Although there are thousands of homes for sale in most real estate markets, it still seems that the good ones sell quickly (often with multiple offers) and the ones that are still available are priced too high, or junky garbage that nobody wants, or short sales that might make a good value for an owner occupant that is willing to wait. So where can someone that truly wants a great investment property find the deals?
Well below is a long list of ideas to put into place. These ideas are also a great place for Realtors® looking to obtain new listings. Not all these ideas will work in every market and some may be out of date for certain marketplaces, but hopefully they will at least get your brain thinking.
Most of these ideas boil down to 2 types of properties - (1) properties with motivated owners that nobody knows are for sale, and (2) properties that others have passed over or that nobody wants for whatever reason. So here we go with the first half of the list.
Also see: 101 ways to find real estate deals or get listings - Part 2
1. Place a classified ad or flyer in your daily newspaper.
2. Place weekly/monthly ads in the Pennysaver or other local weekly city paper.
3. Advertise in a newsletter - homeowner’s association, church bulletin, school newsletter, chamber of commerce, specialized industry.
4. Place an ad in the local Yellow Pages (print or online) - they even have targeted books just for certain cities.
5. Place an ad in online classifieds - Craigslist, MerchantCircle, Ebay, etc.
6. Advertise a website using free search engine optimization (SEO), backlinks, etc.
7. Advertise a website using pay-per-click and ad words – Google, Yahoo, Bing, etc.
8. Advertise using online paid ads on various websites and mobile apps.
9. Create a real estate blog site.
10. Search the MLS for junker properties.
11. Search the MLS for recently expired listings.
12. Search the MLS for recently withdrawn listings.
13. Search the MLS for old stale listings - listed for 90 days or more.
14. Search the MLS for REOs and other foreclosures.
15. Search the MLS for specific key words – “foreclosure, probate, fixer upper, etc.”
16. Hire a Realtor® to help you find a great deal or one not yet in the MLS.
17. Bandit signs (little cheapo signs by the side of the road or nailed to a phone pole) – signs may be illegal in some jurisdictions so check before putting them out.
18. Drive neighborhoods looking for For Sale By Owners / FSBO's
19. Call for sale by owner ads in newspapers, Craigslist, other classifieds. (Watch the Do Not Call List.)
20. Network on sites like Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin with people looking to sell.
21. Contact landlords who are evicting a tenant.
22. Contact landlords with properties for rent.
23. Contact multi-family property owners - there are lots of tired landlords.
24. Contact commercial property owners - there are lots of people looking to sell or close their business if they got the right offer.
25. Pre-foreclosure and lis pendens lists.
26. Foreclosure auctions.
27. Sherriff sale auctions.
28. HUD home auctions.
29. Tax deed auctions
30. Ebay and online auctions.
31. Private auctions conducted by auctioneers – online, on-site, or in a hotel ballroom.
32. Contact probate owned property owners.
33. Contact people holding estate sales to see if the house is also for sale.
34. Contact divorce forced sales.
35. Contact people holding garage sales and yard sales to see if the house is also for sale.
36. Properties with outstanding building, health code, or code enforcement violations.
37. Properties with insurance claims – fire, storm, sinkhole, earthquake, etc.
38. Contact out of state owners and absentee landlords.
39. Networking with professional people - attorneys, accountants, financial planners, surveyors, etc.
40. Network with service providers - lawnmower service, pool service, contractors, roofers, handyman, etc.
41. Network with your sphere of influence - hand out your business cards to everyone you know.
42. Join a local networking group - chamber of commerce, Kiwanis club, garden club.
43. Network at your local real estate investment or landlord association.
44. Post ads with large employers, military bases, hospitals, relocation companies.
45. Bird dogs that scout for deals and bring them to you. (Paying a bird dog fee to unlicensed people may be illegal in some states, so make sure to obey the law).
46. Buy from a property wholesaler.
47. Magnetic car sign.
48. Bus stop benches.
49. Shopping cart ads.
50. Billboards and other outdoor advertising.
Stay tuned for #’s 51-101 in Part 2 … coming soon.
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