All Forum Posts by: Vonetta Booker

I'm thinking about going after short sales for flip or buy/hold properties--but the often-lengthy process gives me pause.  

What happens if I make an offer, but the wait is so long that during that time I've found another property and/or my source of funding (typically private financing) is no longer there?  

For you short sale-ers, how do you keep everything together while you wait?

 Wow, that video was so crazy--it got to the point I was actually surprised to see an occupied home.  Detroit is literally a ghost town in many areas, SMH. 

I recently watched a really good documentary on the issue, called Detropia (available on Netflix).  Also, photographer Kevin Bauman has a website, 100AbandonedHouses.com, where he's posted the hauntingly beautiful pics he's taken of the city's countless vacant properties.

Saw this 2-family property on the MLS; it looks like a decent deal but wanted to get your thoughts on it. $59k (an REO), one unit's a 2/1 (rents are around 1050), the other is a 3/2 (rents up to 1300). Currently boarded up to protect the pipes, but inside doesn't look that bad--maybe $10k in repairs, which I'm going to roll into the loan cost.

I worked the numbers up on one of BP's rental analysis spreadsheets (see below).  Thoughts? 

 As a female w/ a RE license who often looks at vacant properties, I agree w/ Amanda.  It's not about living in fear, though; although all actions in life do carry a risk, you do what you can to prevent things to the best of your ability.  Will it be 100% effective? Maybe, maybe not--but hey, you do what you can to protect yourself & stay alert.  There's no guarantee I won't get killed in a car accident, God forbid--but best believe I wear my seat belt every time! 

But back to viewing/showing properties, I keep my "lipstick" taser w/ me, always clear the house first (on the outside, then on the inside), take a friend if possible, and always let others know where I'll be & at what time. And this was way before that agent was found dead--because RE can be a dangerous profession, unfortunately.  It is what it is.

Congrats, @Amanda Sutherlin!  As a fellow single mom, you're an inspiration.  I'm still on the hunt for the right first buy & hold, so I'm trying to be like you when I grow up! ;-)

Thanks! I actually just finished turning that blog post that @Jerry Puckett posted into a Word doc that I printed & am going to keep with me.  

I'm also going to get into the habit of answering more calls directly (instead of letting them go to VM because I'm nervous about talking to callers, lol).  There are a lot of "We Buy Houses" signs in my area & just as many letters going out, probably--but since callers tend to go down a list of numbers they see/get, maybe I can stand out from the rest (and get a jump on leads) if I actually answer the phone right away!

Thanks for the replies, guys!  @Hattie Dizmond, thanks for the podcast info; I'm going to check that out shortly.  @Jerry Puckett, that blog was just what I needed (see, this is why I LOVE BP, lol)!  And thanks @Marcus Isaac --I'll inbox you. 

I don't mind a script--IMO it's all about making it sound NOT script-y, which I'm pretty good at.  I have no problems creating rapport with callers because I tend to be a people person--but I just have to hone the skill of knowing HOW to help callers along with that.  

Going to study that blog script & brush up so that I'm ready if/when I do start getting calls!

Since the bank REO inventory seems to be drying up, I'm ramping up my private seller marketing once again (yellow letters, etc.)

I’ve gotten the letters, mailing system & schedule down—now that they’ve gone out, I sit back & wait for the calls to roll in, lol.

Here’s always been my problem, though: Once I get calls, I never seem to know what to do with them—the right questions to ask, how to structure the deals, etc.I feel like there’s so much more I can be doing with leads but once I get them I’m not sure exactly what.

What is your “formula” for asking the right questions, sussing out their situation, determining if they’re motivated & if it’s a good enough deal to actually visit, the right solution, etc?

@Trevor K.  From what I hear, some municipalities are better than others in terms of how they manage their Sect. 8 programs.  But usually if you visit that town's Housing Authority website, they have information for landlords on their S8 program (the application process, inspection guidelines, etc.)  Good luck!

I guess I got short sales confused w/ foreclosures, initially. :-)