Posted by Jason-DTX on March 08, 1999 at 11:31:47:
That must be in a really HOT neighborhood. Even though your whole area is overall in a major Seller’s market there should be different neighborhoods around that vary in “hotness”. You may have to try another neighborhood that is close by but not as Hot. You might try some methods that allow to find seller’s before the Realtors do. Keep looking and you will find some deals even if you have to drive a little further out than you want.
Jason Windholz
I have access to hard money (multiple sources)…I even
have unlimited access to my local MLS…but my market is
so hot that I am unable to find deals on a consistent basis.
WHAT ARE YOU GUYS DOING TO FIND DEALS???
Here is an ex. of a Fannie Mae
FMV (After repair) === 140K
Listed === 118K
Has hole in roof, needs siding, etc. (approx repair 20K)
Realtor got 3 offers over the weekend -
offer1 – $112K, offer2 — 116K, offer3 — $119K!!! That’s right! OVER LIST PRICE!!
What’s going on???
I have seen multiple homes selling with this trend.
Can’t wait for a break!!!
Thanks for listening.
-Sheik
PS Let’s hear what some of you guys and gals are doing
to find deals. Thanks
Posted by Stacy (AZ) on March 08, 1999 at 20:01:23:
I occasionally run the following ad, and it gets a pretty good reply.
1 CALL = $500!
I buy houses in any condition. If you
refer me to a vacant house that I buy
I’ll give you $500! 555-5555
When they call my answering machine, my message tells them that the house cannot be currently listed with a realtor, and to leave the address of the property, a description of it, and their name and phone number. I also say that if they are the “first” one to refer me to a property that I buy, I’ll pay them $500. I ran it in the PennySaver for four weeks recently, and got about 15 vacant property referrals. My idea is that neighbors will report homes in their neighborhoods, but I also got a fringe benefit…one lady turned into a bird-dog for me.
May be somethoing to try…get the whole city looking for you.
Several years ago, I read in a book that you need to be looking for properties that 1) Nobody wants, or 2) Nobody knows are for sale.
The nobody wants category may be homes with foundation problems or major termite damage that contractors are afraid of. They may be a property with a title problem that no one can seem to solve. Just some ideas.
I tend to go for the nobody knows are for sale category. I bought a house in November that was not for sale, and I got it with seller financing and no credit check. I sent out about 100 letters to landlords in the area. A few responded and one resulted in a sale. The house was not advertised for sale, it just happened to be vacant at the time.
I bought a condo from a tired landlord back in 1997. He had it advertised for rent in a condo complex where I already owned a unit. I called him up and he sold and gave me a 2nd mortgage. I do a lot of driving neighborhoods too. Amazing how many vacant houses you will find that are not advertised for sale in any way.
As Jason I believe you shoud look to other neighborhoods. If the market is that strong some properties and area’s have got to be out there. I to am in a very good market. A selers market where I represent buyers. I am a Realtor. My focus in on my clients as of this post but there are a few properties I have my eyes on for investing. The deals are there. You must get a little dirty and slum around to find them sometimes. Hopes this helps.
Posted by Mark (SDCA) on March 08, 1999 at 13:08:22:
2 of the 3 markets I am in are similar. I don’t have much practical advice beyond the typical.
To wit, keep after it. In this type of market there are fewer “motivated sellers”, but they do still exist. Continue to look for FSBOs, distress sells (divorce, foreclosure, fixers etc). I found listed properties not to be worth my time in this market. (Why consider a creative offer when you are getting multiple all cash offers at or above list? Doh.) Even some of the distress sales don’t work. (If you were getting a divorce, would you be willing to find a way to live in the house for 45 days in order to make 40K more instead of taking my low ball offer right now? Most people would.)
Fixers may be the best because 1) they do not appeal to the typical retail buyer (which is driving my markets anyway) and 2) some financial institutions won’t even loan on properties that are in such a state of disrepair.