“I’m still working full time, – is it possible to get started with real estate investing if I’m bogged down by the J-O-B?”

Which in turn made me take a step back to where I was to go way back in the year 2000…

I’d never done a deal after studying books, and courses for over 2 years.  At the time I looked all of 12 years old even though I was in my 20′s, and I had this perception that no one really took me serious.

I would talk to Realtor after Realtor but never really got anywhere.

Then finally after months of talking and probing around, I finally met an agent that actually gave me the time of day and I bought my first real estate investment – here’s the picture…

Honestly this was the worst deal of my life…

But guess what?

If I’d never taken the plunge and bought this piece of junk, I’d probably never bought a property…

So, I’m thankful I took the plunge.

Fast forward a few months and I increase my education and learn about “buying houses subject to” and flipping houses using assignments and double closings.

And I knew that in order to get these kinds of deals I would have to pursue sellers directly as opposed to going through a realtor.

Realtors have got their guard up for anything that may be out of the ordinary – so if you plan to use creative real estate strategies then you’ll need to market to sellers directly.

Now – I still had planned on buying through Realtors, just thought this would give me more leads and deals and some flexibility on the terms.

(On a side note, I stopped working with the first real estate agent after he asked me to co-sign on a car loan after I’d bought my 3rd house from him – this would have resulted in a disaster if he’d succeeded in talking me into it)

Back to the story,  I started marketing through using newspapers with your traditional “We Buy Houses Cash” and “I’ll Buy Your House In 7 Days Or Less” style ads that was being directed to a pager number.

They would call the pager and leave their name, phone # and I’d call them back during my breaks and at night…

So, picture this…

I was a cell phone business to business rep, so there were times when I had 200 or more cell phones in my trunk, my cell phone for work was constantly going off and the pager was constantly going off.

Oh and to add to it -

I was still in college, recently married, just bought a house with a baby on the way…

And I still did deals.

I did what I had to do.

But now, with technology, and the good ole interwebs – everything has changed.

Now, you don’t have to even talk to people unless you know it’s a deal.

It’s so easy now to automate the entire lead getting process and filtering out dead deals while you monetize your leads.

You can do more with less time and still make money…

So, yes – Real Estate Investing can be done while still working the job and it’s easier now than ever before.

It’s about deciding and making the commitment to doing so, getting the right tools and education.

On a side note, I’m re-releasing my Real Estate Underground System in the next week or so,

Many of you have asked about it – I’ll send you the details real soon…

Talk soon

Derek Pierce

BTW – I’d Love To Hear Your Comments / Questions! Click Here to Comment

I thought it would be a good idea for you to see – that this guy is for real.

Well, see for yourself in this video as you can see a sneak peek of the deals he’s doing along with a tour of his office. Watch the video, then grab the free Arbitrage Conspiracy Report by clicking here

Cities that were in the top 20 were located in Florida, California, Nevada and Arizona.

You can read the article by clicking here

This means one thing for real estate investors – More Deals.

You basically have 2 options with the data given -

1- Forget about doing deals because you think it’s not going to work because the economy is bad or

2 – Dive in realizing there’s more deals now than ever before.

Sure, the same strategy from 10 years ago where you buy a house in California and sit on it for 6 months and make a 10%-20% return is NOT going to work.

However, realize you can make money in good markets as well as bad, declining markets.

Early on in my career as a Real Estate Investor, my market was terrible.

I saw all of the bigger markets where folks were making a killing just from buying, then holding on for a few months.

And I admit, I was extremely envious.

However, I learned that the one thing you think is a disadvantage can be used to your advantage.

In my situation, this helped to prepare me to do deals more creatively, buy bank notes, and for doing short sales before any of it ever become cool.

So take this data but use extreme caution.

Use it to your advantage.

Don’t let it pollute your brain into thinking the market is bad, and no one is making money because nothing could be farther from the truth.

Commit to become a “Real” Real Estate Investor – one that makes money in good markets and bad without relying on speculation.

You can grab it here-  (Just right click to save to your desktop)

Real Estate Investing Newsletter

Later

Derek

It’s one aspect of the business that I absolutely hate, but it’s a necesary evil if you’re fixing up and flipping houses.

This past week, I’m talking with a guy named Phil that finishes hardwood floors for my latest rehab and I tell him where the house is.

He responds -”I know where it’s at… I did the roof on that house about 5 years ago.”

We agree to meet the following day to let him give me a quote.

I arrive around 15 minutes early to find a leak dripping in 3 places.

Irony at its best….

I walk outside to cut him off so that he doesn’t see the leak just yet and I said – “Is this the house you put the roof on?” He responds “yes”.

Then, I opened the door and said well take a look at this leak.

(HEHE – I’m thinking I just busted this guy’s bubble).

This guy starts telling me about the hail damage that had been done to the roof and that is why the roof is leaking and that “unfortunately” his warranty is only good for 3 years…

(To sum it up, he was shooting me a line of bull shit for a half assed job done to the roof)

Now, keep in mind, he’s there to give me a quote about refinishing hardwood floors – not a roof.

While, he’s figuring a quote – he starts asking questions about my business.

Then proceeds to say…

“Well, you’ll make $20K -$30K on this house”

Excuse me- did I tell you what I paid for it?

uhh No.

I proceeded to inform him that the one thing that pisses me off about contractors is some are more worried about what I make than doing the job right in a timely fashion.

Sorry – but I’ll not be using Phil.

And there are guys just like Phil in your market.

So here some rules for dealing with contractors when you’re fixing up to flip a house -

Don’t let’em shoot you a line of bs.

Don’t believe everything they say.

Get a second opinion. Ask for referalls at your local investment club, from other investors, from other contractors, and from the home improvement stores.

Ask to see 5 jobs they’ve done in the past year and if you can contact the owners for a reference.

And keep a good list of the contractors that work out.

This list will be a continued work in progress.

Start small.  Use your new contacts for small jobs to see how they do before handing them a big project.

Don’t tell anyone who you’re using or else word will get out and then it’ll be harder to have them work jobs in.

And never, ever reveal what you paid for the house to any contractor or else they try to gouge you.

And lastly, don’t be afraid to let ‘em go.

There’s more to come as time permits…

Derek

Watch and enjoy-

Oh and don’t forget to rate it 5 stars if you like it.

The Bank Is A Pain In The Ass!

If you’ve never conducted a short sale, it can be a rather lengthy process (90 days and I’ve even done some that took 6 months.)

Anyway, take it for what it’s worth but the Washington Post published an article a couple of days ago regarding banks stepping up to get short sales approved faster.

It’s an interesting read especially if you’re working the preforeclosure / short sale market:

Click Here For The Article

Regardless – it remains to be seen…

What do you think? I’m interested to hear your comments.

And if you want to take advantage of Jeff’s Free Offer, you can do so by going to:

www.REIMastery.com

Even if you don’t plan on jumping on this offer (which is one helluva deal) then watch the webinar and learn how Jeff went from struggling to Real Estate Millionaire by clicking here

-Derek Pierce

AIG, Lehman Brothers, Fannie, and Freddie. And the media is having a field day with the doom and gloom.

So, with all the negative stuff happening, all the naysayers, all the hoopla with the media, you’re probably asking yourself – “should I start investing in real estate right now?”

I personally believe investors make more money when stuff is on sale, which is right now. It’s not when assets have reached their peak price.

Right now, I know the ‘real deal’ investors (the actual doers) are buying as much as they can get their hands on because they understand that this is the time we’ve all been waiting for – (a sale).

It’s fine if you don’t take my word for it, but look at what one of the world’s riches investors is doing – look at billionaire Warren Buffett. He’s stepped up his acquisitions ( you can read about it here)

So, yes I do believe now is the time. In my own business, I’m seeing more motivated sellers, more leads, more deals, and thus more profits.

It’s time to stop talking and get in the game. Quit taking advice from folks making less than you and get hip on what it really takes to make this business work…