Having trouble finding good deals? You won’t after this inspiring episode of the BiggerPockets Podcast! Today we bring you an interview with Shawn Holsapple, a real estate investor who is dominating his market, having done over 300 transactions in just the past several years. You’ll learn how Shawn is finding consistent deals and opportunities to keep his deal pipeline flowing!
Read the Transcript
Click here to read the transcript.
Listen to The Show on iTunes
Click here to listen on iTunes.
Listen to the Podcast Here
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: iTunes | Android | RSS
Watch the Podcast Here
Help Us Out!
Help us reach new listeners on iTunes by leaving us a rating and review! It takes just 30 seconds and instructions can be found here. Thanks! We really appreciate it!
This Show Sponsored By
We just wa
nted to give a shout out to our podcast sponsor on today’s show: RealtyShares. RealtyShares is a crowdfunding platform that allows you to invest in professionally managed properties without leaving your living room!
Learn more by visiting RealtyShares.com/biggerpockets!
In This Episode We Cover:
- How Shawn got started investing out of the country
- The certain book and seminar that spurred him to begin
- How to overcome analysis paralysis
- Where he gets his active income
- What wholesaling and “wholetailing” are
- How many deals he is doing
- What his team consists of and how he maximizes the use of a VA
- How to best take advantage of HUDs and the MLS
- Tips for knowing what to offer when making a deal
- How Shawn uses online auctions
- How to figure out the cost of a fix up
- Shawn’s take on getting a real estate license
- What you should know about building your portfolio
- Why Shawn believes you don’t necessarily need a cash buyer’s list
- A glimpse into how he manages his business
- And SO much more!
Links from the Show
- Brandon’s Disney’s video (on his Facebook)
- BiggerPockets SubForums
- BiggerPockets Forums
- Upwork
- BiggerPockets Webinar
- Auction.com
- Hudson and Marshall
- BiggerPockets Keyword Alerts
- BiggerPockets #AskBP
Books Mentioned in this Show
- Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki
- The 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss
- The Book on Flipping Houses by J. Scott
- The E-Myth Revisited by Michael E. Gerber
- The 10X Rule by Grant Cardone
Tweetable Topics:
- “You flip for quick cash so that you can buy the buy and holds.” (Tweet This!)
- “If you can’t sell your deal, then you don’t have a deal.” (Tweet This!)
- “If you’re not falling down and getting hurt then you are not trying hard enough.” (Tweet This!)
Connect with Shawn
Free eBook from BiggerPockets!
Join BiggerPockets and get The Ultimate Beginner's Guide to Real Estate Investing for FREE - read by more than 100,000 people - AND get exclusive real estate investing tips, tricks, and techniques delivered straight to your inbox twice weekly!
- Actionable Advice for Getting Started,
- Discover the 10 Most Lucrative Real Estate Niches,
- Learn how to get started with or without money,
- Explore Real-Life Strategies for Building Wealth,
- And a LOT more
Sign up below to download the eBook for FREE today!
We hate spam just as much as you
39 Comments
Awwee thanks for the mention guys!
The reinforcement I got from this post is to make lots of offers. Can Shawn tell us what activities he has assigned to the VA? Thanks.
I have the new investor available inventory that I’m interested in from the HUD Home Store emailed to her daily. She then transfers this info to a shared Google Doc. She puts the case #, address, list price and rent value [from http://www.rentometer.com].
Great Podcast! Thanks Shawn for the info and inspiration!
I’m glad I could help!
Excellent podcast! One of my favorites! Shawn, you had some great ideas to share. I am wondering how you determine which properties to bid on on auction.com. Do you have to do research on the deeds for the foreclosure auctions to make sure that you are buying the “full” property with no liens, encumberances, or former owners still in the houses? I really appreciate your willingness to share.
Like HUD homes, I offer on ALL auction.com home in my area!
They always come with a clean warranty deed and are lien free – so, no need for a prelim title search. This is handled by the title company during the closing process.
Shawn, thanks for taking the time to complete such a great podcast lesson! I have heard of auction.com but have zero experience with it. Have you found that the property condition reports/ needed repair costs listed are accurate? Also aren’t the properties on the auction site being wholesaled? Do you then turn and resell to another investor or are these properties usually ones you flip and or buy and hold?
Thanks again for taking the time to educate us newbies.
Michael,
HUD has property condition reports [that are accurate] but Auction.com doesn’t usually have any kind of report. Based on past experience, I can usually “guesstimate” the rehab costs and come up with an offer price that fits the worse case scenario.
Yes, I usually resell them and only cherry pick a few to keep myself.
Nice job Shawn. Helps put indy on the map. Love the VA . Never thought of that.
Nice job Shawn! I remember meeting with you back in 2010 at SREG. Are you still connected with them? Thanks for sharing your experience and advice.
Thank you for the comment. No, I’ve not been connected to them since early 2012.
Great podcast! Shawn, you were extremely informative and I think that this will definitely help other investors out there. I think that you said you disregarded the listing price when you made some offers, and that was based off of one spreadsheet from on of the companies out there.
Is there another method to do that for a buy & hold property? What I’m thinking of is working backwards/inversing… Like starting out with my desired cash flow, then adding back expenses, then dividing by my desired rate of return?
Thanks again for the awesome info! This has definitely become one of my favorite ones 🙂
George,
I know what a property is worth [rent ready] based on the rental amount it will bring in. I then ‘work backwards” taking in the rehab costs [based on the pictures and area]. This is how I arrive at my max offer price.
It sounds like you’re on the right track. Good luck!
Another great podcast! Very informative and what was interesting was having the ability to do the most with the time and that includes hiring a VA so you can focus on what makes the business money.
Thank you
Hey Shawn, thanks for the podcast. It was very informative. Your model and approach seems to be yielding some great results.
We currently have 3 rentals and have generally stuck to the buy and hold strategy (2 of our 3 properties are owned free and clear — though we do have a home equity line of credit that we used to rehab and purchase those 2).
Though I am not going to quit my day job any time in the foreseeable future (I actually like my day job), I do like the idea of getting my real estate license. I think the advantage of getting access to the MLS, letting myself in to view properties, and making a number of offers would be highly useful — even if I only obtain a property fairly infrequently.
Could you be so kind as to explain to me how, in Indiana, I would go about getting a real estate license without being associated with a broker? From the little amount of research I have done, it sounds like generally one gets associated with a brokerage before getting a real estate license. We really don’t have an active REA in Muncie where I could pose that sort of question. Thanks for any advise you can lend.
In Indiana all “agents” are now “brokers”.
I would suggest getting your training through a local class provider like Tucker or another local school.
Then, you would become an associate broker under a principle broker that is investor friendly. This allows you to do everything a broker does without the cost and liability of all the paperwork.
Yes, you will have to share your commissions but that’s a small price to pay in the grand scheme of things.
I hope that helps.
Shawn, really enjoyed the podcast. I’m interested in speaking to you about issues that I’ve come across related to wholesaling and wholetailing (including on the MLS)… without involving my Broker. I’m an agent just for MLS access, and I am getting pushback from the broker/team leader about this… and wanted to know what you recommend… in order to avoid involving the Broker and having them take any of the wholesale or wholetail fee… state contracts vs. one-pagers to assign, etc. I’m in CA so the laws may not be exactly the same as IN, but I heard on the podcast you are your own broker, and those who are don’t seem to have the issues I am having as an agent. I also heard you say you usually close them first before wholetailing, which would make it easier. At that point, are you listing them on the MLS under your brokerage, or handing them off to another agent for a flat fee of some kind. Do you ever put them under contract and put them on the MLS before closing, selling contingent on getting clear title? Thanks for your help.
I am an “associate broker” which is like an agent. This is less paperwork and expense for me – I can be a broker but choose not to.
Since I own all the properties that I sell – I am selling my own property and there is nothing wrong with not paying my broker a fee for this. Your state might be different.
I usually don’t list but instead send out to my buyers list to sell.
If I do list on the MLS, I list it myself through my principle broker.
I tend not to ever use assignments – I just don’t like not having full control of the property and prefer to use a State purchase agreement. I always close once I have under contract.
I hope that helps.
Yes, very helpful Shawn… thank you!
Hi, wow, what a fantabulous podcast! Really enjoyed! So much content. I am also a product of the Rich Dad Seminars…
So here are my questions from the podcast:
1 How are you closing on these properties you whole-tail? Private money? Hard Money?
2. Are you saying you only offer 20 percent of asking price on HUD homes and you sometimes get accepted? Arent they limited to owner-occupant on the first few weeks on market?
1 – Private lenders
2 – Yes. I can only offer on properties that are open to all buyers. Usually after a 15 day first look for owner occupants has expired.
Great podcast looking forward to implementing some of your strategies. Thanks for your advice to make more offers also.
Thank you!
Shawn,
Thanks for the GREAT podcast. My question is:
When you say that you are funding the HUD deals w/ private money, does that mean you are required to purchase the entire deal from HUD 100% w/ no financing if your offer is accepted?
Thanks Again!
Great Podcast Shawn. My question to you is, when a HUD bid is accepted do you have to come up w/ 100% of your offer right away or can you come up w/ financing?
Great podcast Shawn- good info given and worth listening to again! Question though – I have been active on the auction.com website for my area and have noticed that some of the properties for sale state “Occupancy Status Occupied”? So is this another cost I should consider when making my bids (eviction/court cost) or should I have the mindframe of approaching them and working out a lease agreement or cash for keys, not sure what to think about this? Please advise –
Yes, you should figure on several extra dollars to get them out and/or fix it up in case they trash the place when you get them out [I had a guy do $35k in damage to a $50k home!]
I always try to be fair and offer them to restructure the loan or let them stay…they never accept.
I usually offer “cash for keys” so they don’t trash the place. Something like $500-$900 if they’re out by next weekend and the place is left in tact and somewhat clean. Again, most don’t take this option.
In Indiana, they only have 3 days to be out. I usually give them more of course.
In addition, I’ve found that about half of the “occupied” auction homes are actually vacant…
Make lots of offers and good luck!
Great podcast. I love your business model. I’ve been “looking” at making some offers on HUD homes to wholesale, but your podcast has given me a kick in the pants to stop “looking” and start DOING. I already have a Realtor who had offered to submit my offers.
Thanks
I’m glad I could help, James!
Great podcast! You talked about Rich Dad influencing you. Which specific books from his series educated/motivated you the most?
Thanks again for sharing.
Chris,
Rich Dad was the most profound and is what got me started down this path.
After that, ALL the others have tremendous value individually but are very powerful as a collective whole.
Thank you for the podcast, Shawn. One question: How do you check the title for the properties that you bid on Auction.com? Do you run a report through a Title company on each property?
Jorge,
Like most REO sellers, these assets come with clear titles and I’ve never had any issue. Of course we run a full title search and get title insurance during the closing process as well.
Great job Shaun. Continued success. Don
Great podcast. Love listening to one close to home. Hope you continue your access Shawn.
this was awesome (as are all the podcast here) but I just heard the words I think made my light bulb light turn on ” stop thinking start doing ” and with that im on it time 20 !!! Thanks again Shawn your very inspiring
Hello my name is Sergio I want to be a real estate investor since 2013 I know it’s a long time I just been learning and learning and reading I have a question for you how can I invest without using my own money to find cash flow deals I want to buy and hold interested in apartments but I like to know more about the line of credit everyone’s talking about I was wondering if you can give me a little toward the big picture how do I start hope is a work do I just go to the bank and ask for a line of Credit.?