Harvey and Real Estate

Houston is getting wrecked by Hurricane Harvey, and a ton of homes are flooded (I have many friends there). Do you think this could be an opportunity for getting some property on the low while helping a lot of homeowners who may be stuck with a mortgage and a home that’s not livable?

NO, They got enough problems without scammers like you coming in and harrassing them… LEAVE THEM ALONE

Single family investing is a ‘localized’ deal. If you’re familiar with that market, then you can definitely take advantage of the many bargain opportunities that are sure to exist. For example, sellers with no insurance, and depending on government bail outs are natural candidates needing help.

I would presume that there will be a lot of foreclosure action going on, since 80% of the flooded, Houston homeowners did not carry flood insurance.

This alone would create a lot of opportunity for foreclosure investors. Never mind the foreclosures will necessarily involve major rehab activity. It’s not like you’re investing in ‘carpet and paint’ deals at a discount.

If I lived near the Houston market I would be looking for the owners that wanted out of Dodge, more than they wanted their equity, which would include areas around the devastation, rather than in the middle of it.

Of course, you still need competitive skills to take advantage of a situation like this. Just because there’s a big opportunity, doesn’t mean there’s no competition for deals. Not to mention, this is likely a short-lived opportunity.

So you’ll need to strike while the iron is hot.

People in these situations are often out of options, so if you can bring them some, you can make some money.

Yes, there are bargains to be had.

However until you go through a hurricane, Katrina went right over our home, and you come back to nothing but a toilet sitting on a foundation you do not realize how much you wish to be left alone without the bargain hunters.