Getting back into it

I am a full time licensed general contractor in MA (20 years). I have done a few flips over the years but I am interested in doing more volume. I have my real estate license as well but I only use it when I am selling one of my projects. I always co-broke if an agent has a customer. I am more interested in moving on to the next project rather than hold out for the last dollar. I am looking for an equity partner or an investor with reasonable terms. Let me know if you are interested or you know someone who might be interested. Good Luck to all.

I’ve found that finding the deal first is more efficient than trying to find equity first. If/when you can flash a deal in front of the eyes of your prospect, they’re easier to close on.

I’m not saying you can’t, or shouldn’t, prospect for equity beforehand, but without a deal to sell, it’s like selling a pig in a poke.

Never mind that the equity partner is ‘now’ looking at YOU, instead of the deal to qualify his involvement. Yeah, no. I want the partner to be making up his mind about the deal, not about me. I’m not a bad risk, but I might have a booger hanging out of my nose at the time. And you know what that does to a deal.

Notwithstanding, deals come in too many different shapes and sizes to settle on an equity partner before you have a deal. Otherwise, it’s a lot like selling a shoe to someone sight unseen. Sure, you promise, 'The shoe is comfortable and stylish, and the partner responds, “I like comfortable and stylish,” and then you present him with a pair of purple Uggs, and he goes, “No, thanks” and gives you the finger for getting his hopes up and wasting his time.

It’s better to first pull out your purple Uggs and then find someone wanting to ‘invest’ in purple Uggs.

https://sefo.s3.amazonaws.com/UGG-Classic-Boot.png

Good luck!

^ never heard of that reference before but it has some truth (and comic relief) to it. Nice lol

If you have a good deal, it’s easier to find money. Start with the thing that is harder to find. The deal!

Great advice. Thanks. PS are you selling the boots?

LOL! No, on the boots.


Barney Zick once talked about raising money from partners for deals in advance, when you don’t have a deal yet. One of the strategies he offered was to show the potential partners ‘The Deal That Got Away.’

That is, he outlined a ‘juicy’ deal that he lost, because he didn’t have the money ready.

Everybody likes steal deals, and the bragging rights that goes with it …and the equity profits that go with that, and that’s what appealed to his potential equity partners.

Also, something to think about… Try to arrange to pour the equity and profits from one deal to the next deal. That is, you want the money partner to fund your next deal, with the equity and profits from the current deal …before cashing him out. This creates more continuity, and reduces the chance of the investor locking up his investment capital in someones else’s deal…

Another tid bit that I’ve found helpful to attract equity is to offer to split ‘$100,000’ in profits, or perhaps more, on a prospective deal. You don’t even need a deal, except that the assumption is that the deals you chase would push off that much profit. You could use any figure, I suppose. It depends on what you’re willing to focus on.

Of course, the investor will want to know what investment is required, and for how long, to get that kind of return.

I didn’t learn this strategy early. If I had understood and explained that I was about to create a half-million dollar gross profit off my first apartment deal, I could have raised a LOT more interest-free money.

As it turned out, I raised $50,000 which was just enough to cover upgrades, but not enough to keep me from donating more of my time and money to the cause, than I would have otherwise. Did I mention that I bought a degraded, non-performing property; secured seller financing; and got a steal price?

I should have offered to split $500,000 in profits with the investors and I would have commanded a LOT more money up front. I didn’t make that mistake twice.