All Forum Posts by: Shane Burlingame

@Shane Burlingame

Glad I could help.  For that last question, I guess it depends.  First, it should be 'only as specific as you will be.'  For example, don't necessarily specify single families then go off and buy the first 2family with another agent because this first agent wasn't showing you multifamily properties...  Granted, as real estate agents we know to "expand" on our clients' requirements a bit, if not a tremendous amount nowadays.  But, if you strictly specify something, then it would be prudent for the agent to follow it.  Yes, its happened to me where a "client" bought something with another agent because the client saw something that was interesting but didn't happen to fit the originial requirementns.  That all being said, its okay to change your mind.  Just tell your agent and the search parameters change...

Another thing... you can only be as specific as the MLS search system is setup with regards to getting listings auto sent to you. Some would say that this isn't important because they can search for what they want in Zillow. Thats fine too. But back to the above, don't send me properties that you saw on Zillow but not on the mls search without checking out your specs first. Clients all the time send me stuff and I have to keep telling them how it doesn't fit what they want --- its why its not on the MLS emails everyday... Many times the info is entered incorrectly or incompletely into the MLS so it can be beneficial to keep the parameters wide. Also, some aspects are location specific. For example, we have an area that the homes have "mini-associations" for what amounts to public water. Technically, because of those associations the listing should characterize them with a HOA so they "look" like a condo or townhouse, where in fact they are regular detached single family homes. Agents enter them in both ways all the time...

Hope that helps a bit.

@Shane Burlingame

@Shane Burlingame

Not much more than be honest, and see what clicks...  It took me two years of actively searching for an agent to find mine.  It was a lot of open houses...  

Honestly, an "investor" friendly agent or an investor/agent isn't really that necessary.  My agent doesn't invest and doesn't entirely understand it.  But, she helped find the deals and did her job well to get me to closing.  Additionally, she helps with managing my rentals with little things.  Basically, there is a backup number for my tenants to call. People really skip over how an agent can really be an integral part of the team.

Honestly, the "best" or "highest producting" agent may not be your best choice.  They only can claim that because they have that high production which means they are doing lots of deals.  They don't always have or make the time to spend lots of time with clients.  A hungry agent is fine, but one that wants to make a closing quick isn't so great vs. an agent willing to cultivate the client.  I've had clients call me a year or two later to see propeties.  Not sure  if they just took a break or tried other agents, but then decided to come back to me.  I know some have said the latter.

Nowadays with information being so available, I would NOT expect the agent to actively search and send you listings.  That is definitely your job in my opinion.  I don't do it for my investor clients, or even regular clients.  I've had too many clients who fall in love or really want to see listings that don't meet their criteria.  Even better when they actually want to put an offer on it.  Not everyone really goes strictly after the numbers.

Hope this helps.  Be happy to chat if you like, just let me know.

Hey @Shane Burlingame in order to answer these questions you first need to know what your goals are. Are you investing for appreciation? Are you investing for cash flow? Both? Figure out why. Once you figure out why you can change your criteria based on your goals. You'll change your criteria several times over the years as you get more experienced. I think another thing is to get plugged into your local real estate groups. You can find your local meetups here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/... Once you start networking and talking to other investors, you'll get a good sense of what will work in your area. Some may even walk you through how they do it! Lastly, I would say don't overthink it. A good deal for me is not necessarily a good one for you. Keep analyzing and tweaking until it fits what you're looking for. When you find it, jump on it! Best of luck, looking forward to a success post in a few months!

@Shane Burlingame My qualifications were 12%+ COC return and $200/month per door. This doesn't even take into consideration the tax benefits, appreciation, etc. It's different for everyone, but I tried to keep it simple.

The best way to learn the average return in your market is to analyze deals! Analyze deals over and over again. You can share your results with local agents, investors, or on BP to get feedback. 

Purchasing my first property seems pretty stressful. Right now my major stressor is I'm unemployed, which makes it harder to get a mortgage. How hard and risky would it be to get a hard money loan even if I find the most amazing deal?