OfflineGreetings all,
I just wanted to drop a note about what can happen if you are impatient.
I got tired of reading, I got tired of studying, so I decided what else was there to do, but go buy a house. Last week I found ads from what appeared to be REO buyers who were doing fast flips in my area and started doing drive buys to take cursory looks at about 15 properties and built a short list of 6. Since I was still learning about REOs I decided to look for properties that others had already bought from the banks.
With my short list in hand and no patience for more books, I looked each property up in the county tax records on the internet and found the transfer prices. This told me how much the investors had paid for the properties and also gave me an idea of the profit they were looking for on their deals. I saw that one of the investors was obviously looking for very high volumes of flips with what I felt was a very fair profit margin for his work. I also noticed 4 of his houses were on my short list, which definitely brought a smile to my face. I went ahead and called him and got access to the four houses I wanted to look at (all lock boxes, to which, he gave me the combinations to). Since the investor was out of state, he had actually seen none of the properties himself and was working from reports from local people he had video taping the houses. After looking at all four I found the one !!!
The house had long uncut grass, the screen door was rusty, one step inside and the nose was assaulted by old stale smells, and the eyes burned from the ten colors of paint on the walls BUT once the nose adjusted the smell and I put on my sunglasses, the truth became clear. The house had NOTHING wrong with it. About ten gallons of paint, rip out the carpet to expose the perfect hardwood floors below and some deodorizer and the house is ready to move into.
To keep things in perspective, at this point I had about 5 hours invested in the whole thing, not bad at all.
After looking at the house I decided on I used the tax records to see what he bought it for, I also Googled the address and found that it had been on the market for about 60 days, to me a long time for a wholesale flip.
So i decided to take a gamble and make my offer. The houses on either side sold for 45k and 43k within the last year or so, the FMV on this property is about 38k to 42k after some paint and grass cutting and I knew what the owner had paid the bank for it, the internet will provide.
The offer----10k.
Well the owner nicely told me he did not think that that would be acceptable and that he had several people looking at it over the weekend and he would call me next week. I was sure I had lost the deal, but I also thought the owner was making a fair profit and stuck to my offer. Four hours later he called back and said we have a deal if I will sign on Monday and give him a 1k deposit. I am not sure what happened, but I am thrilled I did not offer the asking price and took the gamble. I agreed and told him I would be there.
Now the problem was, I had no idea what I was doing and only went shopping out of impatience. Well, I called the academy folks who I had signed up with and told them the same story, also saying that I would love it if they bailed me out of my impatience, which they did wonderfully. A couple hours on the phone, they even looked over the contract for me, pointing out some items to review, I could not ask for more, they were great.
I do also want to say that while I said I got tired of the books, I had also read all of Dean's books twice, but was suffering from paralysis by overanalyzes. Without the books, the web site, and the academy, this would not have happened.
So after this terribly long post, the end result is I bought my first property, hope to make 15k to 20k on it and and extremely happy.
The moral is: Get off your butt and do something, I wasted three months hesitating and hate myself for it!!!!!! I sit and wonder how much I could have made in those three months, well I won't make that mistake again !!
David
I had that connection to local properties in other states. I don't feel comfortable operating properties while out of state. Trust is a big issue for me.
"I will NOT BE BROKE! ANYMORE!"
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent,
the Merciful.
22.He is Allah besides Whom there is no God: The Knower of the unseen and the seen; He is the Beneficent, the Merciful.
23. He is Allah besides Whom there is no God: the King, the Holy, the Author of Peace,the Granter of Security, Guardian over all, the Mighty, the Supreme, the Possessor of greatness. Glory be to Allah from that which they set up (with Him)!
24. He is Allah: the Creator, the Maker, the Fashioner: His are the most beautiful names. Whatever is in the heavens and the earth declares His glory: and He is the Mighty, the Wise.
Congrats on getting off the couch and getting it done! I think everyone has been in the same boat at one time or another...just need to take that first leap!
Good job! let us know how you do when you sell it.
D
Don't Wish the Past, Create the Future! - DH
Keep that fire burning!
Signed the contract tonight, put the down payment in place. Now I just wait for the title to clear.
DONE DEAL !!!
Now to find another while this one clears the paperwork.
NO MORE COUCH SITTING !!!!!!!!!
David
I just wanted to thank everyone again for the positive comments and support.
I know that this is not a string of deals, but it will be, that I know.
It's amazing how "easy" this looks after that first one is done and as I said before, I am still mad I lost three months.
The time to act is now, so ACT!!
Thanks all, I will keep you up to date.
David
Well David, what else could we say, but congratulations to you. Thanks for sharing your story to enlighten all of us as to the possibilities available out there for us to reach out and take. Your action steps to your first deal makes year reader yearn for more. In a case like this where you have the ability to acquire properties at values way below FMV, teaming up with other DG members might be an option for further expansion. Good Luck and May the Lord continue to Bless you and your partner.
Sandra
"You can never get to the top, if you are not willing to climb. Do not look at the difficulty of the climb, only anticipate the view from the top."
"Can't even walk without you holding my hand." (Song)
"Is anything too hard for the Lord ..." Genesis 19:14
"In all things, wait on the Lord."
"Think not of your own deliverance, but trust in God who will give in abundance."
"When you are down to nothing, God is up to something." Unknown
"Our lives begin to end, the day we become silent about those things that really matters." Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Believe it or not; I was just in the shower wondering exactly what questions I would ask the first person that I called about selling their properties, and here you give me the answers!!!! Today's my off day from my actual "j.o.b."(just over broke)!!! I'm gonna get started today!
That is great! Keep up the good work and Best of luck to you. Can't wait to hear about more.
YOU TUBE CHANNEL - Follow Joe on his You Tube Channel at Joe Jurek Real Estate Investing Adventures
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiko62V79zLKX_owbirAYNA
great job,keep it going!keep the fire burning HOT!
The LORD is for me,so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me? PSALM 118-6
Nice job on your first deal! You broke the fear within yourself to get the job done, and built that confidence even more to go for it, keep it up!
Everyone Can Make A Difference!
John A.
Great Job on your research. I have the opposite problem. I jumped in head first and bought 10 properties in two years. With remodeling done and ready to sell, the market took an even bigger fall and I ended up renting them, which I hate! Now that I know I can buy with little or no money and just like they say, even get money at closing, I have to figure out how to sell them in this market before the renters destroy everything and or I go broke. The Moral of the story is don't go overboard unless you know how the story will end. Coming up with the money for one property is when it sits empty a month or two is one thing, but 10 times that is another learning curve for me. But once I am out of this situation, I will do it again, only smarter! GOOD LUCK
jbleess
David
Thank you for sharing your story! I have the same problem overanalyzing and waiting for the perfect opportunity. You've motivated me to go out and find additional ways to fund my deals. Fish
http://www.lvlinvestmentstx.usapropertywholesale.com - Dean's free website
http://www.fishbuyshouses.com - Company website
1st - New to the forum
I listened to Deans book on audio 1 plus times.
Have been reading alot of posts since joining, but still a little nervous
I presented an offer at 60% of asking price
Owner agreed (states no mortgage on property and wants quick sale)
What should be my next step?
What is the best practice for finding a buyer?
Thanks in advance
Tim
Didn't mean to sound like an idiot
just don't want to blow this deal
it's worth 24K to me
Meeting the owner today to tie up
Congrats on having your offer accepted. Could you kindly post the details so others could learn and follow? Thanks and God Bless.
Sandra
"You can never get to the top, if you are not willing to climb. Do not look at the difficulty of the climb, only anticipate the view from the top."
"Can't even walk without you holding my hand." (Song)
"Is anything too hard for the Lord ..." Genesis 19:14
"In all things, wait on the Lord."
"Think not of your own deliverance, but trust in God who will give in abundance."
"When you are down to nothing, God is up to something." Unknown
"Our lives begin to end, the day we become silent about those things that really matters." Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
David, what State are you in? In my town, you cannot find anything, NOTHING under $150K that is inhabitable. WOW, an actual HOUSE for $10K, unbelievable HERE in Colorado! Good for you!!
I love your comments, you have a real way with words, honest and to the POINT! Ha-haaa, good luck, just keep GOING! 
I look forward to reading more from you and your successful REI endeavors. Thanks for sharing! 
Making it happen!
Sincerely, Sheri
Sunrise Solutions, LLC
There are many homes that you can find that would be inhabitable in Colorado under $150K. How many offers have you made on houses 30-50% off the asking price? How many direct mail letters have you sent out to home owners? I am positively sure I could go on craiglsit for Colorado and find homes under $150K that would be very inhabitable. There is no EXCUSES. You can invest in anystate.
"If you cannot do great things, do small things in a great way.”
Napoleon Hill quote
I am happy to read your story, I have just been reading and looking for the last going on 3 months now too.
I have been talking to sellers, landlords, wholesalers and have looked
at 2 houses. I am looking at 2 more this coming week.
I thought about the 401k possibility of cash, I did sell
some shares of stock I've had for years just bringing very little
dividends, but now I have almost $1000.00 so it helps to hear
you started out with just very little too. And after reading other
encouraging stories here from so many awesome DG Family members,
and Deans books, it is a real deal to get started with no money down
with assignments.
Fear is a killer, thanks for your encouraging words of being
inpatient and taking a leap of faith to act.
Kelly06
Hi David,
Thank you so much for sharing your story. I have been reading and studying like crazy for 3 1/2 months with not much results. I have been overanalizing everything and need to just get out there.
Again thank you and nice job!
Lance