I’m a newbie to contract assignments and possibly have my 1st deal underway. I found a property that matched the criteria I was looking for that would make a good deal for all parties involved. I found the property online and contacted the owner via email from the listing. The owner accepted the offer, but he is in Australia.
Since I’m a newbie, I want to make sure everything goes smooth and would like to know if there’s anything that I need to be aware of when transacting with a seller that’s not in the states.
I need all safeguards in place and since I’m assigning this contract, I don’t want to ruin my reputation with the buyer.
I would be very weary of that transaction. Yes the owner could be in Australia but it could also be a scam via internet. Pull the property records and find the address of the property and make sure it verifies with what they owner is telling you. Be careful, for your first transaction, i would hate for your to be messed over.
I agree that it’s totally possible everything is on the up and up, but it’s also possible that something is not right here. You might consider partnering with a more experienced investor with the experience and resources to make sure everything is handled correctly. Approach any of the veteran wholesalers in your area, offer them 50% of the profits to basically look over your shoulder, maybe borrow some advise from them or their title agent/lawyer. If you can clear $8-$10,000 and they get 1/2 of that for answering a few phone calls from you, I’d say that’s a win-win.
A Bird dog in Florida sent me a fire damaged house, it may of been in Alabama, I wonder if its the same one, the seller is in Australia. I asked for some interior photos of the damage since the house is a few thousand miles from me. The seller stated he didnt have interior photos, but if I sent him a deposit he would mail me a key, then when he determined that I hadnt done any damage to the house he would return my deposit.
I’m thinking what kind of rinky dink deal is this? I emailed him back and told him, OK, but I will need a deposit from you, if I determine that you havnt wasted my time I will return your deposit. Do you want to sell this frikin house or what???
As expected he never returned my email.
How rude!
There are thousands from Australia that have invested in dirt cheap homes a couple of years ago. In fact, some real estate companies there focus entirely on selling real estate from the USA. First, double check the county records to make sure. If he really is the owner, then the transaction should be pretty cut and dry. Make sure you have a title company handle the closing so that nothing is missed and I would definitely get title insurance or at a minimum a title check because you do not want to be tracking down someone 5 years from now who lives in Australia.
This could be a scam without a doubt. In most cases when your dealing with anyone that says they are not in the country you need to make sure they are real and the property is too. Get a picture of them and all their information. Then check the local records of the area the house is located in and make sure their name is on everything. eg. tax records, deed etc. If it’s not then chances are its a scam. Be careful. :cool