If that’s you, then danger, Will Robinson, danger!

Here, listen to this…

Download audio file (01-12-article-palliser-podcast-importance-of-financing-on-deal5.mp3)

It’s a short snippet from my  “Super Sexy Mortgage REI Market Update” podcast interview with my genius mortgage sherpa friend.  He’ll explain the whole thing for you in under 8 minutes or so.

Side Note: Have you heard the whole podcast episode yet?  If not, you should. It’s full of important, current-market stuff you should really know.

• You can download/listen to the whole, juicy thing here…
• And supa cool folks can even subscribe via iTunes…

The Cliff’s Notes…

Let’s say you’ve borrowed hard money or private money for your first few deals.  And now you’ve socked away, say, $100,000 or so, and you’d like to stop forking over those blasted points. Sure thing.

So why don’t you start leveraging some of your own cash in your rehab deals instead?  Hmmmm… Kinda makes sense…

• Question: Any real downside to this?
• Answer: Yes. Maybe. Kinda depends really.

If you’re fixing and flipping only, then no worries. Use your own dough.

But the deal is, if you already own 4 investment properties, you can forget about getting cash back on a 30 year fixed refinance anymore on deal #5 and higher.

Yes, once upon a time (just last week it seems) this was normal and easy-peasy. Whether you owned no houses or 5 houses or 9 houses or whatever, you could find a good deal, use your own cash for purchase and/or rehab, then refi into a 30yr fixed and pull your own money back out for the next deal.  All day long.

But things have changed. Nowadays they simply do not allow cash out anymore on investment property #5 and higher.

Any solution?

Why yes…

On deals 5 and higher, the banks don’t want to let you walk away from the closing table with any cash back (which they define as at least $2k or 2% of the loan amount in your pocket). But they’ll pay off liens all day long, right? After all that’s what a refinance is for.

So if you’re planning to refi on deal #5 or higher, you gotta either:

1. Borrow hard/private money and just consider it the cost of doing business,
2. Or find another legitimate way to have a lien in place.

Other tiplits…

Now in response to Jason’s advice, I also suggested that if you’re borrowing Aunt Sally’s money for your rehab, be sure you record a legitimate lien on their behalf, or you won’t get her money back when you refi either.

To which he responded that you should really try to ….

1) Make the lien for a company (not just your aunt/uncle if possible)
2) Write the note with monthly payments due (and actually make those payments)
3) Make payments from your personal account (rather than your biz account)

So…thoughts? I’d love to hear ‘em.

Also, I definitely recommend you download and listen to my entire “Super Sexy Mortgage REI Market Update” podcast episode with Jason.

…jp

a

But still, there are some key, noteworthy shifts we should all be aware of. So I’ve decided to post a few of them in a series I’m calling “New Market Rules”.  I hope they’re helpful to you, and I’d love to hear a comment from you at the end if you don’t mind.

So (ahem) here’s part 1…

Why MAO Can Be a Moving Target

If you’ve been around the investing sphere for even a little while, then you know that MAO is most certainly NOT a tasty white sandwich condiment (or French fry dip if you’re from across the pond).

It’s a staple formula investors have used for years for calculating the most you can offer on a residential flip deal.

The classic and widely accepted MAO formula is:

ARV x 70% – Estimated Repairs = MAO
(ARV is “After Repair Value” & MAO = “Max Allowable Offer” )

And of course, if you’re a wholesaler, you’ll want to slice your wholesaler’s fee off that amount too.

But in a squirrely market like today’s, things aren’t so cut and dry anymore, are they?  Some longstanding rules are being bent or broken, and formulas (like MAO) are often being retooled to reflect the realities of a staunchly buyer’s market.

Specifically I’ve noticed more and more of us investors (myself included) are now tweaking the 70% in the MAO formula to be 65%, 60% or even less.  And it’s basically because we’ve gotta be more conservative these days.  To put it simply, you need a better buffer, and if push comes to shove, you gotta be able to liquidate at a lower ARV and still make some coin.

The “moving MAO” became glaringly obvious to me during the REI Deal Evaluation Intensive, as I grilled a bunch of my investor-friends from across the country about how they’re currently analyzing deals in this market.  It was really interesting to see the array of MAO variations they used in their own local arenas.

The Enhanced “Localness” of Real Estate

You’ve probably heard it said before that, just like the weather, all real estate is local.

What this means is, you’ll never hear the weatherman say “The average national temperature is 65 degrees today!” or “Today’s high in California will be 82 degrees!”  True as it may be, that’s just crazy talk.

In the same way, there are unique real estate micro-climates in every city and town across the U.S.  And whatever the national trends may be – whether booming or busting – what should matter most to you is what the market conditions are in your region, town, or neighborhood of choice.  Never ignore the local market place.

This is not something new – real estate has always been a very local and relationship driven business.  But it’s truer now more than ever, my friend.  And because of this, in today’s arena your MAO formula may well need to be tweaked and adjusted based on what your local market (or even the neighborhood/school district) requires of you.

Said another way, you gotta get to know what your market is asking for…which means knowing the numbers in your market really well (recent comps, pendings, average DOM, etc.) and then also knowing what other local investors are successfully accomplishing in your market.

If you know your market numbers well, and what other investors are successfully doing in the arena currently, then it becomes a matter of reverse engineering a killer MAO for yourself.

The Bottom Line

Beware, the classic MAO may not be the sure bet it once was for you.

I wish I could gaze upon my crystal MAO ball and tell you exactly what formula your local market is asking of you.  But you, my friend, will need to uncover that for yourself.

Use the classic MAO as a starting point, do the work of asking your market what it truly wants of you, and tweak it from there.

What’s Next?

Well this is my first “New Market Rules” post.  I’ve got a few more in mind, such as…

• New Market Rule: Slow and Steady Gets His Clock Cleaned
• New Market Rule: Knowing Your “Fast Sale ARV”

But ultimately I’m not sure how many I’ll end up doing – Honestly it kind of depends on how many “new rules” I can systematically think of when I’m in blog-writing mode.

But hey, I’m wide open for your input!  I’d love to hear your thoughts on this post, and also if there are any other major “New Market Rules” you’ve identified, please feel free to share them with us in the comments below.

My best,

a

And by “noobs” I mean newbies.  I.E. anyone who’s been at this real estate investing thing for a couple years or less. If that’s you, then this post’s for you.

Truth be told, there’s is there’s a heap of things I wish someone had shot straight with me about when I first got started in this game back in Y2K.  And ah boy, the headache and heartache it could have saved me.  Oh, and money.  And the TIME.  I sure as heck would have gone a lot further a lot faster if I’d had a clue on some things.

So if you’re a little green – God love ya – let me do you a solid and share with you a few things I wish I’d have known. I can think of a bunch more, but I’ll start with three things for now and go from there…

Thing #1 - Avoid First Deal Desperation

Here’s something I’ve heard from new investors over and over through the years…

“Heck, I just want to do a deal!  Even if it’s only for the experience and to show myself I can get one done.  I’d even be OK just breaking even on it – it would be worth it to have the experience of doing a deal!”

Nope.  (BUZZ!)  Sorry, wrong answer.

Man, I remember all to well the wonder years of being a green, wet behind the ears investor. So eager…so hungry to get out there and slay my first dragon.

That hunger is awesome.  Embrace it.  Be motivated by it.  Let it drive you to taking action.  But watch out, because it’ll also totally mess with your head and cloud your judgment if you let it.

Let’s be crystal clear about something: You’re not in this business to do deals, you’re in this to make money.  

Don’t let your hunger to “just get a deal done” fool you into stepping into a marginal (or even bad) deal just for experience’s sake.  Over the last decade plus, I’ve been friends with, mentored, partnered with and otherwise crossed paths with many, many new investors.  And trust me, this is a mistake and will almost always end up biting you in the butt.

Moral of the Story:   Yes, work hard to get that first deal done.  Notching that baby into your belt feels super, and it’s a huge milestone.  But make sure you have a clear picture of what a good deal is, stick to that picture, and keep “making money” top on your list of priorities, second only to “maintaining integrity”.  Learn your market and the fundamentals of analyzing profitable deals, and then stick to the wisdom of good, common sense numbers, even on your first deal.

I’m not saying don’t take risk…but don’t let hunger make you fool-hearty.  Trust me, you want to feed yourself some wins early on, and that means making money, and not just breaking even for the sake of “experience”.

Thing #2 – Choose Your Local Mentors Very Cautiously

If you’ve been around here for a while, you may have heard from me before about my first local mentor, and how he took me “under his wing” to the cleaners.

Understand, I take full responsibility for my own actions; I’m not looking to blame others for my mistakes.  But also the fact of the matter is, I was so green that I just didn’t know what I didn’t know.  And that makes for a fairly easy target.

Yes, I learned a lot from him.  And for this, I’m earnestly grateful. But I also got taken to the cleaners……

• As it turns out, those patch-n-paint rehabs he was letting me “steal” from him at 80% of appraisal – well they weren’t rehabbed all that well after all, attested by how they started falling apart within a few months of buying them.
• And all those second mortgages he took back and assured me he’d simply forgive?  Turns out that was loan fraud.  Yeah, OK, wow.
• It also turns out $600/month rent minus $400/month PITI does NOT really equal $200/month “positive cash flow”.  Go figure. Repairs? Maintenance? Reserves?  Nah, who needs ‘em…
• Turns out buying his poorly rehabbed houses all over God’s creation was not actually the overall best investment or property management strategy.

I could go on and on.  Long story short, I cozied up to the first real investor I met who fogged a mirror and seemed to genuinely take an interest in helping me.  And in the end he saw me for exactly what I was to him: A naive noob he could “take under his wing” and sell a bunch of his crap to under questionable (sometimes illegal) terms, until I finally one day figured out the difference between my butt and a hole in the ground.

It took me literally years to recover from this one, seriously tough class in the school of hard knocks.

Moral of the Story: Don’t get starstruck by the first real-deal successful investor you meet.  Just because someone’s a successful investor and is willing to “take you under their wing” doesn’t mean they’re a good mentor or even have your best interested at heart.  Don’t get in bed too quickly and if something seems unclear or even a little off to you, don’t be embarrassed press into it until you really understand it.

No , I’m not saying “trust no one.”  What I’m saying is, “Trust cautiously, and verify well.”

Thing #3 – Don’t Be an Education Junkie

We’ve all heard it a thousand times by now: “Smart investors invest in their education.”  And it’s true.  As the great Brian Tracy aptly said, “If you think the cost of education is expensive, try the cost of ignorance.”

But sadly it’s also become the enchanting mantra of everyone who’s got the latest and greatest course or bootcamp to sell you.

Here’s another important truth to consider:

There’s a big stinkin’ difference between wisely investing in your education and buying, BUYING, BUYING whatever the latest bright shiny object happens to be in front of your REIA group or on your computer screen.

Yes, investing in solid educational products can absolutely slash your learning curve and hand you the keys to the castle.  But it can also totally overwhelm you, suck your life away and drain you dry of thousands and thousands of dollars if you let it.

Ah, bright shiny object syndrome…

As hard-wired entrepreneurs, we’re all prone to it.  And oh, the horror stories I’ve heard from far too many who’ve been to a “free seminar” only to be convinced to drop $25,000, $35,000 or more on “education” they can realistically pick up at their local library.  It’s a crying shame.

My advice here is simple: Yes, be willing to invest in your education, but have a plan, set a specific education budget and have some self-control.  Know that most REI product are expertly marketed (and nothing’s wrong with that) and that they’ll most likely hit every greed gland and pain button you’ve got.  But even still, resolve to resist the endless temptation of the next bright shiny object.

My general rules of thumb are… 

• Watch out for the “free seminars” held in hotels:  They’re almost always following the same formula, designed to lead you down the same type of sales funnel…one that gives you as little as they can get away with, while extracting as much as possible from your wallet, for as long as they can keep you hoping and dreaming.

• Watch out for the credit limit scam:  Don’t ever buy something from someone who shared with you the secret of how to raise your credit limits as part of their presentation (hint: they’re going to be asking you to pull that freshly raised credit limit out for them a little later)

• Watch out for obscenely high priced education:  Never give in to the guys who price their stuff in the $10,000 and up range.  I mean seriously… that’s just too much.

• Start cheap and slowly move up: Start with books you can get the library or Barnes and Noble/Amazon.  That’s where I started, and you’d be surprised how much you can learn there.  Then gently move up to courses in the $97 to $497 range.  Then, once you’ve found your niche to focus on, go ahead and invest a few thousand into something you’re really going to commit to focusing on (i.e. bootcamps, large courses, etc.)

• Consume quickly, then give yourself 90 days:Once you’ve made a noteworthy investment into a piece of core or continuing education (in the hundreds or thousands), DO NOT let it sit on the shelf.  Don’t procrastinate.  MAKE YOURSELF GO ALL THE WAY THROUGH IT AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE. Then (next) give yourself 90 days to actually give it a fair shake…meaning actually give the concepts you’ve learned a try and see how they suit you.  Then you’ll be in a much better place to judge whether or not you need to invest in more education yet, or hunker down with blinders on for a while.

Moral of the Story: Again, I’m 100% in favor of investors paying for quality industry education.  But I’m also tired of seeing so many of us addicted to buying courses and endlessly pulled along by the ring in our noses to whatever today’s hot offer happens to be.  There IS a better, wiser way, and it involves some self discipline, common sense and frankly, putting on blinders when it makes sense to do so.

Anything You’d Like to Add?

Heck, I could go on and on, but I’d love to hear what you think.  Leave a comment and let me know your thoughts, and if you want me to follow up with more things like this I wish I’d known early on.

a

Besides our in-person meetings thrice yearly, another big, fat benefit I enjoy from this posse is the ongoing collaboration and free flow of information we share privately via email.

So just this week my friend Russ dropped a memo on us about a really great HUD deal he unexpectedly snagged…which started some back and forth HUD-related banter that was noteworthy to say the least.

It seems HUD may have finally become a motivated seller.  Meaning they may actually be really to start wheeling and dealing with investors on some of the tsunami of inventory they’ve been sitting on. They’re not coming out and saying it…but the indicators sure seem to be there.

Said another way: You might want to start slinging some mud at HUD right now…you might be surprised at what’ll actually stick.

So here’s a transcript of our email string…I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments after you read it…

Subject: Holy crap I just got a HUD

Russ Lebrasc wrote:
I just got my first HUD EVER, and I’m super surprised the bid, was excepted…
they had it listed for 94k, it is in the the extended bid period, and i just re-credited my bid login for HUD last night, and on a whim i offered (something ridiculously low, private for now) last night and they excepted my offer…. Usually i go look at properties, but i have not looked at this one, there are pics on line, but i guess i better go see what i’ just bought…
Blessings,
-Russ

Steph Davis wrote:
Holy $%!@ that’s a nice discount!

Nate Andree wrote:
A guy after my own heart!! Making blind bids, then getting them accepted, then messing your pants. I love it man! Just sent my Realtor 8 bids about 10 min ago and closed on a HUD yesterday.

Now…..go wipe and go out and see what you bought!!

Yahoo!!!!!
Nate

Ken Holmes wrote:
Ah man, I offered 19,900 and you beat me!
Watch out for that pit bull in the living room when you go.
Just kidding… You have to update us, photos and all.

Steve Cavanaugh wrote:
Congrats Russ. How long had it been listed?
Steve

Russ Lebrasc wrote:
According to the mls listing 74 days….
-Russ

Nate Andree wrote:
Listen to this one guys……the agent that listed the hud I closed on yesterday said they are only taking 82% of the current list price and there isn’t anything I can do about it.

After I laughed on my own spit I told her that the one we just closed on came out last year at 80K, then went to 70K, then went to 46K, then we got it for 25.5K. Doesn’t look like that’s 82% sweetie pie.

Bottom line……..make the offer no matter how ridiculous it is or what % of the list price it is in regards to HUD’s. I’ve been buying them for many years and some of the so called “experts” have theories on % of list pricing, how long they supposedly have to be on the market before they take your offer, blah blah blah.

The heck with all of that folks. Just make the offer on HUD’s and press on.

Russ……heck of a job!!
Nate

Russ Lebrasc wrote:
I heard from my reo broker who i hang my licence with, that he got an offer for one of his clients in another county accepted, $250K list, offer bid was 55K, hud accepted…. hows that for 82% of list….
it’s what made me make my crazy offer, maybe i should have offered lower
-russ

Craig Fuhr wrote:
That’s awesome Russ.
Nate – you are in fire today. I’m roaring at your comments.
Sorry this is short. It was sent from my iPhone.

Steve Cavanaugh wrote:
Cool on the HUD – I actually just won another Hudson and Marshall auction, not even a week after bidding – and I just placed what I thought was a B.S. bid one night before going to bed. Woke up the next morning and they accepted! I forgot to add my agent on as buyer’s agent, and they even put her on after the fact!

Steve Cook wrote:
Note to ALL! HUD is opening the floodgates. Your story Russ is the second time I’ve heard it in the last week and the last guy got 5-10 houses at similar discounts.
I rode a wave of these back in 2001 and got 27 of them in 6 months.  Let the offers fly- they’re biting.

Blessings,
Steve

Craig Fuhr wrote:
Just signed up on the new HUD site and made my first bid. I intend to make a bunch more tonight. BTW, all HUD houses on my MLS are NOT on the HUD site, so be sure to set up a HUD search on your MLS.
Sorry this is short. It was sent from my iPhone.

Nate Andree wrote:
Great point Craig! Same thing happens here.

Craig Fuhr wrote:
Don’t miss the nuggets, Baby. Them nuggets is out there!!
Sorry this is short. It was sent from my iPhone.

Russ Lebrasc wrote:
Lets have a hud bowl… who can get the most huds by the retreat? Putting in another bid now
-Russ

Lawrence Roberts wrote:
put in 10 last night..got 30 more to go.  Then its on to the next county..:)
Law

Ken Holmes wrote:
What’s the deal on yesterday’s house, Russ? Deal or no deal?

Russ Lebrasc wrote:
Ken, its a deal it works for me on several levels, once i get signed confirmed contract, i may try and whosale this puppy, it needs work but nothing major, cosmeticy stuff
-Russ

Steve Cavanaugh wrote:
On a somewhat related note, I just ratified my second Hudson and Marshall auction in the past three weeks. The deals are out there right now for sure.
-Steve

Brian Meidam wrote:
What was asking price relative to your accepted bid on the H&M auctions?

Steve Cavanaugh wrote:
On the first one it was $149k, I’m buying for $105,500. The second was $129k, I’m buying for $105k
-Steve

Ken Holmes wrote:
Steve, are you using the “bid now” part of the H&M website, or waiting for the actual auction dates.?

Steve Cavanaugh wrote:
The bid now. I’ve never been to a h&m live auction. In both cases the auction period had not yet ended and they accepted.
-Steve

Ken Holmes wrote:
OK…I got 5 HUD offers in today. And they are low. Maybe not as low as Russ’ offer, but plenty low enough. We’ll see what happens. In honor of Nate, I didn’t go look at 2 of them.

Nate Andree wrote:
I’m blushing Ken I put in 9 today as well.

Steve Cavanaugh wrote:
This is happening here also.  One of my students just locked up a HUD that was listed for $145k.  His price: $80k.  Renovation will be around $30k, ARV is $199k.  That’s a deal! Then I spoke with another investor locally that got one yesterday also.  Listed for $165k, buying for $90k, needs around $30k also!  ARV on that one is around $215k!  Get out there and make HUD offers today!
-Steve

Lawrence Roberts wrote:
Is it one asset company you are noticing that are taking the lower bids. HUD has 5 asset companies in any given area.
-Law

Steve Cavanaugh wrote:
Don’t know Law, I will look into that.
-Steve

Ken Holmes wrote:
Steve, do you get counters on HUD bids? Nate says he does but we just get a yes or no. Really now even a no…just a yes or nothing at all.
Ken

Steve Cavanaugh wrote:
Ken, a yes or nothing at all in my experience.  My student was not countered, I know that for a fact.  Funny thing was he really didn’t want this particular property, so I told him to lowball it just to compensate for that.  Well, look which one he ended up with!
- Steve

Ken Holmes wrote:
Awesome advice Steve….some of my best deals were on properties that I didn’t want and offered low assuming they would not take it but then at least the seller would be offended and go away.

Russ Lebrasc wrote:
I think every offer should be treated like you dont want it…..

So…what say you?  Agree or disagree with the Flip VIPs?  Leave a comment!

a

Here’s the deal:

On a recent Saturday, we broadcast our first-ever live MLS market research webcast.  Maybe you recall hearing about it?

It was a very raw, real workshop in the truest sense of the word…

Imagine Bob Norton and I on 3-way with one of our KISS Flippers, totally unscripted, cracking open an unfamiliar MLS in real-time, then massaging the data around for a while to uncover where the money’s hiding.

Nothing held back here, folks.  And in a matter of minutes we quickly stumbled upon a nice little opportunity market that made our little hearts start pitter-pattering.

This was a private session, but now I’m inviting you to enjoy a healthy dose of this workshop – around half an hour or so.  This is where we really clear up what your initial searches should be from the get-go, and how to start looking for the “run ups”.

If finding opportunity-rich markets in the MLS is a mystery to you, then I think you’ll find this extremely worthwhile to take in.  So here you go, you happy campers!

.

Any thoughts?  Epiphanies?  Brilliant notions? Please leave a comment below!

Also, wondering about the whole enchilada? We do these sessions monthly behind closed doors for our KISS Flipping Bleeding Edge Masters.  The whole 2 hours of this session, plus tons of other awesomeness is posted inside there.

So maybe you want to check it out.  Go with your gut, but I’ll bet dollars to doughnuts you’ve never seen anything quite like it.

“KISS Flipping Bleeding Edge Masters”

a

Now Mike and his wife Christina have done hundreds of deals since they got started back in ’99, from wholesaling, buy-fix-sell, buy and hold, to short sales, and new construction. They also manage several hundred rentals.  So I guess you could say they know a thing or three about finding great deals.

A Quick Note From Mike About This List:

Download audio file (ferris-25-ways.mp3)

1. Homepath.com (Fannie Mae)
2. Auctions (Realtybid.com/ HudsonAndMarshall.com/ WilliamsAuction.com/ REDC.com/ Auction.com/ REDClive.com/ BidSelect.com/ EconoHomes.com)
3. Bandit Signs
4. Craigslist advertising
5. Craigslist estate sales
6. Facebook
7. Pay per click through search engines…Bing, Yahoo, Google driving to website
8. HouseBuyerNetwork.com (and other ‘we buy houses’ sites)
9. Direct Mail: absentee owner
10. Direct Mail: open estates (probate)
11. Direct Mail: driving for dollars
12. Direct Mail: late payer mortgages
13. Foreclosure sales (sheriff)
14. Gas station signs
15. Pawn shop signs
16. Grocery store flyers
17. Inserts with coupon distributors
18. MLS (by neighborhood, estate sales, fixer uppers/handyman specials, etc)
19. REO brokers
20. HUD foreclosures
21. Newspaper Ads (main and pennysaver)
22. Phone book
23. Networking and Referrals (from agents, investors, bird dogs)
24. Vehicle signs (Magnetic or Vinyl)
25. Wholesalers

So Tell Me:

1. Which method(s) have you found work best for you? (for me it’s #’s 9, 10, 11, and 18)
2. Which method(s) would you love to unwrap and learn more about if you had the chance? (Remember my post with Steve Cavanaugh about RE auctions?  Think along those lines.)
3. Anything missing from this list? (What would you add to it?)

Would you please leave your thoughts in a quick comment below? And also maybe an “attaboy” to Mike for passing along his neato list.

Thanks!
…jp

a

“Ok, help me out here guys. Looking for your input….

Auction.com just called me to confirm that I got the accepted offer.  However, they are different from REDC.com where the bid is the bid and you win.

With auction.com the seller has the right to say yes or no within 1-2 weeks. What they want me to do is sign the OTP that they are sending to me and wire them the full amount of 23K. I have 24 hours to complete this. If the seller says yes then it’s a done deal and we proceed.

If the seller says no, then they refund me the money in whole or the seller can counter offer me. This is written in the terms of the agreement…..you know…..the same one that we never read, just check the box, and make the offer

So……with that said…..how would you guys proceed? Tell them to take a hike? Would you trust them? etc etc.”

Nate

Now just so you know, this email came to me within our little Flip VIPs mastermind group I’m lucky enough to be a part of.  We email each other privately with deal related questions like this and whatnot.

What followed was a revealing email banter with another of our colleagues – fix-and-flip guy Steve Cavanaugh (LaPleda, MD) – who turns out to be somewhat of an underground expert in the real estate auction arena – both online and off.

Call me intrigued.  I’ve done somewhere close to a couple hundred deals, but I’ve never bought one via auction. So I asked Steve if I could call him on the phone for a few  and grill him with whatever the heck questions that come to mind.

4 things that happened next…

1. He said yes.
2. It was awesome.
3. I recorded it.
4. And posted it for you here

Listen and enjoy…
Download audio file (01-11_cavanaugh_on_auctions.mp3)

The whole shebang’s only around 19 minutes or so, and well worth eavesdropping in on if you’re even remotely interested in gleaning a few choice, firsthand insights into buying real estate via online or offline auctions.

Questions and stuff we talked about…

• Online vs. offline vs. “simulcast” auctions
• How the auction process basically works from the investor’s perspective
• How much liquid capital should you have on hand before bidding?
• How much opportunity do you feel there is in online real estate auctions right now?
• How do you get the best results possible from the auction arena?
• Why you should start out by going in person to the live auctions?
• One thing you should always do at every single auction you attend to identify the players
• Where should you sit at live auctions?  (and why it matters)
• What are the minimum qualifications to bid online?
• One big advantage to being there live vs. online: bid increments
• Any favorite auctions of yours? (online and off)
• What about the “buyer’s premium”?
• Tell me about any recent auction deal you scored?

And for anyone who’s interested, I, Steve and 10 other folks do open-line Q&A calls each and every month.  And it’s remarkably affordable at only thirty-nine bananas.  I just finished mine up for this month – we had around a dozen folks on the line for about an hour and a half.  Good times.

Here’s a link to that if you want to check it out…

Got comments?  More questions?  Bring it.

Just leave a comment below, and I’ll gladly ee if I can get Steve over to answer ‘em for you.

My best,
…jp

PS – It snowed last night here.  Yep, it rarely happens in Memphis. Pigs must’ve just flown by too.

So I got the girls out and we build snow forts and I coaxed everyone (Kara included) into about a 10 minute snowball fight – YEEEEHAWWWWWW!

So here’s one of the pics we took – Kelsey and I admiring our SNOW FORT OF DOOM.  If you wanna see the rest, I posted ‘em for you over on the Crackbook page here…

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Fact: You know that tasty new house you’ve got for sale?  Well anybody on the planet who’s interested will probably look it up on Zillow at some point.  That’s just the way it is.

Problem: Sometimes Zillow is flat out wrong. And sometimes Zillow makes your house look like a steamy pile of doggy poo.

Solution: Click the Titans hat…Watch, enjoy and comment…

So…kinda cool, eh?  Yeah I thought so too.  Thanks, Brian, for the tip!

Resources from this video:

• “Ask the Flip VIPs” Coaching ($39)
  
• Zillow
  

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Editor’s Note: This is part 3 in a series of “Competition Killer” video posts that’ll teach you in no uncertain terms how to blow your competition out of the water — SPLOOSH!  These insider tips are compliments of my good friend Shaun McCloskey — a kick-butt short sale guy who’s crushing it right now, closing multiple deals in multiple markets all over the U.S. (at an average per-deal profit of $28,500).  In case you missed them, here’s Competition Killer Part 1 and Part 2 is here. Enjoy!

So look, when dealing with motivated sellers, one crucial element to the success of your deal is ensuring they don’t go “cheating” on you, right?

What I mean is, they gotta understand in no uncertain terms the importance of not working with any other real estate agents, investors, etc, without talking to you first.  You should be their first and only love while you’re together.

But there’s a bit of an art to this, isn’t there?  I mean, you don’t want to make it a personal “thing” that says you’re afraid of a little competition.  And you sure don’t want it to seem like you’re taking a “strong arm” type of approach.

But the simple fact of the matter is this: If I’m truly looking out for the homeowners’ best interest (and I am), then they really need to understand that it’s in everyone’s best interests (not just mine) that they only deal with me and only me from here on out.

In this third video from Shaun McCloskey’s “Competition Killer”, he explains exactly why this is, and how to go about communicating it in an open, friendly and crystal clear way.

You’ll hear a real life story that illustrates perfectly how to do this.  It’s 100% true, and it’s the exact same story he shares on every single appointment he goes on. And better yet, it’s a story you can even have full use of to leverage yourself in your own dealings with sellers.

In other words, please try this at home.  It’s a powerful way to gain a huge edge over your competition in each and every deal.  Enjoy, and share your thoughts in the comments after you watch…

PS – Please share your thoughts on this strategy below.  Also many smart and sexy people have realized that hitting the “Facebook Like” button on this page gets you free promotion.

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Editor’s Note: This is part 2 in a 3 part series of “Competition Killer” video posts that’ll teach you in no uncertain terms how to blow your competition out of the water — SPLOOSH!  These insider tips are compliments of my good friend Shaun McCloskey — a kick-butt short sale guy who’s crushing it right now, closing multiple deals in multiple markets all over the U.S. (at an average per-deal profit of $28,500).  In case you missed them, here’s Competition Killer Part 1 and Part 3 is here. Enjoy!

Tasty Deals vs. Tail Chasers

Welcome – today’s webisode is all about how to quickly assess which deals you should run after and which ones you should run away from.  Said another way, how focus in on the 20% of deals that will make you 80% of your best profits…

You’ll discover…

• How laser focusing on the right deals will make you far more money with the least effort, hassle and frustration possible…
• The 1 giant mistake almost every newbie makes, and how to avoid it…
• How to know the difference between a seller who needs your help versus a seller who truly deserves your help…
• Find out which deal types you should avoid at all costs – even if they’re profitable…
• 7 important criteria to quickly filtering which deals you should invest your time in and which will suck you dry…

Enjoy…and as always, your comments are welcome please…

PS - If you love these videos, then please join me for a live, nothing-held-back webinar with Shaun and I this Tuesday 9/7 — . You can tell from these video, Shaun’s an exceptional teacher, and Tuesday night’s gig will be part teaching, part Q&A with whoever shows up.  Hope you can join us!  Mark your calendar for Tuesday 9/7 at 9pm Eastern (6 Pacific)

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