All Forum Posts by: Chris Piper

@Don Yacono How can you help an agent re-list expired listings? They could just contact the seller on thier own and offer to relist it for them. You can contact pretty much any agent and ask them to pull expired listings for you. Just let them know that you are an investor.

I'm sure some of you may have heard of the book or course "The Banker's Code" by George Antone. I have read the book, and this is what I took away from it. If you want to become your own "personal bank" so to speak as George describes in the book, there is some good material in the book, but not enough to take the actions needed to do so I don't think. I feel like the idea of the book is to get you interested enough to get you to purchase the 8-week course, which costs $1,497. The book gives you information that sort of reminds me of "Rich Dad, Poor Dad." There is good information there, but not all the information you need.

The main point I took away from the book is that George is trying to get people to "uncondition" themselves from typical consumer thinking. We are conditioned from birth basically to grow up, get a job, work hard, put your money in the bank and save it, buy the newest and latest gadgets, buy a house/car, etc. Consumers are what keeps the bankers rich. You have a savings or a checking where the bank pays you 1% or maybe 2% interest, while the bank takes your money and loans it out 7%, 8%, 9%, or more. People think they need banks, when in actuality, banks need consumers to fund their lending services. I feel that George is trying to get people to start thinking like a banker in terms of money. Do what they do, follow the rules they created and follw themselves, and you can create substantial wealth for yourself. I think he is correct in that regard.

He also speaks somewhat about private lending arbitrage, which is actually VERY clever. That's where you borrow money from someone at 6% interest, and loan it back out to someone else at 12% interest, and that is secured by real estate. So you are paying 6% on the money you borrowed, the person who borrowed that money from you is paying you 12% interest, and you keep the "spread" (the difference). In my opinion, the book is a good primer to get you thinking properly, but I think the actual course is where the nuts and bolts of everything is explained in detail and comes together. I personally have not purchased the course and gone through it, but I am considering it. Also keep in mind if you are considering doing so, that I am not an expert on private lending laws, so check with a local attorney before setting up your own "personal bank." By the way, he is not talking about a physical brick and mortar bank where you need to be licensed, etc. Lastly, you can download the book online for free. Just Google "The Banker's Code." Hopefully this post will give everyone some insight into "The Banker's Code", and how to rewire the way you look at money, lending, and finance.

No problem Juan

@John Thedford Clearly I promote dishonesty and deception in every post I make! Lol. I'll see if dishonestyanddeception.com is available....it's catchy. Maybe you're just too old John and you can't read my posts correctly. If you took the time to read my last post, it clearly states that I do not promote being dishonest or trying to rip anyone off. I said I personally make an offer, sign a contract, sell to a cash buyer, and close. Pretty simple, straight forward, and honest. I'm sure you will respond with I promote lying and tying up sellers properties or something. Get a life and stop bad mouthing people because you aren't smart enough or creative enough to do what they do. Why do you think a lot of real estate agents also become investors? Because 3% is a joke, like you John. You're posts are always good for a laugh.

@Juan Jimenez If you are doing a wholesale deal, you don't put it on the market, you find a cash buyer to sell to. You can't list a property on the MLS if you are not the owner. If you use transactional funds or hard money to close on the property yourself and become the owner and then list it on the MLS with an agent, then you are good. But you shouldn't be listing wholesale deals on the MLS ever, only sell to cash buyers.

@Account Closed I find that odd that the wholesaler won't come off of his usual fee and wants you to add yours onto his. If it's a JV deal, it should be a split profit. I would look for someone who will split 50/50. Then it doesn't make things more complicated. Plus, if the buyer sees that he is getting charged from the other wholesaler as well as you, he might back out if he feels like he's getting a bad deal or is being overcharged.

@Jason K Green What do you mean marketing limitations? There aren't really any limitations as a wholesaler. As long as you are not doing anything illegal, then the sky is the limit. The only limit is how much money you have to spend on marketing.

@James Feeney I think I talked to the guy you're refering to. He said a similar type of thing to me about tying up the property. To clarify, what he does is once a property is under contract with the seller, he puts a lien on it immediately. He is not doing that with the intention of not closing on the deal. He is doing that to make sure that the buyer sticks to the deal and doesn't try to back out and sell to someone else at a higher price after you have both signed a purchase agreement. I think it's very clever. It's not dishonest, and you do not need to inform the seller. If they try to go behind your back and sell to osmeone else at a higher price after you made a deal with them, they will find out that there is a lien on the property from the title company. Then, what the guy suggested was to release the lien if they pay you 25% of the difference between your agreed price and the new buyer's price I believe. Not illegal or unethical. Just taking precautions.

@Chris Piper, so in short, your strategy is: find sucker-Sellers to let YOU tie up their property for a REFUNDABLE deposit, then find sucker-Buyers who'll give you NON-refundable deposits?...

Brent, my strategy is not to tie up properties. I find a motivated seller, and then make an offer at a discounted price once I have run my numbers on repairs, gotten comps, etc. If the seller and I agree on the price, then I give the seller a very minimal EMD because I don't want $2,000-$3,000 or more of my money tied up for 30 days with every deal when I could use that money more efficiently. Then, I contact my cash buyers, wholesale it to one of them, and it closes.

It's pretty staright forward. I'm not looking for suckers to buy from, and I'm not tying up anyone's property with the intention of not closing on it. Once in a while it does happen where you can't close on a deal, but I try to avoid that at all costs. And typically, it has nothing to do with me not being able to close on my end.

@John Thedford You think you are so smart don't you? Is there a law against being a wholesaler? No. If we were acting as unlicensed brokers, we would surely be in some sort of legal trouble. We do not "skirt" any laws either. We follow the laws and do not break them. You're a real estate agent, stick to what you know and not what you don't know. It is legal to be a wholesaler and all activities that go along with doing so in all 50 states. Why are you acting as if every wholesaler is some scumbag who is out to screw sellers? That is not true what so ever. Being a wholesaler means you rarely need to use an agent. As a wholesaler, there is no need or use for an agent unless we are making an offer on a propery listed in the MLS. I think you're just mad that there are tons of deals happening without the need for an agent. Who cares!? Agents serve a purpose, and it's mainly for retail buyers and people selling at full retail price.

You act like wholesalers are total bad guys out to rip everyone off. We're not, but it seems like you're mad because there is very little recourse for wholesalers if they are dishonest or unethical. You will always have some of those people in every business. When mortgage brokers were handing out loans like candy before the real estate crisis, they were the bad apples of the bunch. Not everyone was doing that. Is Donald Trump a scumbag because he is a Billionaire and only pays a single digit tax rate? Of course not. He is smart and knows how to get the most out of his money.

Wholesalers serve a purpose when they operate legitimately. Do you think cash buyers would have a clue about finding their own deals without us? Of course not. They would have their money dying a slow death in a CD making 2% at their bank while the bank loans out their money and makes 4 or 5 times that. Maybe you should spend less time whining about how other people make their money, and worry about how you can show more people how to avoid paying taxes like you advertise on your website Mr. Honest.

@Alessandro Baldassarre You leave #9 blank on the purchase agreement, and for #1 on the assignment agreement you put your "Total" assignment fee in the first box, and the amount of the deposit you want from the cash buyer. I usually ask for $2,000 for the deposit.

The best thing to do is to print out both the assignment contract and the purchase agreement. Then, fill in everything you can to use over and over again. Fill out like your info, sign them, fill in the deposit amount, etc. Then scan it into your computer, so next time, all you have to fill in is the property address and a few small things. It will save you time.