A few visitors of Creative Real Estate Online asked me to share this story with you. They think it should be put on the success stories. Please feel free to do so. I would love to share it with everyone. Thanks for this wonderful site.
The story
Thanks to everyone at Creative Real Estate Online. I just closed my first assignment deal! I don’t post on the Main Real Estate Forum very much, but I read the posts everyday. If it weren’t for this site, I couldn’t keep my head up through the tough times. I at least owe it to the people on this site to express my gratitude by writing about my first deal. Some people might think this stuff is easy but, at first, it is not.
I must have put up 400 signs, passed out business cards and flyers everywhere. I worked the foreclosure list for six months. I have received 100 calls, and I have looked at and made offers on twenty houses. To some this might not seem like a lot, but for me it was. My regular job keeps my busy too.
Believe it or not this deal was the FIRST call I ever received about seven months ago. They called on a flyer at a convenience store. I went over to the house, and to my amazement, this house was a wreck. There are foundation cracks around the parimeter of the house. The sheet rock has three-inch cracks, and you can see right outside through the crack in the brick. All the appliances are older than their life span. This house needs a lot of work.
I brought a rehabber/investor over to inspect the house. He filled out his checklist with dollar amounts next to the repair items. (I copied the checklist and made my own.) He then factored his buying, holding, repairs, and profits. Subtract from the FMV, and this was what he would buy it from me for.
The difference between MY price with the owner was my assignment fee. I then negotiated my price to buy it with the owner. The owner then said, “Thank you for your time, but we are not ready to move just yet.”
The difference in my price and the rehabbers price was outstanding! I stood to make more money in one deal than I have ever had in my bank account. I called these people every week at first, then tapered off to every month for seven months. I even offered to buy them a vacation cruise. They were not ready just yet, but I knew when they were, I wanted to be there.
About a month ago, they called me and said were ready. I stopped everything and raced over to their house with an already filled out contract. That night, I had a signed contract to purchase the house for MY price. I called the rehabber, and he agreed on his price.
A couple days ago, we met at the title company. I signed an assignment contract, they bought the property, and I picked up my check. Let me tell you, I was in so much relief that it was all over. From the day the owners called back, I was constantly struggling to keep this deal going.
The rehabber was slow to get his money together, the title company had slow downs, and the owners only had a short window of opportunity to meet at the title company. Believe me, if I were to write ALL of the details it would be a book.
When it comes down to it, confidence is what keeps me going. For me, just going out there and talking to people boosted my confidence to a new level. I had nothing to loose by going to houses and talking to people. I also know that there are many people making a pretty good living at this.
I know it is not going to be easy. It is a business and should be treated accordingly. Hard work, dedication, and most of all, I learned, persistence pays off. Thanks, CRE Online.