Posted by Stacy (AZ) on March 29, 1999 at 10:39:01:
Just to clarify, wholesale flipping should not involve repair work. There’s a lot to be said for “prehabbing” (Joe Kaiser’s term), but hiring a repair crew is the job of the rehabber who you will flip to.
Stacy
HELP get me started, PLEASE! - Posted by Tamika
Posted by Tamika on March 28, 1999 at 20:06:24:
I posted a message earlier with a question about flipping…I only got one response and it didn’t really provide the info that I needed.
Here’s my story: I purchased C. Sheets program 5 years ago, studied it, was paralyzed by fear, and eventually it got buried in the basement. Well, I’ve never forgotten it and have always been interested in real estate investment. I happened upon this site about 2 months ago and have been reading it and filling my head with knowledge religiously. I’ve read all of the recommended books that people from this sight have suggested (Creating Wealth, Rich Dad Poor Dad, Richest Man in Babylon, etc.) I’ve reread C. Sheets program and finally feel I’m ready to dive in.
I am a teacher by profession and am on Spring break this week and hoped to get alot accomplished as far as getting started in investing.
I’ve decided that I need to start with flipping and maybe Lonnie Deals to generate much needed cash to clear up debt. I can afford to purchase 1, possibly 2 courses this week. I want to begin wholesaling first. Please suggest which course would be most valuable.
Also, while I’m waiting for the courses you suggest…what can I do this week to prepare myself to start flipping?
Sorry for the length of this post. Thanks in advance for your suggestions.
This week - Posted by Sandy FL
Posted by Sandy FL on March 29, 1999 at 08:09:01:
While you are on spring break, waiting for courses to arrive, one the best and highest uses of your time is to learn your marketplace. Call sellers of FSBO’s, call interesting realtor ads, ask about comparable sales, go to open houses, and ask a million questions. Look at the new subdivisions and the older bread and butter neighborhoods to see which areas apply to the type of investing you want to do. Go into the mobile home parks and “ride the bumps”. Take a notebook with you and begin writing down addresses and phone numbers of interesting properties. Talk to neighbors of vacant properties. This type of learning is an important first step. Don’t spend your daylight hours reading a book. Get out there 
All the Best!
Sandy FL
Focus - Posted by HR
Posted by HR on March 29, 1999 at 06:27:06:
Tamika,
Sounds like you already have focus: great! Now stick with it and don’t be distracted. If you want to do Lonnie deals, I assume you have already bought and read both books, right? So this week, I would begin finding the parks, cruising the parks, talking with park managers, maybe walking throught some new mobiles to learn about their costs/construction, etc. etc.
If You want to do flips, institute Jackie’s plan. I also would recommend the LeGrand wholesale/retail program. It’s a great flip course.
Stay focused on this. Flips and Lonnies are possible part-time. Gain some mastery of these, if this is what interests you, and then move on to something else that can make even more money. Don’t try to do everything; you will accomplish nothing.
Stay focused and motivated. And keep asking lots of questions!
Good luck,
HR
Re: HELP get me started, PLEASE! - Posted by RS
Posted by RS on March 29, 1999 at 24:28:36:
While I was waiting for the Ron Legrand course on wholesaleing (Fast Cash With Quick Turn Real Estate) to come in the mail, I read Jackie’s articles in the “How to” section on flipping. She dispenses great information and those articles are a fantastic foundation to build your wholsaleing business on.As per Jackies advice, I began calling RE investors to line up buyers for the wholesaleing deals I knew would come. I called all of the “I Buy Houses” ads in the local papers and talked to several RE retailers that would be more than happy to look at my deals. I think this would be a very productive use of your time.For in depth instruction on wholesaleing, I suggest the aformentioned Ron Legrand course as it is concise, intertaining, and motivational. I haven’t started wholesaleing yet because I got sidetracked by doing lease/options! Having a blast and hope you will too.Good luck!
RS
Re: HELP get me started, PLEASE! - Posted by Tarun_md
Posted by Tarun_md on March 28, 1999 at 22:39:34:
Tamika,
Read Jackie’s two articles on flipping. Also, don’t get hung up on repair estimates too much. I had the same problem but I over came it. Be deal driven and make as many offers as you can. For estimating repairs, I got some help from STeve cook, Jackie, and Ron legrand’s book. It costs(on a 1200sqft house) $2500 max for a kitchen, 1500-2000max for bathroom, $1/sq ft for carpet or refinishing hardwood floors, $1500 for interior paint, $2000 for exterior paint(if a lot of scraping needs to be done), about $2500 for central/air heat and add about 25% for miscellaneous. That all there is too it. It took me some time to stop worring too much about repair estimates and focus on making offers.
If you are way off on your estimates, your weasel clause will help you back out. Hope this helps!
Re: HELP get me started, PLEASE! - Posted by mike
Posted by mike on March 28, 1999 at 22:15:52:
spend as much time looking for money as you do houses. flipping usually involves repair. find a reliable crew. its gets pretty dicey going beyond budget and then face a no=sale period too. you might set up some partners to bail you out, give moral support. read. get involved. find a mentor. come back here if needed…
Re: HELP get me started, PLEASE! - Posted by Terry (Dallas)
Posted by Terry (Dallas) on March 28, 1999 at 21:06:11:
Getting Lonnies book will help you to get started. I also have Bronchick’s course. If you have the time for spring break I would read and reread all of the how to articals. The money making ideas area. The legal wiz area. Success stories. Follow that to Kaiser’s,Britton’s, Diamonds and Bronchics sites and read posts there as well. That should fill your head with more knowledge that you ever dreamt about.
Keep flexible in your thinking and remember that if an idea doesn’t fit you now it will at some point in the future. Be Flexible and be creative twist the idea to what you are working on.
Once you find the nich that you want to pursue then read and reread everything on them that you can find. You can use the search field for the area that you are interested in and find a lot of info there.
It is a lot of reading and I have started to go back and read the how to stories because it is amazing what I did not understand in the beginning.
Hope this helps.
Terry
Re: HELP get me started, PLEASE! - Posted by Bill K. (AZ)
Posted by Bill K. (AZ) on March 28, 1999 at 20:36:50:
Tamika,
First of all, congratulations on finding this site. Secondly, sorry that no one responded to your first post. Sometimes, you can get a response quickly. Other times, folks are busy for one reason or another. Being persistent is a great quality in this business. You’ll do well.
I recommend Bill Bronchick’s “Lease/Option Workshop”. It’s easy to follow and full of good advice. Having said that, let me also state that I’ve heard nothing but great reviews about other authors on this site as well. You can’t go wrong buying anything available here. You’ll be pleased.
In the meantime, avail yourself of the “How To” articles and “Success Stories” on this site. They’ll help you build a solid foundation for the course materials. Read other posts here on the “News Group”, and ask questions.
Decide on an area of interest and “tune out” the other noise until you have a good grasp on that topic. There’s a lot of information out there, and it can quickly get your head to spinning.
I hope this helps.
Bill K. (AZ)