Mark Ferguson loves to highlight successful investors on this podcast, and today’s episode is another of those revealing, helpful conversations with a person who started at ground zero, worked his way up by learning from people who were in the business, and finally launched out to begin his own investment business. Anson Young has been flipping houses, wholesaling, and serving as a Real Estate Agent in Denver, Colorado for many years and pulls back the curtain on his story on this edition of Invest Four More.

Serving successful investors could be the way for you to get started in your own real estate investing career.

That’s how Anson Young did it. He got a job working under a successful Real Estate Agent in his local market. It was in that role that he learned about BPOs and other real estate tools that enabled him to have a leg up on the competition once he became an investor on his own. That experience and the knowledge he gained were lessons he hated at the time but is thankful for today. Hear how he advises upcoming real estate investors to go about learning like he did, on this episode of Invest Four More.

Aren’t there a lot of limitations put on Real Estate Agents who are also Investors?

There are limitations, no doubt. Today’s guest, Anson Young would be the first to say so. An Agent is regulated by the Real Estate Commission so HOW he goes about finding deals, making offers on them, and many other pieces of the process are carefully scrutinized. But Anson feels that the benefits of being both agent and investor far outweigh the drawbacks. Mark Ferguson draw those advantages out in this conversation, so make sure you listen to get all the details.

A hot market is a tough place to do fix and flips, but it can be done.

Anson Young is doing deals in the Denver, Colorado market which has recently been touted as the U.S. Market with the most appreciation (2015). Yet Anson continues to find good deals and flip them for cash. How does he do it? It’s through knowing his market, knowing where to look to find the good properties, and knowing how to negotiate the deals in a way that serves the seller but also leaves enough margin for his profit. Hear how he goes about all of that on this episode of Invest Four More.

Anson Young is a Virtual Wholesaler. What is that?

Virtual wholesaling is finding properties within a certain dollar amount virtually, through the internet, and buying and reselling the property sight unseen, and never stepping foot on the property or neighborhood it’s in. It might sound impossible, but Anson has done it a few times and has shown a profit. It requires that you know what to look at in a property, how to assess the stats on the local market, and how to build a relationship with an experienced person on the ground in that market who can assist you from that end. Anson walks us through the details of how he goes about it in this episode, so be sure you listen.

OUTLINE OF THIS EPISODE

LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

www.BiggerPockets.com/user/Anson

Contact Mark for a $100 discount on all his programs - [email protected]

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There are lots of paths into a full time real estate  investing career. Mark Ferguson got into investing after being an agent for many years. Today’s guest, Jim Huntzicker did the same. Both men had fathers who were real estate agents, which could seem like an advantage to getting into the real estate investing world, but both of them feel it was a hindrance. Why? Because neither of their fathers had actually done investing, and the retail side of sales and purchasing is a night and day difference from real estate investing. In today’s episode you’re going to hear Jim’s story of how he got into investing, how he’s making a great living doing fix and flips, and how and why he buys and holds rental properties. You’ll learn a ton from this conversation.

From almost the beginning of Jim’s first fix and flip project Jim Huntzicker ran into troubles of all kinds. From problems negotiating the price, to issues with unreliable contractors, and problems getting the money to purchase and rehab the property, Jim found that every project is an opportunity to be educated. He considers it to be the equivalent of a college education, the harder it gets. Listen in as Mark Ferguson asks Jim about the lessons he learned on that first failed fix and flip and how he recovered to move ahead and become a very successful investor. It’s all on this episode of Invest Four More.

Jim Huntzicker has perfected it. He’s got a step by step process that includes going out to look at the property multiple times (or not), consistent communication with the agent about the price, your interest in it, and the issues you’d have to address if you purchased it, and brutal transparency about your desire to make an offer but fear offending anyone by making one that might seem too low. He’s found that the process he takes, though more lengthy than what most investors do, results in him getting more accepted offers in the end. Discover the details of this ingenious way of getting offers requested of you by listening in.

Jim Huntzicker has a wife and twins at home and he loves that his success as a real estate investor enables him to spend more time with them and less time at work. He intentionally stays at home each morning until his children are off to school and enjoys that though he likes to work, he’s got the luxury of being at home whenever he wants. It’s a benefit he hadn’t thought about seriously until his twins were born, and one he wouldn’t trade for anything - including more money. Find out how Jim to to that point through building a successful real estate investment business on this episode of Invest Four More.

The common complaints about finding good deals for fix and flips on the MLS is that there’s too much competition and that there are only about 3% of houses listed that would actually be feasible for a fix and flip. But Jim sees those as ideal reasons TO get his deals there. The MLS is actually the “Motivated Seller List” in Jim’s eyes and compared to sending out direct mail, he thinks the MLS is a better deal. He’s not paying the expense of formatting mailers and sending out letters. He’s got a list right in front of him of motivated sellers, and the 3% of deals there that fit his buying criteria would be equal to the 3% of responses he’d get from direct marketing - and he didn’t have to go find them. Hear more about Jim’s logic of using the MLS to find great deals, on this episode.

[1:00] Introduction of Jim Huntzincker.

[1:30] How Jim began his real estate investing career.

[3:11] How starting out in real estate with a family member already in the business can be a disadvantage.

[4:15] The nightmare deal that Jim did first and how he advises you to get started in your first deal.

[6:34] How Jim gets the property owner to ask HIM for an offer.

[8:37] Why being a real estate agent worked against Jim at first.

[9:57] Jim’s biggest learning point on that first terrible deal - contractor selection, partnerships, borrowing money.

[15:02] Learning the terminology of real estate investing and educating yourself to do flips and rehabs wisely.

[16:43] The ONLY reason a real estate investor should get a real estate license.

[16:59] How Jim got to the point of doing 15 flips at one time.

[18:59] The family perks of becoming a successful real estate investor.

[19:35] When Jim began buying rentals and why he did it.

[21:57] Jim’s approach to buying rental properties now.

[22:56] How Jim also sells turn-key properties ready to go.

[24:09] How Jim balances real estate sales business with his investing deals.

[25:13] Why Jim likes using the MLS to find properties to buy… and why he has as much success as most investors who do direct marketing.

[28:42] Making strategic offers through the MLS by staging your offer effectively.

[32:59] Why listing agents likely don’t know what the seller is really going to accept for their property.

[36:48] Step by step: Jim’s process for finding the right deals on the MLS.

[42:18] Jim’s program for finding deals on the MLS - MLS Domination

[45:27] Situations where Jim pays over list price for properties and why he loves estate sales.

[47:44] Why Jim never lets potential buyers know when he has multiple offers.

[52:48] The best ways to get in touch with Jim.

Jim’s MLS Domination program. - http://mlsdominiation.com

Jim’s website - www.JimHuntzicker.com  

Contact Mark for a $100 discount on all his programs - [email protected]

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How to get great deals from the #MLS for #FixAndFlips, on this episode

How to get #RealEstateAgents to ASK YOU for a low offer on their listings

Why you should never let potential buyers know you have multiple offers on your property

The family perks of becoming a successful #RealEstateInvestor

The only reason a #RealEstateInvestor should ever get a #RealEstateLicense

There’s a lot of talk, on this show and on other real estate podcasts, about wholesaling. Mark Ferguson was a licensed real estate agent and didn’t even understand the term for a long time. In this episode Mark’s going to walk through the step by step explanation of what it means to be a wholesaler, how wholesaling works, and how you can take initial steps to get involved in real estate investing through what could be the simplest way: wholesaling. It’s all in this solo show, with Mark Ferguson.

It all begins with a contract. In most states anyone can put a contract on a house, which is a document that states your intention to buy the property. Once your contract is accepted, nobody else can buy that property unless you withdraw your contract. The contract will state a certain number of days you have to get your cash or financing together to consummate the purchase of the property. But as a wholesaler, you’re not going to finance the property, you’re going to bring a cash buyer into the deal to purchase it from you right away. Find out the details of how that works on this episode of Invest Four More with Mark Ferguson.

As you might imagine, most wholesale deals don’t come from the MLS. Why? Because anyone can find deals on the MLS, so there’s no need for a wholesaler to be involved. That means wholesalers have to find other sources of discounted or distressed properties. In this episode of Invest Four More, Mark Ferguson walks through the main ways wholesalers find properties and explains how each of them works. He’ll cover direct marketing, websites, driving for dollars, and other tactics to locate and purchase properties. It’s a basic explanation of the fundamentals that any beginning wholesaler will want to hear.

How do you do that? This is perhaps the most important yet difficult part of the wholesaling process. The key to it is to build up what is called a “buyers list” over time, so you have a group of interested, active real estate investors to contact any time you get a property under contract that meets their specific criteria. That way you can simply send out an email or make a few phone calls and have strong buyers interested right away. How do you build that list? You have to start by getting to know those investors, and Mark Ferguson has some tips for how you can do that on this episode of Invest Four More.

There are lots of ways to invest in real estate, but wholesaling could be the simplest, easiest way for a handful of reasons. First of all, it takes the least amount of experience and is an area where you can learn as you go. Taking one step at a time and researching and learning as you move to the next phase is entirely possible. In addition, wholesaling requires the least amount of your money up front, so you can get started finding and putting contracts on possible properties without a lot of overhead. Mark Ferguson covers most of the basics about getting started in Real Estate Wholesaling in this episode of Invest Four More, so be sure you give it a listen.

[1:00] Welcome from Mark and an introduction to the topic of Wholesaling

[2:11] What IS wholesaling?

[2:58] Why would a person want to become a wholesaler?

[3:25] Getting started with wholesaling is easier than most real estate positions.

[4:50] Be aware of the laws in your state regarding wholesaling.

[6:11] How a wholesaler starts a deal - the contract.

[7:46] Why would an investor buy a property from a wholesaler?

[8:22] Things to watch out for when wholesaling.

[8:50] The second way wholesalers will get houses and do deals.

[11:01] Wholesalers who use their own money.

[12:01] What is wholetailing? (a new term that has popped up)

[13:20] How do wholesalers find great deals?

[16:07] How do wholesalers use direct marketing to find properties?

[18:27] Realtors must have a disclosure about their own potential for making property through buying below market value.

[19:25] Finding sellers is where a wholesaler has to spend money.

[21:12] A great company to do your direct marketing for you.

[21:38] What is a bandit sign?

[22:35] Billboards: Do they work for finding properties?

[22:00] Websites can be a great way to find properties.

[23:26] Driving for dollars is a great way to find properties for sale.

[24:46] How do wholesalers find buyers for their properties?

[26:00] Understanding margins in order to have investors actually buy your properties.

[26:50] Finding cash buyers via public records or the MLS.

[27:34] Marketing properties to cash buyers.

[28:05] Why wholesaling could be the best way to get started in real estate investing.

[30:35] Summary: the keys to becoming a great wholesaler

[31:00] Why cash buyers instead of financing?

[32:09] Mark’s great tools to help you get started wholesaling -

www.YellowLetters.com - use the promo code InvestFourMore

Danny Johnson’s website - http://www.leadpropeller.com

Contact Mark for a $100 discount on all his programs - [email protected]

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#RealEstate #Wholesaling explained step by step in this episode

Making money with #wholesaling is not as hard as it seems. Find out more on this episode

#Wholesaling #RealEstate is a legitimate way to get started in #RealEstateInvesting

How do #RealEstateWholesalers find good deals on properties? Find out on this episode

#Wholesalers need to have a good buyer’s list. Find out why on this episode.

Danny Johnson is not your typical real estate entrepreneur. He is trained as a software engineer and actually worked at a large company in that capacity when he first started his real estate investing career. His Dad was flipping houses and Danny decided to take the leap and try his hand at it. His first deal actually turned out to be a wholesale deal that involved a short sale, buying a note from a huge bank, and dealing with foreclosure on the property before it was actually sold to a wholesale investor. Not your typical “first deal” and you’ll want to hear the entire story straight from Danny’s mouth on this episode of “Invest Four More.”

Danny started out in real estate investing under his father’s instruction, but really feels he didn’t get all that much help. His dad even told him, “You need to do this yourself.” He got advice and help from his Dad on vital things but learned a lot from taking action and doing deals the wrong way (so that he could learn how to do them the right way). He says that if you want to approach a real estate investor in search of a mentor, make sure you bring plenty of clear, actionable stuff to the table. Don’t just say, “I want you to teach me and I’ll do whatever you tell me to do.” That’s putting the burden on your potential mentor to figure out how to use you. Be more proactive than that. Offer to find him deals and then do it. Bring true value to the table so he’ll be motivated to teach you. Find out more about identifying and engaging with possible mentors on this episode.

What is “driving for dollars?” It’s Danny’s way of saying he drove around neighborhoods looking for abandoned or neglected houses, or houses that had foreclosure signs or other indications that they were distressed. He’d write down the address, go to the county offices to find out who the owner was, and then he’d contact them to make an offer on their house. Some people feel like that’s a strange way to find deals, but for Danny it worked beautifully. He’s still got relationships with some of those property owners. Learn how to drive for dollars and find good fix and flip properties on this episode.

Being a software engineer, Danny saw over time that if he was able to get a website going that could not only rank high in the search engines, but also serve as an effective lead generator, he’d be able to get a lot more traction in his lead generation activities. That’s when he went to work. What came of it was a lead generation form on his website that captures the email and phone of those who are interested in selling their houses for cash. The best part is that his form immediately sends him a text to let him know there’s a new interested seller. He calls them immediately and starts the conversation. It’s a great way to get immediately connected with a hot lead… and you can get the same functionality on your website by going to his website www.LeadPropeller.com

That’s an interesting question, and Danny Johnson answers it immediately. He’ll take the shorter list. In fact, it’s how he does business with every one of his fix and flips. He’s got a regular group of investors who like to make the returns on their money that his fix and flip properties offer, and he taps them time and again. They’re eager to keep making the returns on their investment and to have a trusted partner like Danny who can give them those kinds of returns on their money. Listen to find out how Danny built these kinds of ongoing relationships on this episode of Invest Four More.

[1:00] Introduction of Danny Johnson

[1:48] How a software developer got into real estate investing.

[3:16] Why taking action on your own is a powerful way to learn.

[6:07] 3 years until full time investor and the benefits of working part time.

[7:09] How Danny made $20K on his first property flip as a wholesale deal.

[11:52] 6 months later, the first rehab deal.

[14:34] How many flips did Danny do per year by the time he finally went full time?

[15:42] Danny finds his properties through hustle and direct marketing… here’s how.

[17:10] How Danny made it through the market crash and continued flipping houses.

[19:34] Drive for dollars, direct mailings, and pre-foreclosure strategies.

[21:03] The kind of marketing Danny used that made the most money VS the cost.

[21:55] How Danny maximizes his web presence to get the most leads of any marketing channel.

[28:31] Danny’s ventures into creating tools to help other flippers to maximize their websites.

[33:02] Danny’s rental properties and his plans for the future.

[34:24] The difficulties the Dodd/Frank legislation has made for Danny’s rentals.

[35:49] The financing Danny does is primarily private financing. How he does it.

[41:00] Danny’s advice for people who want to begin flipping properties.

[43:51] How you should think about finding a mentor and actually bringing value to their table.

Danny’s website: www.FlippingJunkie.com

www.LeadPropeller.com - Mark’s website creation company

The Securities and Exchange Commission

Contact Mark for a $100 discount on all his programs - [email protected]

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Mark Ferguson is best known for his ability to do profitable real estate fix and flips. He’s made his living doing it and has built a very profitable business on it. In this episode of Invest Four More Mark is going to walk you through a “do and don’t” outline for property flipping that includes every step from finding and purchasing properties to how to sell for the best profit. It’s a great, practical episode that you won’t want to miss.

There’s a very simple reason. It’s not easy to do and requires a lot of hard work and integrity in order to do them right. You’ve got to work every step of the way - to find the right properties, to make the offer and close the deal, to get financing that fits your need, to repair the property adequately and with the right eye for detail, to sell the property and actually turn a profit. Every step demands that you, the property flipper, work hard to make sure the project goes according to plan, and to flex and adjust when it doesn’t. Find out how a seasoned real estate flipper does it on this episode of Invest Four More.

Not counting the costs accurately. It’s inevitable that inexperienced or new flippers are going to make mistakes on estimating their costs because they are new to the game. You should count on your repair estimate being off because you don’t know everything that is wrong with a property until you get into it. There will be unexpected issues that arise, almost always. Figure 5 to 10 thousand extra dollars than you plan, and figure it into your budget when you’re considering an offer on a property. That will enable you to know if you can truly make a profit on a fix and flip property. Find out more on this episode of Invest Four More with Mark Ferguson.

You’re going to spend money at every stage of the process - real estate commissions on the buying and selling side, property taxes, homeowner’s association dues, permits fees, financing costs, sales costs, and others. If you don’t figure these in, you’re going to cut yourself short when it comes to the profit margin of the project, and possibly even take a loss. That’s not why you’re getting into house flipping in the first place, so take the time to listen and learn as Mark Ferguson walks you through the basics of what to do and what not to do when flipping properties.

Off-market resources are great when you can find them, but they’re not the only way to locate distressed properties or good deals. Mark Ferguson has 7 fix and flips in process right now and every one was found on the MLS. He’ll make a handsome profit on each of them. How does he do it? He watches the listings multiple times a day and gets out to look at properties quickly. If he likes what he sees, he has his assistant draw up a contract that day. The speed with which he’s able to make offers and get them into the hands of sellers enables him to be high on the list of eligible buyers, and it results in good deals time and again. Learn more tips for getting good fix and flip properties through the MLS on this episode of Invest Four More.

[1:00] Welcome and introduction to this episode on Fix and Flips!

[1:45] The basics of what a Fix and Flip is.

[2:09] The biggest mistake: Not counting all the costs.

[3:20] Why repairs almost always cost more than you predict.

[4:30] How to figure the cost of repairs on a fix and flip.

[6:26] Costs you need to figure beyond the repair costs.

[9:10] Be sure to figure in the financing costs if you’re using another person’s money.

[12:16] How to find good properties for fix and flips.

[14:00] The difficult flips are often the ones that make the biggest profit.

[19:07] The advantage of looking for “aged” listings in the MLS.

[21:00] How do you know how much room is needed to make a profit?

[23:25] How long it takes to REALLY flip a house.

[28:11] Mistakes made by pricing too high

[30:12] Financing mistakes and tips for house flips.

[32:40] How to get started doing fix and flips with no or little money.  

Contact Mark for a $100 discount on all his programs - [email protected]

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The bigger the fix and flip, the more unexpected costs there will be http://wp.me/p3PPf6-54d

You CAN get good #FixAndFlip properties from the #MLS. Here’s how http://wp.me/p3PPf6-54d

The biggest mistake #PropertyFlippers make http://wp.me/p3PPf6-54d

There’s more cost to a #FixAndFlip than just the repairs http://wp.me/p3PPf6-54d

Do you know how to use the #70%Rule to make a profit on #FixAndFlips? http://wp.me/p3PPf6-54d