3 Awesome hacks that makes you a real estate wholesaler ninja!
There are so many people talking about wholesaling property as a great investment strategy. While I do not look at wholesaling as a long-term investment, it can be a good tool to create a chunk of money in which you can use as a down payment source for a true investment property.
Like most things, there are right and wrong ways to profit in wholesaling. The main idea here is you have to be an expert at problem solving. If you are not good at problem solving, then wholesaling may not be the best vehicle for you. While this is a bold statement it is an honest definition of the process.
You do not want to be the person who is thinking of making big money off of this property. You want to think of both your wants to make money, as well as helping to solve the problem of the seller. To be successful in wholesaling you want to create win-win situations. It is always fun to watch Successful wholesalers in action and they are successful because they have one principle down to an art: Finding the seller’s pain and creating a solution.
They understand that people who are open to selling their home in the wholesale market do so for one basic reason. They have a challenge of some kind and cannot sell to the open retail (MLS) market. The inability to sell your home is indeed a worrisome, stressful time. As the homeowner of a property you no longer want and often can no longer afford to maintain, has you looking for solutions that you are not able to resolve on your own.
Successful wholesalers are great at 3 key things
1. Identifying problems:
This is the part that all great wholesalers know they need to be able to do (and you have to be GREAT at it). This requires a lot of knowledge in many aspects of real estate. From construction and repair costs to things like code violations, zoning restrictions and the occasional condemnations. You will want to know what those remedies may cost and how to navigate through them.
Or perhaps sellers are upside down on their mortgages, they need to sell and cannot afford it. So, knowing how to work with mortgage companies and execute programs like short sales is knowledge that a great wholesaler really wants to know.
Perhaps the property is in probate and requires gaining legal capacity for the heirs to sell. You want to know the basic principles of probate, how this may turn out and the time it takes. “time is money”.
2.Identifying the pains:
This is often an overlooked part and it tends to go much deeper than just identifying a physical problem such as electric, plumbing or structural issues. Often these issues are causing deeper pains for the seller.
On the surface you may see something that simply requires a contractor to come in and fix it. The deeper problem often is not visible and requires social interaction skills to identify. Perhaps the family has no ability to pay for the repairs, perhaps the family inherited the property and does not know anyone and simply does not want to deal with the headache.
The challenges that each homeowner faces vary from person to person and they are often much deeper than the condition of the property. Successful wholesalers know how to create the trust and rapport to get the seller to share their true pains with holding the property. These pains often are deep rooted and emotional so do not just expect they are willing to share this with you. You want to assure them you are there to help them and not prey upon their challenging time. You want to be the solution to their problems.
3. Finding a win-win solution:
This is what makes or breaks a successful wholesaler. Finding a solution that will help the seller accomplish their goals and at the same time generate a profit for you after executing your exit strategy.
If a seller does not believe you have their best interest in mind, they will not trust you and will send you walking. Sellers are o.k. with you making a profit; this should be disclosed up front that you are an investor and you intend to make a profit. To the seller you earn this profit by solving their pains not by fixing the physical elements of the property.
Being a win-win problem solver will catapult your business forward as this is a small world and happy sellers will share their excitement. The opposite of course also happens. If they feel they were taken advantage of by a wholesaler who was not upfront and transparent with them will give you a bad name real fast.
The best exit strategy
Another task that goes hand in hand with buying the property is executing the exit strategy. Are you best suited to sell this to an investor on your wholesale list or is fixing and renting it for cash flow or perhaps fixing and flipping the property best suited for your needs. Often investors will sell what they must so they can keep buying.
Happy investing!
The author’s opinion cannot be construed as tax or legal advice, and may not represent the views of HTBUSA or its stakeholders. HTBUSA is not a legal service or professional tax service. As with any investment, there is an inherent risk in investing in real estate.