To increase your profit margin in a real estate investment property, it is important to develop a plan for locating motivated sellers who are willing to offer you a property that is significantly below market value.
The main question that most beginning real estate investors ask me is: In addition to the marketing ideas learned in the teleseminar series, what are some other ways I can find motivated sellers of real estate property? Here are some additional tips on finding motivated sellers of real estate property.
7 Great Tips on Finding Motivated Sellers
Estate Sales: Search ads and listings for real estate property that is being offered as part of an estate sale. Often in an estate sale the sellers of the property are motivated, especially if the property was left to more than one recipient. Instead of disputing over who will occupy the property, the sellers are motivated because they would rather sell and then divide up the cash received for the property.
Out of Area Owners: Use networking to find owners of real estate property who no longer live in the area. Sometimes these owners are motivated to sell due to hassles of owning property at a distance or other related reasons.
Landlords: Contact landlords who have properties for rent. Sometimes you will find that the landlords are motivated to sell, especially if they are evicting a lot of tenants or you see that the property is in need of some repairs. Some landlords prefer not to deal with a realtor so they may be interested in dealing with you privately.
FSBO Ads: Drive around neighborhoods or search the real estate listings for properties that are listed as “For Sale by Owner.” Respond to the ad by saying that you buy houses. Sometimes you will find that the seller is motivated for one reason or another and you can acquire the property at below market value.
HUD Properties: HUD properties are real estate properties that are acquired by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. If HUD buys a property back in foreclosure it offers the property for sale on an “as is” basis. Some of these properties are available with rehabilitation loans built into the mortgage.
Depending upon the condition of the property and the criteria for the deal, the acquisition of such a property could potentially be profitable. Make sure you do your homework before considering a government foreclosed property. If you do not know what you are doing and how to avoid the mistakes, the transaction could end up in disaster.
Code Violations: Check with your local code enforcement office regarding properties that consistently have building code violations. Sometimes this is a sign that the owner is having difficulty keeping up with the repairs on the property and may be motivated to sell to an investor with the right offer.
Real Estate Bird Dogs: If you do not mind spending some money to locate motivated sellers you can tap into a real estate bird dog. These are people whose business is to seek out profitable real estate investment deals in return for a fee or a percentage of the profit on the investment. If you are seeking the most profit out of your investment this may not be for you. However, if you do not want to take the time to search and do not mind paying the fee, this is another option you can pursue.