Flipping or Lease Options best for newbie? - Posted by Lanie

Posted by Shawn Goins on October 28, 2003 at 09:08:41:

Lanie,
Maybe you should just talk to people naturally and not worry about finding a “mentor” I’m sure you can do it without having one. Use your books and this website among others to help you when you need it. If you join your REI Club and just talk to people and let them know where you’re at, someone might be willing to help you. Don’t go out of your way to find a mentor. Most experienced investors won’t help a beginner for free, at least on a regular mentorship type basis. Hope that helps!

Flipping or Lease Options best for newbie? - Posted by Lanie

Posted by Lanie on October 27, 2003 at 20:59:32:

Hello,

I am very new to real estate investing and want to jump into learning all I can and start taking action. I am just not sure what is best for me. I am torn between immersing myself in ‘Flipping’ or immersing myself in ‘Lease Options’.
Here’s my situation:

Very low on $$ but able to purchase one to two programs (just not sure which ones)

Bad credit (but currently working on cleaning it up)

Which avenue of RE is best for me?

I?m wanting and willing to work hard and be persistent but also don’t have a lot of experience in fixing up homes and such, no money and bad credit (for the time being)

Which would you recommend I start doing? Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
Lanie

How about Flipping Lease Options? - Posted by Doug Pretorius

Posted by Doug Pretorius on October 28, 2003 at 09:39:10:

You can do this too. Also known as Lease Option Assignments, or Lease Option Consulting. This is usually a bit less profitable than wholesale flips per deal, but in most markets they’re easier to get. You also open yourself up to being able to flip to investors OR homebuyers.

Since you aren’t staying in the middle, you can pass on a better deal to your buyers, which means the houses will move faster and you’ll get more referrals. A friend of mine in Michigan is doing this almost exclusively, and in 3 years he’s grown from his own city, to working in 20 counties. He plans to go national in the next few years.

Re: Flipping or Lease Options best for newbie? - Posted by Shawn Goins

Posted by Shawn Goins on October 27, 2003 at 22:24:28:

Lanie,
What area are you in? You might want to consider doing one or the other depending on what has a stronger potential for profit. If you are in an area that appreciates like crazy, then I think you should consider some flipping to generate some cash flow. How is the rental market there if it is great then you could consider lease options. Make sure you research your market before you dive in. I think each case is subjective when you find a great deal, that is depending on the deal one way could be better than the other.
Disclosure: I am also new to this stuff, I have owned one rental property and currently own my primary residence. So take my advice with a grain of salt, there are a lot better opinions out there from experienced investors. Just my two cents :).

Re: How about Flipping Lease Options? - Posted by Lanie

Posted by Lanie on October 28, 2003 at 15:41:35:

Doug,

Thank you so much for your advice. I really appreciate it. I will use CreOnline for help with this but is there a book or course that you could recommend that your friend in Michigan used? I would love to talk with him. Maybe you could pass him my e-mail address and if he wouldn’t mind, I’d love to ask him a few questions. My e-mail is Twin1ac@yahoo.com

Thanks again!
Lanie

Re: Flipping or Lease Options best for newbie? - Posted by Lanie

Posted by Lanie on October 27, 2003 at 22:41:18:

Shawn,

Thanks so much for your advice. I am in the San Francisco Bay Area residing in Marin County. (very expensive here).
Maybe flipping is better to get into because property here does appreciate like crazy.
Either way Shawn, do you think I can do one or the other successfully under the circumstances I am in? ie. no money and bad credit?

Re: How about Flipping Lease Options? - Posted by Doug Pretorius

Posted by Doug Pretorius on October 28, 2003 at 22:23:56:

I don’t know of any books or courses specifically on LO flips. But most courses touch on them. For example, David Finkel and Peter Conti’s book (available for free at resultsnow.com) mentions it briefly as a “Quick Cash” technique.

Re: Flipping or Lease Options best for newbie? - Posted by Shawn Goins

Posted by Shawn Goins on October 27, 2003 at 23:03:20:

Lanie,
Of course you can. If you haven’t already, research about assigning purchase contracts (No money involved)as a means of flipping. There is no qualifying for loans or credit checks. Start networking and build a buyers list of who you can flip properties to. Most important in flipping is having your exit strategy planned! BTW I am currently in San Diego and am Originally from San Jose, so I know the market is great out there!

Shawn: 1 more question about flipping… - Posted by Lanie

Posted by Lanie on October 28, 2003 at 24:30:11:

Hey Shawn,

I hope this isn’t a dumb question, but how do I actually go about getting a mentor for flipping? Do you think I even need one? Should I go to a REI Club in SF and just ask people, “Hey will you be my mentor?” Or maybe I could just use the newsgroup here on creonline as my source of mentors? what do you think?
I think that I am nervous about doing this and my lack of confidence is getting in the way. I am going to have to overcome it somehow.
I am finding that there is a lot more to REI than just knowledge, it takes a lot from within yourself. It’s like a challenge with your psyche.

Re: Flipping or Lease Options best for newbie? - Posted by Lanie

Posted by Lanie on October 27, 2003 at 23:16:23:

Shawn!

You are awesome! Thanks for your reply and I am going to purchase some books and programs on Flipping and just study, study, study until I know the ins and outs. I will research ‘Purchase Contracts’ too.
I think I will also join the REI club here in San Fran. Can’t hurt!

Enjoy beautiful San Diego and thanks again for your support!

Lanie