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Where can I find properties?
OK… so you’ve been to a bunch of meetings. You’ve probably read
some books, gone to some seminars. You’ve really done your
homework…. Now what?
Once someone has done their homework, the first thing I suggest
doing is selecting a target area. It’s often that I ask people where
they’re target area is and they’ll reply something like ”Anywhere”
or “Anywhere I can find a good deal.” Sound smart? Maybe. I know
there are a lot of real estate investment experts who will tell
people to go anywhere for a deal. That may be right for them, but I
strongly disagree.
You have to know your target area, every block, every house. So
many areas are block to block in the city or development to
development in the suburbs. If a house comes on the market an investor
needs to move lightening fast. There is very little time to do
research when a property pops up on the MLS (Multiple Listing
Service) or when foreclosure notices are files. Every investor and
their mother are about to swarm in on this deal. How can you make
the proper offer if you don’t know the area extremely well? Offer to
little and someone else will get the deal. Offer too much and….
Well… we don’t even want to think about what happens then. Ask
yourself… do you know what a 2 bedroom sells for on Maple Ave? Or
whatever Ave in whatever neighborhood? If you don’t. Stop and do
some more homework.
There are so many cities, townships and neighborhoods, how do you
pick the “right” one? The answer is, there is no “right” one.
There’s only the “right” one for you. Typically speaking, inner
cities or redeveloping areas tend to have the most potential, but
they also have the most competition. The real answer is, you should
stick to an area you already know. Maybe where you live now, where
you grew up, where you work or somewhere in between. The point is
that it needs to be familiar enough for you to know the ins and
outs. It also needs to be convenient enough for you to be there on a
regular basis.
Hopefully, your mind is starting to think about what area will
work best. What now? Now, you have to know the area like the back of
your hand? How do you do that? Spend as much time as possible there.
If you have to run an errand, do it there. Do you exercise? Ride
your bike there or jog there. Go out to eat there, the supermarket,
whatever. You’ll start to learn the area real quick... which blocks
are good, which are bad, and which are ripe for development. You
also need to know what every property sells for. You should attend
every open house, find out what every property is listed for, know
their condition, and what they eventually sell for. This will give
you a real good feel for what properties sell for at what price in
what condition. I know that this sounds like a lot of work. If it’s
more than you can handle, you can either devote more time or scale
down to a smaller part of the area. Don’t sacrifice your intimate
knowledge.
So, now that you know it, what do you do? Now you post your “we
buy houses” signs, post flyers anywhere you can, target dilapidated
or runned down properties, let everyone you meet know that you buy
properties and you will gladly pay them a referral fee if they find
you a good one. Rental properties that a landlord is having trouble
renting out are good ones too. Canvas the area and before you know
it you’ll be seeing a lot of deals.
Investors find properties in a number of different ways.
We have no preference on where you find your
next great deal.
- Realtors
- Sheriff Sales
- Tax Sales
- Property Auctions
- FSBO's (For sale by owner)
- Abandoned Properties
- HUD (Department of Housing & Urban Development)
Below is a list
of links of how to find more information and locate your next property.
All links open in new window
Real Estate Auctions
Pre Sheriff Sale.com
http://www.presheriffsale.com/
Associated Auctioneers
http://www.usauctionlist.com/Associated/
Barry Slosberg, Inc.
http://www.auctionzip.com/cgi-bin/auctionlist.cgi?vuid=143
Wm. F. Comly & Son, Inc.
http://www.auctionzip.com/cgi-bin/auctionlist.cgi?vuid=787
Briggs Auction
http://www.briggsauction.com/
247 Auctioneer
http://www.247auctioneer.com/
Williams & Williams Auctions
http://www.williamsauction.com/ca_all.php
Pennsylvania Sheriff Sales
Philadelphia Sheriff & Tax Lien Sales
http://www.phillysheriff.com
Bucks County Sheriff Sales
http://www.buckscounty.org/departments/sheriff/index.html
Montgomery County Sheriff Sales
http://www.montcopa.org/sherreal/sheriffsales.htm
Delaware County Sheriff Sales
http://www.co.delaware.pa.us/sheriff/realestate.html
Chester County Sheriff Sales
http://www.chesco.org/sheriff/sheriff_sales.html
Lehigh County Sheriff Sales
http://www.lehighcounty.org/sheriff/sheriffprint.cfm?body=re_explain2.htm
New Jersey Sheriff Sales
Essex County Sheriff Sales
http://www.sheriffsalesonline.com/counties/essex.htm
Mercer County Sheriff Sales
http://www.mercercounty.org/sheriff/index.htm
Camden County Sheriff Sales
http://www.co.camden.nj.us/sheriff/Sales/indexsales.htm
Ocean County Sheriff Sales
http://www.ocean.nj.us/sheriff/foreclosure.htm
Atlantic County Sheriff Sales
http://www.atlanticcountysheriff.org/bidding.htm
Burlington County Sheriff Sales
http://www.sheriffsalesonline.com/counties/burlington.htm
City of Philadelphia District Attorney Auctions
http://www.phila.gov/districtattorney/Community/
Forfeiture_Real_Estate_Auction/forfeiture_real_estate_auction.html
Department of Treasury Auctions
http://www.treas.gov/auctions/
Realtor.com
http://realtor.com/Default.asp?poe=realtor
HUD (Department of Housing & Urban Development)
http://www.hud.gov/
Fanniemae.com (FNMA)
http://www.mortgagecontent.net/reoSearchApplication/fanniemae/
reoSearch.jsp?p=Resources&s=Fannie+Mae-Owned+Property+Search
Freddie Mac (FHLMC)
http://www.homesteps.com/hm01_1featuresearch.htm
Foreclosure Property Websites
http://www.foreclosurefreesearch.com/?rsp=6018
http://www.foreclosurenet.net/index.asp?trackerid=105
http://njlispendens.com/
http://americanforeclosures.com/
http://www.estreetrealty.com/
http://www.owners.com
http://www.reonationwide.com/
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