I got a call from another member of our REIA [Real Estate Investment Association] group in another county, and he said someone had just called him wanting to sell their house and 1.5 acres for $15,000–quick sale! As soon as I hung up the phone, I called the sellers and made an appointment for the next day.
After a quick walk through, I asked what the lowest he would take and he said $12,000. I countered with $10,000, and he said he would take $10,000 if he could take the monitor heater with him. I said: DEAL. We closed two weeks later and the work began.
My wife, two children, and I gutted the house and put $8,000 back into the house. We sold the house to a young couple who came by one day to see if we would sell to them. We did for $35,000. Terms: 30 years, 12.5%, $5,000 down. They paid on the note for three years, then refinanced this past January and paid us off in full. (Darn the bad luck.)
We have taken that money and parleyed it into four other houses and looking at a mobile home park. IT CAN BE DONE!