freebirdz

Thanks Michael. I'm looking forward to being in a hot market again! Peter, what part of Montana are you in? Jerod

Hi all! I haven't checked in since exactly a month ago. For any of you that have read this thread I have an awesome update and a few questions. Since I last talked to everyone we were able to sell our house to the original buyers by working with them on the price a little! They were able to drop their price and get their house sold because we dropped our price for them. Not to much but enough to do the trick! Ok, now I have a new problem. Since we were able to sell our house, we are now off to Idaho! The market in Idaho is very different than out here in Cali. In fact it's a hot market right now! My problem is that I have been use to the mood of the California market and know what strategies work in this market, but now that I'm moving out there I got to start from scratch again. What strategies are best in a hot market where sellers don't have to turn to creative real estate investors to solve their problems? They can list their house on the mls and sell it traditionally. What do you guys suggest as far as the best strategies for this type of market? Thanks in advance, Jerod

Thanks for your advice Michael......Great as usual!! Jerod

Yeah, your right Michael. But if we try selling our home we really don't want to do a lease option. We want to be done with it and not have to worry about it. Not to mention we will be 900 miles away should something go wrong. Any thoughts or suggestions about how we can move it without doing a lease option, or is this the only logical choice? Thanks as always for your valuable input. Jerod

Thanks for your input Michael. Before I do anything else, I am going to contact the buyer and see if we can put our heads together and figure out a way to make this work. The problem is that he can't sell his house in order to buy mine. So I thought that if he was willing to get a little creative in the marketing of his house, then we might be able to get his sold. I just found out that the whole time he had it listed with his realtor, he didn't have heating and air. He has now scheduled the installation of it and I'm betting that this will help. I know he won't go for doing anything creative such as lease optioning it, but is there any good suggestions for making his house stand out among the 50 other houses that are like his for sale? As far as I can tell it is priced right, and maybe even a little under market. Any ideas would be appreciated. Thanks. Jerod

Hey everybody. I haven't checked in for a couple of weeks, but I figure now is a better time than any. I need some advice from you guys. I've read Michael's book cover to cover and have yet to do a deal due to fear and procrastination. I'm wondering if this is where I should start. Please read about our situation below. Here's the situation: Had a buyer for our personal residence that was supposed to close next month. Surprise, surprise he wasn't able to sell his house and has decided to take it off the market. Now we are left with our house with no prospects, and our plans of moving out of California are quickly going down the drain. We were looking forward to cashing out and getting the heck out of Cali. We don't want to go through the whole listing with a Realtor bit. You know, having open houses every weekend, showing the home to a bunch of "Lookie Lous", and then having to pay the Realtor an outrageous fee if a buyer does somehow magically stumble into his/her lap. The market has literally flatlined out here and we are panicking. My question is what is the best thing to do in this situation? I know some of you will say just wait it out, but we have been planning this move for almost 2 years and have made several important life decisions around it. Not to mention the cost of living around here is outrageous! What do you guys think is the best way to sell our house in this type of market? We live in a smaller town about 30 minutes from Sacramento and Stockton. We have thought about trying to sell the house ourselves, and have even considered a lease purchase sale. We don't want to take less than market value because we are not in financial desperation, but we really want to get out of here. The market looks very scary because none of the Realtors are selling anything, and they do it for a living. I don't do it for a living and it makes me wonder if I can do it if they can't. FYI: Our house is a beautiful, 2 year old 2200 sqft 3 bed 2 bath 2 car garage home, with all the upgrades on a .20 acre lot in a new upscale subdivision. Please help. Thanks. Jerod

Michael, Christine, & RobP, You guys all make valid points and I know that I'm just overthinking this whole thing, so here's what I'm gonna do: I will take Michael's course and read it cover to cover on my free time during the next few weeks (hopefully I can get it finished in much less time). During that time I will come back to this thread and post any questions that I may have about things that I may be unclear about. Hopefully you guys will be kind enough to share your insights until I feel like I know the material and strategies front ot back. Once I get to this point I will take that first step and dive right in head first! Here's the last thing that I would like your help with if you're willing: Currently I'm involved in a Internet Business Mentoring program. I already have my own websites and have been involved in Internet Business long before this program. I am in the program to further develop my skills in Internet Business so I can take myself to that next level. (I know you're probably wondering where this is going, but just hang on...I'm getting there... ) Part of the program consists of developing a new site from scratch to learn the fundamentals for a strong foundation for an Internet Business. I'm almost to this point in the program and have been brainstorming ideas as to which kind of site to start. This is when I thought of somehow merging my interest in R.E. investing with an Internet Business. My question to you guys is, what are the areas of the R.E. business that I could benefit from by using an Internet site? Obviously, the first thing that comes to my mind is lead generation and marketing. Please let me know of any others you guys either have experience with or know someone who does, that would make my R.E. investing more profitable and maybe even easier. The big two are the ones that I listed already and I would be anxious to hear how someone else uses the Internet to accomplish them. Also, list any frustrations you may have with your R.E. Business that you know the Internet would make easier, but you just don't know how to create it yourself. The beauty of the Internet is that if you can think of it, someone can create it! Thank you guys for all of your help, especially you Michael and Christine. I look forward to your responses, and would be happy to help anyone out that may have any questions about Internet Marketing. Best Regards, Jerod

Thanks Michael. Very helpful as always! I am going to take some time this week to brush up on your course, but in the meantime I was hoping that you can address this concern not only for me but also for other wanna' be California investors. I've talked to quite a few local California investors on some other R.E. boards. About 99% of them keep preaching not to get involved in any deals in California right now because the market is on a sharp decline and most believe that it won't bottom out for another 2-3 years. All are predicting a signifigant drop in property values in that time frame, with some even saying as high as 40%! They say that it's very dangerous to get involved right now because of this. What is your take on this, and is there any strategy that you feel is safe for a market such as this? Sometimes people don't realize the real state of things in this California market until they are actually in it. It is always extreme one way or the other! The people always giving advice as to invest in these times seem to be the ones that don't live here. Jerod

MichaelC, Just wondering if you got a chance to read the above questions that I wrote? Jason, Thanks for the advice! It makes sense what you said and I never looked at it like that! Jerod

Michael, That is a great quote! I've read on some other boards that Lease Options are becoming targets for lawsuits and pose a risk to the investor dealing in them. This worries me a little, although I'm not clear as to why they are being targeted for lawsuits. What's your take? A couple more questions regarding Subject 2's....... First, what other paperwork is needed and where do you get it? Second, what is the main goal and timeframe of holding a property once you get possesion via Subject 2? In other words, when I aquire a property Subject 2 how long should I expect to hold it, and what is the best strategy to make money with the property? Last, what additional responsibilities are involved? Christine, I'm smiling because I made you blush! Thanks again for the inspiration and I hope you will stay around the boards to give me advice and cheer me on! Jerod

First let me say that CS1977's "Post Mentorship Progress" thread has been one of the most inspiring threads that I've ever read! I would like to say congratulations to Christine for her success so far! I purchased MichaelC's course last year, read it, and then never took action. I've taken a lot of R.E. courses including Ron Legrand's Cashflow System, but MichaelC's is my favorite. After reading about Christine's success story I also learned that MichaelC's course actually works! Christine has become my role model because she was able to give me hope for my situation. When she was just starting she reminded me that I'm not the only one who feels unsure of themselves when starting something new. When she made her first deal she gave me hope that I can do it too! Thank you to both Christine and MichaelC. Having said that, I still need some advice from anyone who knows the answers. I live in Northern California (near Sacramento) where the market is now on a decline and properties are not selling hardly at all. Prices are still astronomically high though. I have a few concerns besides being in a stale high priced market. First, I have a California Real Estate License and want to know if this is going to hurt or help me in this business? Second, what is the best strategy for this market that has such high prices and is in a decline? Third, I really like the idea of buying properties "Subject 2" because you can make quite a bit more than if you were to do a C/A or Lease Option. Is it a bad idea to try that in my market? Last, I live in a county of about 30,000 people. Most properties are rural, but there are some neighborhoods. Should I try doing deals in my own county or head for the bigger cities (about 45 min away)? I would rather not drive that far unless I have to. Which is best? I still have some brushing up to do on MichaelC's course but hopefully you guys can help me out in the meantime. Thank you in advance! Jerod

Thanks Beverly! You've been a huge help to me...I'm very grateful!!! Maybe some of you can still chime in on what works for everyone so other members can benefit from this post also. Jerod

I am thinking about doing a mailing and was wondering if you guys have got a better response to post cards or hand addressed envelopes? Also, what is the best list to target...listed properties, absentee owners, etc..? Your feedback would be greatly appreciated! -Jerod

Thanks again Michael! I will get in contact with Bev! Looking forward to getting started. Jerod

In a runaway sellers market, buyers are willing to pay over and above the asking price. So, if you beat someone to the punch, so to speak, and have a contract on a property they want, they may very well be willing to pay you for the rights to that contract. Pure Options are a good strategy to use when markets are boiling over. Give full price, get an even higher price.Will lease options work? If you are referring to sandwich lease deals, yes, but to a lesser degree. I mean, let's face it. Finding a motivated seller willing to drop their price in a market with 30% annual appreciation is going to be difficult, at best. So, in the meantime, you need to adjust your approach. And Pure Options and CA's are two ways to do just that. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Again thank you Michael! As I posted above, I just purchased your course and am looking forward to reading it. Does it go over pure options and CA's or just Lease Options? Thanks again! Jerod