First, I am a real estate broker. And I own property in states and towns where I do not live. So I know the real estate buying process from BOTH sides of the deal - the professional side and the customer side. With that said, here are some secrets.
There are many methods that professionals use to find good property. The first is that they spend a lot of time researching their market. This daily research provides them with the most current updates for the local inventory.
Of course they also have access to at least one MLS. The MLSs are the sources for the data you find on other web sites. What the pros know though, is that the sites that just display pictures often do not update prices and availability. So their first trick is that they access the best information.
Next, they know the agents in their market. At first, this may not seem important. But how a broker describes their listings usually follows a pattern. Cozy can mean outdated and small. Needs fixing up can be interpreted as it just needs paint or a complete redo depending on the agent. And of course, there is pricing. Some agents will do anything to get the listing. Experienced brokers will only work on a listing that they believe in. The listing company makes a difference.
The third secret is that they know there are available properties that are not in their MLS. Some of the best deals are property that could be sold but isn't listed. Experienced agents look at their associates' web sites to find non-mls listings.
These are only three things that real estate agents use to be good at their job. There really are tricks to efficiently and effectively find good real estate.
Each investor, buyer, seller has methods that aid them, but real estate agents and brokers make a living at knowing the information. They us the most effective and fastest sources to keep up to date and they are way ahead of you in the game. Alot of the information they is publically available, but they can get it fast and organize it and make it understandable and useful faster than the occasional buyer or seller can.
In recent years, the press and the large real estate sites - that don't actually sell anything except your name and email - have made real estate professionals seem out dated and useless. In fact, they are even more useful in this age of information pollution. The large sites get their information FROM the agents and brokers. So find the source and bypass the filterers.
Happy finding and buying!
Real estate agent web sites can be easily found on REindex.com. REMEMBER!! You are not just a buyer, you are an investor! When you look at real estate to purchase, you are using all the same decision criteria that an Investor uses. You just plan to be your own tenant. So give yourself the same expert advicethat other intvestors use. A Professional!
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