So last week I decided to take a stab at sending a few “yellow letters” out- i’m on the look out for a new primary residence for myself. So i sent out 8 letters from a very cherry picked list i built myself using data from different sources… (very time intensive).
Anyhow here is my problem - what’s next, I got the owner on the line calling me “How much do you want to offer me for my house”? what do i say now… I already know they are having issues paying there mortgage- oh incidentally I’m not a hardened Investor- I’m licensed and haven’t been on this side of the table ever!!
I would have said to her… " I would love to offer you a fair price on your house, however, I’d like to ask you a few questions so I can evaluate your particular situation so I can make sure to help you the best I can"
You always have to know what they want to see if they’re even in the ball park. Once they give you the price they “want”, that is too high, you ask “is that the best you can do” and keep negociating with them down until you get to a good price for you to buy.
I agree you can make more money face to face… However there are sellers I have never seen that I have bought from… And houses too far away to go see.
Here is the deal
First American Core Logic charges 125.00 for an interior BPO
225.00 you can have a complete home inspection done http://www.ashi.org/
A roofing contractor to do a roof inspection should be free
A termite company at most should be 60.00
So 410.00 tells me if the numbers I think are true…
Don’t make any offers through phone, a simple walk over on that house will give you a clearer view on its real price and how you can make a good bargain at the owner. It works all the time.
I would suggest prescreening them on the phone before wasting a trip. Not buying the house over the phone, but finding out if there’s even a deal there before you waste your time & gas. But if you’re new I guess it wouldn’t hurt.
First off, exactly what kind of deal(s) are you looking for (meaning what creative investing strategies do you know enough about)? There are different prescreening questions for different types of deals.
Normally I just ask them what are they asking for the property. Once the give me a figure, I then ask them how did they come up with that figure. Once they tell me, I ask them what is the least they can take for an all cash close. Then I work my way down.
First of all you have to make sure that you have done your own research on the property. You should already know if the numbers are attractive to you or not before you go over there and waist your time. You should already have a plan for the house.
I have always found that asking them this " If I were to give you all cash, and close quickly on this home, what is the lowest you are willing to go?" :smile
When going into a deal, do not make bargains in the first lines. Try to gain their trust first or act like someone they could depend on. Once you have their attention it is the time when you make a good negotiation with them.