to contact one.

It's a simple concept. You fill out a short order form with details of the property, they assign it to an agent in your area, you get your comps report via email usually within about 1 business day.

Plenty of BiggerPockets members use this service for convenience when they can't get comps right away from their own Realtor.

5 Stars Reviews, Detailed FAQ's, Demo Reports.

To try it out or learn more, go to: RealEstateCompsToday.com

I would partner with another experienced investor using BRRRR.

Or you can partner with others using something like Fundrise (crowdfunding for REI).

I do also like the house hacking idea as well but that's just not me to move around. I live in a house I love.

You could also start out with wholesaling as it costs less to get into.

Tax liens are another strategy you can into for less. It's rare that you get a house with tax liens because you'll usually get outbid, but it does happen.

However, land lots can be good. You can pick them up for a few hundred or few thousand, then resell immediately for much more if you do your homework right. Just make sure you do very deep due diligence on the property.

Make sure it's not land locked, that it's zoned as residential or commercial and not agricultural or greenbelt. Make sure it has no liens (state or federal) or easements. Make sure it's big enough, in a good enough location and a good shape (not a triangle) to build upon. Make sure it doesn't have flooding or water table problems or toxic problems. Make sure your buyer could get a building permit on it and utilities to it. Talk to all city and county authorities about it, what they have on record about it and it's history (recorders, tax appraisers, planning/zoning, bldg permit dept, code enforcement, etc.).

We've sold flips both with an agent and FSBO and I can't tell you how much easier and faster it is to sell with an agent vs FSBO. Not only will FSBO take up your time that you could be spending to find the next deal, but it will also take longer to sell, sometimes months longer or not at all.

And by the time you decide to finally try an agent, you've already lost money because of your holding costs and marketing costs, but you've also lost money because you could have done another deal by now.

And when we did FSBO's, we used flat fee listings, where you get your property on the MLS but no agent is marketing it for you. That helped a little but not much.

On the flip side, when we listed with a really great agent who goes all out to market the property and get showings and even brought in a killer photographer to make the house look amazing, we sell almost immediately with 5 showing a day instead of 5 showing a week or a month. Then we were onto the next deal quick.

And if you offer their full commission, they will be much more aggressive and sell faster, which costs less in the end.

The point is, in this business, time is money. Don't waste it. We've lost far more money selling FSBO by wasting time, losing out on the next deal and paying holding and marketing costs than we ever spent on realtor fees.

Not to mention the frustration you'll save yourself. With the right agent, the selling process can be easy, fast and enjoyable rather than stressful.

The whole trick is finding the right agent. Do your homework there. Ask, ask, ask other investors and home sellers in your area who they've used and what their experience was.

And try various agents out by getting property comps from them just to see how well they communicate, how professional they are, how aggressive they are. If they're promoting their services to you in a consistent and convincing way, that's a good sign that they'll be that thorough with selling your property.

Interview agents. Make a list of questions to ask them about all of the things they will do to market your property that other agents won't do. Where exactly will they market your property? Will they be aggressive about getting showings, will they do open houses, provide a great property photographer and create a virtual tour, will they help with staging and curb appeal?

Ask them to show you their past sales portfolio so you can see if they generally sell their listings fast and for top dollar.

As you interview agents, make a list of all the things these agents say they will do to market your property. Then ask your favorite agent if they will incorporate any other ideas from your list that they are not already doing.

Once you find that agent who will move your properties fast so you can do more deals, you'll never want to go back to dragging things out and losing time and money by going it alone.

The only service of its kind. Fast becoming the "go-to" place for investors needing an accurate property value quick, Real Estate Comps Today is changing the face of home valuation for consumers.

After years of complaints from their real estate investing students on the inaccuracy of home value estimator sites like Zillow, sisters Jan Kerr and Lori Greene created RealEstateCompsToday.com, an unconventional site where consumers anywhere in the US can order a detailed Comps Report from a Local Realtor without having to contact one.

It's a simple concept. You fill out a short order form with details of the property, they assign it to an agent in your area, you get your comps report via email within 1 business day.

Plenty of BiggerPockets members use this service for convenience when they can't get comps right away from their own Realtor.

5 Stars Reviews, Detailed FAQ's, Demo Reports.

To try it out or learn more, go to: RealEstateCompsToday.com

Albert, thanks for answering that question for Anthony. 

Alissa, have you read all of this thread? I think the answers to your questions are in here. 

Way to go! 

But it doesn't seem like the HELOC itself is to blame for this outcome, but rather the bubble burst which, in 2006 when you got the loan, the market was probably strong. It's hard to foresee that a market is going to crash a year or 2 in the future. Could happen to anybody. I lost a property during that time too, which had nothing to do with the financing. I just couldn't sell it. It's good to know you didn't lose your house.

Another success story using refi or HELOC to fund an investment property. Good to know. So far I haven't heard any bad stories about it. That's a good sign it's a solid strategy for financing.

Good question. I have no idea. Does anyone else have the answer to this question?