On today’s show, we want to introduce you to a relatively new investor who is building a really awesome wholesaling business through the use of smart marketing, savvy business skills, and persistence. Lamar Cannon, from the Austin, TX area, shares with us his story of how he got started with wholesaling and uses the sales skills from his previous job to close more deals. No matter what kind of investor you are, Lamar’s story is going to inspire you, motivate you, and help take your own business to a new level.
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In This Show, We Cover
- Lamar’s first “accidental deal“
- Negotiating directly with a bank
- How to avoid jumping from shiny object to shiny object
- Finding cash buyers
- Dealing with bad neighborhoods
- The right way to answer phone calls as a wholesaler
- How to determine your wholesaling “law of averages“
- Tips for wholesaling with no money
- Plus a lot more!
Links from the Show:
BiggerPockets G+ Account
Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Real Estate Investing
How to Create an Awesome Lead Generating Website in Under an Hour with No Technical Abilities
Books Mentioned in the Show
The Book on Flipping Houses by J Scott
The Book on Estimating Rehab Costs by J Scott
Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
Good to Great by Jim Collins
Four Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss
Tweetable Topics:
In business, be consistent with your strategy and focus on one thing at a time. (Tweet This!)
Be solution-oriented. (Tweet This!)
Connect with Lamar
Lamar’s BiggerPockets Profile
Lamar’s Website: We Buy Houses in San Antonio
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71 Comments
Thanks again to Lamar for talking with us on this episode of the podcast!
No problem. It was fun!
Great podcast today guys! I want to thank Lamar for his Newbie wisdom,I’m a Newbie trying to learn everything I can before I make any moves,but now I realize that I need to just go for it.
Thank you Gary! Reach out to Lamar . . . he’s a great guy and I’m sure he’ll be happy to connect.
Thanks Gary. Yeah, just go for it!
Gentleman,
EXCELLENT podcast, EXCELLENT information!!
Thank you Lamar for sharing, your experience is inspiring. Your attitude is awesome!
I truly learn so much from each podcast but this was definitely one of the top shows.
Thanks to BP for being the absolute best source of information anywhere…hands down.
Thanks Paul! We definitely appreciate it.
Glad you liked it Paul! Thanks for the compliments!
Great show.
I really like hearing how you are building up your business Lamar.
It is cool to see how you are still new but are making great strides and doing real deals.
BTW I also like how when you talked about the stocks and how they have roughly doubled in value since you sold them like 5 years ago and that you weren’t impressed by that. I will bet that a lot of people were expecting you to have a “Well that sucks but I’m still happy I am in real estate” type of statement.
You can beat that with RE pretty easy if you make good moves and it was awesome to hear your attitude on that.
Thanks Shaun. Yes, the right real estate strategy is definitely a better way to go than stocks.
Shaun – That comment really struck me . . . I’m now looking at alternative real estate options to some of my stock investments. I’ve got Lamar to blame on that… thanks for messing with my status quo, Lamar!
Good real estate deals can be a serious Succubus.
🙂
Shaun – I’m guessing that is a good thing. haha
Well I guess not if you take it to literally:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Succubus
I just meant it is very alluring, none of that less pleasant stuff mentioned. 🙂
Now the shiny new Ultimate Real Estate strategy of the month can be a bit closer to a literal interpretation. 🙂
Oh, I get it Shaun haha.
GO PATS!!
Great job Guys. Loved the the podcast. I think that most newbies are afraid of the mechanics of the deals such as double closing vs. assignment, working with title/attorney, which paperwork to use, EMD etc. it can be overwhelming and intimidating for many people.
Lamar-Do you usually do assignment of contract or double closing? I found that some end buyers would not be very happy when they realize your assignment fee.
What’s your take on that?
Thanks for a great podcast
My rule is if profit is over 10K I double close. Otherwise I assign the contract.
Glad you liked the podcast!
Lamar
Thank you for listening to the show, Haim. I’ll let Lamar jump in to answer your questions . . . just wanted to acknowledge your thoughts.
Lamar, Josh and Brandon,
Nice job on the podcast! Hearing about Lamar’s success is inspiring.
I agree with you completely, Bernard. This is certainly one of the inspiring shows. Thanks for listening.
Glad to hear it was inspiring Bernard!
Amazing actionable knowledge in here Lamar. I will be listening to this one a few times to take it all in. Thank you for your time to interview and share with the rest of us!
OK… I am shocked no one has given Brandon props for the completly unexpected, yet amazing knock knock jokes! The funniest part is being able to hear the point when Josh catches it. Brilliant! Along those lines, if people say you guys chat too much…use the skip forward feature…or go read a book… or go to college! Haha. I think your interactions are key in the podcasts. It helps us relate and realize you are REAL people just like the rest of us. Your podcasts are unique in that you have tons of valuable content, with a great balance of being able to learn more about your personal lives.
PS- Brandon. I am married, and have two cats. They wake me up every morning, half an hour before my alarm by nipping at my hands and arms to be pet. I feel your pain man (I know it’s not the same as screaming babies Josh). The common ground for all of us is, whatever or whoever wakes you up in the middle of the night is a bummer because… YOU ARE NOT SLEEPING! =)
You guys are great! Keep these podcasts comin’!!
Thanks you Ratho! Awesome comment, and really good encouragement that we are doing something right! 🙂 That’s so funny about your cats! Mine like to wake me up by laying on my chest, purring loudly until I wake up. Good times.
P.S. Knock Knock… (did you listen to the last 20 seconds of the podcast, after the ending music? If not… go listen!)
Thanks Ratho! I appreciate you listening and commenting.
Josh I just listened to the end of the posdcast after the music stopped — funny!
*podcast
Yep — Silly Brandon….
I’m going to defend Brandon’s cats as I have two cats of my own! (My cats walk on my legs when I’m sleeping and wake me up.)
Brother Lamar,
I really enjoyed your interview with the Dynamic Duo. I sat up while you were breaking down the different flavors of investors. You shared a deep understanding of marketplace dynamics. Thanks for your generosity.
No worries Al. Once I learned that everyone has different entry and exit points based on their strategy, everything took a turn for the better.
Thanks for listening!
Great show Lamar ! Thanks for sharing .
No problem! Glad you liked it! Thanks for commenting!
Great podcast episode! Thanks for sharing some really awesome insight Lamar! Also, very neat story of how you got into real estate.
Thanks for the feedback, Stacy!
Stacy I appreciate your comment. Thanks for listening to it!
Lamar, it’s evident that you are applying fundamental business principals to wholesaling. You are going to be very successful. Now please find me product in 78702 : )
Brandon, thanks for the knock knock jokes. Don’t listen to Josh, my seven year olds appreciated them.
My 7 year old co-host does too, Jon 😉
Haha
Haha I’ll let you know the next property I get in 02. What’s your email?
Thanx guys for this podcast! I get something from every one that I listen to it seems. Lamar’s especially because he is so close to me (I’m in Houston-Go Texans!). Loving some BP!
Nice Alicia! We’re loving us some BP too!
Alicia I’m glad you found the podcast beneficial. I’m a Pats fan so I hope Texans do well but not too well haha. You going to any games this year?
This was a great podcast, while I dont see myself starting with wholesaling its nice to see people doing well in the Austin area as well as having a great attitude and being friendly, I will be moving to Austin in the end of September and look forward to a bigger pockets meet up!
Nico. I’ll be glad to connect you once you get down here. Let me know.
That was awesome! Thanks a lot Lamar for that info… Extremely useful for my position.
Javon thanks for listening. Glad you liked it.
Lamar,
That was an excellent podcast sir. As a new investor starting out with wholesaling, I got a lot of useful information that I am applying to my business. Thank you for that Lamar.
Josh and Brandon,
Great job as always on hosting the podcast!
Oh and Josh…..Knock Knock.
Thanks for the comment and for taking the time to listen all the way through . . . but this isn’t twitter — you need to prank me there! 😉
Thanks for commenting! Take action and make it happen!!
Wow, what a great episode. Lamar really brought the goods on this one. There were some VERY good lessons/reminders that I needed to hear. I loved the bit about focusing on ONE activity and learning to do a great job a that one thing. I forget about this all the time, but there really is power in having laser focus like this. Thanks for sharing your wisdom Lamar!
No problem! Glad off was useful. Thanks for commenting!
Lamar , Thank you for the insight. I’m in California and I’m going for it. I have an excellent credit score so my plan is to leverage my credit score to possibly get a deal done. I want to have income property in CA and buy my dream home in Cypress , TX. I wish you continued success and God bless you.
Nice! Seems like you have a plan. Cypress is a nice city!
Just got done listening to te podcast! Great work Lamar and I wish you continued success. Just now broke the house with my first wholesale last week and have two more set to close this week! You’re definitely an inspiration!
Also, if I’m ever out in Texas (I have family in Austin) I will definitely take you up on that basketball game lol. I played in college and just like you, thats what free time (if any) consists of!
God bless!
Congrats on your success! Stay at it
Hey Lamar, I am in Texas too. When you double close on assignments over 10k, what sort of double closing do you use? Transactional Funding where someone charges you points, or “dry” funding where you use end buyers money to fund A-B side with your seller.
Hi Samantha! Where in Texas are you?
For double closings, I prefer to have the AB side funded by the BC buyer’s funds. This allows me to complete the transaction at no cost. Buyer and buyer’s lender will usually have to sign a document allowing this. I usually put something in the contract that allows for this without extra documentation (makes transaction smoother).
Otherwise, I use transactional funding which allows me to double close effectively. Find a title company that has a relationship with transactional funds or private money used for this purpose. It will usually cost around 1.5% of BC price.
Does that make sense?
Lamar
Lamar,
This is Jay again. Quick question. Do you have any experience with wholesaling commercial property? If so, did you do anything different to gather comp data?
Jay,
I am in the process of doing that. I am in a commercial contract as we speak. I’m not an expert on those but I do know that the value of the property is based on its income potential. Two exact buildings can generate different net operating incomes, therefore making the value of the properties vastly different.
All of the same principles and systems can be applied to commercial. The difference in determining value is going to be the main difference, as well as added due diligence.
The article below gives a basic overview of this.
https://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2008/3/3/determining-the-value-of-an-apartment-building-investment-using-cap-rates/
Hey guys,
Just wanted to say thank you for this website and all the great information and resources I’m finding here. I am a newbie to this world and this is a one-stop shop for me. I really enjoy these podcasts especially the ones dedicated to wholesaling. Lamar the knowledge you’ve shared was great and I hope to put everything I’m learning to use soon. Quick question, when talking about direct mail how do you get the lists of addresses you want to mail to? Are you just sending out mail to a target area?
Thanks guys keep up the good work.
Thanks for listening and for checking out the site, Jeff. Make sure to get your profile set up and to start engaging on BP. See you around!
Joshua,
Never give up. This is an excellent site. Always willing to help out any and every way I can.
Lamar,
Love Think and Grow Rich. Pity it was not added into the show notes. Thank you for a wonderful podcast. I am sure at some point I will need more information on wholesaling. At this time I am just very happy to know you and have you a part of my community.
Absolutely wonderful podcast. Want to thank the team for putting this together and Lamar for his wisdom. I do have a follow-up question. Lamar talked about mailing about a 1000 mailings to his “list”. How did he gain access to that list? Was it purchased? Was it built based on networking? How does one get access to a list that you can mail your letters to?
Thank you again guys. You guys are awesome!
Another great podcast and this time I followed the links, in the show notes. I am glad you keep these podcast available.
Great podcast Lamar. Im curious do yiu use Listsource.com and if you do what is your search criteria?
I’m so far behind in the podcasts! I’m hoping that you still check this thread Lamar. If not, I will follow up on your page directly.
During the interview, you mentioned having different types of buyers. Those who want to “fix and flip” will purchase the property from you at 70% of the ARV minus any needed repairs. This is something I have heard repeatedly as a metric for determining the rough sales price. “Buyers who fix the property and rent it out” are willing to buy it at a “certain price.” How is that “certain price” determined for buy and hold purchasers? Is it also based on a percentage of ARV, based on Cap rate, based on minimum required cash flow, or determined individually for each deal? Any idea if these rules of thumb vary between cities, or if they are industry standards?
I ask because we are considering looking to wholesalers to find our next buy and hold property, but am hoping for a standard metric to get an idea of pricing. Thanks in advance!
Oh, and just for good ol’ time sake… Josh. Knock knock!
Going on a BP Podcast Binge. This was great for us newbies!
Thanks! 🙂
Great podcast, guys. Thanks
Michelle
Great podcast.
Lamar, I loved your quote about being “solution-oriented”, I think the right mindset is critical especially for beginners who could easily get discouraged.
Hey Lamar! I am fairly new to Bigger Pockets and recently listened to your podcast. I’m actually on the west coast, but Im new to wholesaling, so I’m curious how your doing now? Still wholesaling? Still successful?
Great podcast, Lamar! I was hoping you would go on forever with your stories! I don’t really want to do any wholesale deals, but I want to copy your attitude and your business strengths to my buy and hold business. I love how you are genuinely interested in getting to know people. You said you don’t ask any questions that you don’t actually care about the answer. I love how to get to know people and learn about them first to identify the best solution for them. What a winning idea in this industry! All the best to you!