All Forum Posts by: Mason Hickman

@Kevin Paglia

Not to over-simplify but will you ACTUALLY be living there? If not, it's mortgage fraud to get an FHA so tread lightly.

@Chris Gavre

Yes, you probably won't get a lot of takers if you just ask to be the "go-to guy" because you're right, you're just asking them for something. There is a book called the "go-giver" by Bob Burg that is worth reading on this type of concept. 

As a brainstorming idea of something that will 100% get you on the good side of Realtors: Call them up and offer them a free power wash of THEIR personal home. Explain there is no catch, you're just a new business and want to show them how good a job you'll do for their customers, should they refer you. When you're done, leave some business cards and leave-behinds with your pricing so they have the information to refer you. Some people might be skeptical of a scam at the outset but if you're genuine and explain yourself, you'll get some terrific allies in the business.

@Chris Gavre

If you start giving good leads to a Realtor, you can almost guarantee you'll start getting referrals quid pro quo. Also, if the Realtor is an active investor, you can help them prospect while you're driving for dollars. 

As a way to service clients, many real estate agents (including me), keep a list of service providers for clients. For example, I have a list of painters, contractors, yard people, etc. That way when a client is selling a house, they have a list of vetted service providers. When a buyer is new to an area, they can settle in more quickly. It's worth reaching out to real estate agents in your area to see if they keep such a list and if you can be added to it. 

The other thing that will keep you on the short list is to offer competitive pricing (standard pricing is easiest) and be prompt to respond to questions. It's a lot easier for an agent to pitch your service if they say, "you need to power wash this house, I know a guy that'll do it for $XXXX"

Good luck!

@Blaine Alger

Interesting concept; have you found any information on the revenue hosts are generating from this? There are barely any listings in my area. 

@Luke Jackson

There are a couple online platforms out there but the one I use and can speak to is Mint.com. It is free and powered by Intuit, the owners of TurboTax so it's ranks higher on the trust scale in my mind. Good luck!

@Anthony Bobbitt

You could always appeal the appraisal to try to raise it but it sounds like if you get the appraisal to come in higher, the seller will probably expect to revert back to the original price or split the new difference in prices. I think you have a reasonable seller on the hook that's willing to work with you and I'd try to work through it and get the deal done. The appraiser helped you negotiate a better price by 1.5%! As I'm sure you've seen many other places on BP, I would just make sure you have plenty of reserves based on the current environment. Is the house tenant occupied?

@Seth Shadwick

What is holding the owner back from wanting to sell? That's going to be the sticking point to getting a deal done and you'll want to find a way to make it a win-win for you and the seller. Is his hesitation that he is living there and has nowhere to move to, is he under water on the property, etc. You'll want to find what would motivate him so you can help solve his problem. 

I'm not sure what you mean by trying to use Hard Money Lenders to influence the seller. Can you elaborate?

@Will Clark

Can you please provide me with your skip trace contact, too?

I just listened to this Planet Money episode yesterday and thought I would share it with those who may not listen to Planet Money on a regular basis. As many other posts on BP have called out, there is quite a bit of uncertainty what forbearance will really look like for property owners with mortgages and for the mortgage servicers. 

https://www.npr.org/2020/04/08...

@Andrew Barenz

I am curious how your project goes, too. I have a house from 1840 and the mortar seems is almost chalky and is very easy to scrape away.