There are some tips I’ve come across, as a Realtor, to help new investors with their prospecting and buying property.  Check them out.

When you find a property that you are interested in, look up the owner’s name on Facebook. If it’s a more common name, you can look at their interests or likes to determine if this is the owner you are looking for. Send them a Message. I have helped purchase multiple homes this way. Remember to be courteous and sincere about looking at the property and making fair offers. 

Sellers are very selective these days. They are getting premium prices and multiple offers. Be patient and realistic about your numbers, especially on the rehab budget. Remember to be courteous and sincere about looking at the property and making fair offers.

Let’s talk about EMD (Earnest Money Deposit). EMD’s are a normal part of any contract in real estate. Although there are some normal rules of thumb to use to determine how much to offer, in Commercial deals like rental purchases, they can vary depending on what the buyer is willing to lose if they back out. Low EMD if there is uncertainty and high EMD’s if you are certain about your numbers in the property, A high EMD may put you up the list and make the difference in a multiple offer situation. This is one of many strategies you can use when making offers, so don’t underestimate what impression a high EMD can do for a seller when determining your offer. I will tell you as a Realtor, that it is part of the conversation the seller will have with their agent.

In the Fix/Flip world and as a lender, rural properties always have a problem getting financed. The best rates and terms go to non-rural properties that have a purchase price over $70k. Why is that? Rural properties don’t have the necessary comparable properties within the immediate area to compare sales data. Therefore, it’s difficult for lenders to know how to valuate the property. However, there is some news coming in the rural property financing market. Stay tuned to find out. How do we determine what a rural property is? Click on this link to search whether a property is rural. This is what we use.

As far as buying properties under $70k, down payments are so low that lenders don’t want to take that risk. I do have a lender that goes to $25k but the LTV’s are low and the rehab budgets will be low. Its much harder to finance and may not be worth the effort. So, buy flips for over $70k or rental properties over $100k and you’ll get the best terms and rates.

Stay tuned for more tips.

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