When certain trends start to pop up in your market, you could turn to virtual wholesaling. These trends include:

Lower response rates for direct mail marketing

Sellers say they are getting too many marketing offers

Sellers don't seem as motivated as they were last year

These trends often point to a seller's market, which means deal flow will start to decrease. As a wholesaler, this means your marketing budget will go up and your ROI will go down. When this happens, it may be time to pivot into virtual wholesaling.

What is Virtual Wholesaling?

Virtual wholesaling is similar to traditional wholesaling, but allows you to enter into a different markets, remotely. It will include many moving pieces to successfully facilitate the transaction. If you have great conversational skills, excellent organizational skills and the ability to network, you can use virtual wholesaling to your benefit.

Building a Virtual Wholesaling Team

Before you even think about handling a transaction, you need to build your virtual wholesaling team. This team will need to include:

A Title Company

An Attorney

Wholesale Partners

In some cases, your local title company will work great, if they are a national company. However, if they don't handle title on the national level, you will may need to find a title company that does.

An attorney is the next member of your team you will need to find. Getting a local attorney, in the market you're working in, requires good recommendations, which may come from the title agent or even the real estate agent in the local market. Make sure to compare a few options before adding an attorney to your team.

Along with your title company and attorney, a few wholesaling partners can be helpful. Having local JV partners to help you will make selling in a new market much easier. Make sure you put a solid agreement in writing about how you will split the profits.

Enter a New Market with Virtual Wholesaling

Real estate has historically been up and down, favors the buyer one year and the seller the next. As a wholesaler, you have to stay on top of your market, but you don't have to be limited to just your local real estate market.

With virtual wholesaling, you have the ability to enter into any real estate market you want. All you have to do is build your virtual wholesaling team first. Not only will you have the ability to wholesale in a new market, but you may also be able to increase your rental portfolio and even start flipping properties.

 

Authored by Best Transaction Funding BestTransactionFunding.com is the leading source of transactional funding for real estate wholesalers in the US, where 100% financing, and saying “Yes” is what we love doing all day long.

Need some cool Valentine’s Day gift ideas for a property wholesaler in your life?

Check out the new list for 2017…

Thank You Cards

If you are in real estate the chances are that you have a few wholesalers which play a role in your business. They rarely get the appreciation they deserve. Whether you are an agent helping them move inventory, a rehabber buying it, or a partner or family member, a thoughtful thank you card can be really appreciated.

Leads

There is nothing that real estate wholesalers love and need more than leads. It probably won’t cost you a dime either. Yet, can be hugely valuable for the recipient. Know anyone looking to buy or sell property, or have seen some vacant homes around the neighborhood which could use a new buyer? Get the info and pass it on.

Drones

Drones are still in. They’ll help your wholesaler create the best photography and marketing presentations so they can flip houses faster.

A Stylist

Real estate wholesalers are typically not famous for their fashion. Yet, branding is becoming more and more important. Take them on a shopping spree, or get them a stylist from a boutique firm like Ensemble who can help them create the perfect wardrobe.

Education

You can never learn too much. There is always something more to learn and master in real estate. Help your wholesalers with the gift of new learning courses or tickets to an industry event.

Vacations

Valentine’s is the ideal time for romantic getaways. Send your favorite wholesaler off on a trip so that they can recharge and come back on top of their game. Mexico, Florida, and the Dominican Republic are all top choices this season.

Funding

You just can’t have access to too much cash in this business. Turn your wholesaler on to new sources of funding for their deals. It could be connecting them with a private lender, giving them some capital to invest for you, or introducing them to transactional lenders.

 

Authored by BestTransactionFunding.com - the BEST source of transactional funding for real estate wholesalers. Log on and get your free Proof of Funds Letter from us today!

Want to build your network, ensure you are wired into trends, and boost your potential in real estate? Check out these 23 Twitter accounts, why you should follow them, and then send us your handle so you grow your contacts too…

1. @BestXFunding for funding news and marketing tips for wholesalers

2. @SenseiGilliland for real estate education and tips from a Top 50 REI blog

3. @PropertyShark for real estate data

4. @360Investment operated by author, doctor, and investor Amir Baluch

5. @Apple for how to get 500k followers without posting a single Tweet

6. @PeterThiel for how to get 130,000 followers with a single Tweet

7. @ElonMusk for insight into the life and mind of one of our top entrepreneurs

8. @RENTCafeApts for data and insight on changing US cities and skyline

9. @Realty411netwrk for event info and insight from top real estate industry leaders

10. @MIT_Romeo tips on title, MI real estate, and marketing for real estate pros

11. @finkd Mark Zuckerberg’s once secret Twitter account

12. @BillGates for inspiration on going really big

13. @KatyPerry who has the most Twitter followers in the world, 2x more than Kim K

14. @NASA on thinking really big, and where we may be flipping homes in the future

15. @Instagram since it is now way hotter than Twitter

16. @StatistaCharts for data and statistics on more than 80,000 topics

17. @Realtors for sarcastic Tweets, real estate tips, and more

18. @Google for news on Google maps, new apps, and when to spruce up your SEO

19. @HGTV highlights from the latest reality TV real estate shows

20. @NinjaWithAPen for new real estate books, marketing tips, real estate news

21. @RealtyTrac delivering real estate news, foreclosure and flipper stats

22. @QuoteFancy for daily motivational quotes

23. @TwitterBusiness marketing tips for businesses on Twitter

 

Authored by Best Transaction Funding BestTransactionFunding.com is the leading source of transactional funding for real estate wholesalers in the US, where 100% financing, and saying “Yes” is what we love doing all day long.

Best 2016 Father’s Day Gifts for Real Estate Investors

Have a father in the real estate business? Here’s what to get them this year…

Father’s Day 2016 is almost here. If your dad, grandfather, son who is a father, stepfather, or friend is in real estate investment they could use a great gift this year. They work hard, devote themselves to others, and while they might enjoy some good paychecks and free scheduling time, they do deal with some stress. This special day arrives on June 19^th. But even if you are late, hook them up and encourage them to keep going with one of these Father’s Day gift ideas…

1. A New Phone

Whether it is the latest iPhone or Galaxy Edge, or even adding a smartwatch to their device lineup you can’t go wrong. Just make sure it is their favorite brand. Real estate pros need to be up to par on the latest gadgets and have tech in their hands that rocks.

2. Time Off Work

Real estate investors technically have the freedom to make their own schedule, but they are notoriously bad for using it. There is always more to do. Often that is to provide for and spoil you, but they get caught up. So get them some time off by hiring them a virtual assistant or summer intern for a few days.

3. Work With Them

If you can’t drag them away, join them. They would love to spend the time with you, and pass on their knowledge and things they are passionate about. You’ll definitely increase your chances of being a beneficiary of that real estate empire if you show you know how to manage it.

4. Leads, Leads, Leads

If there is one thing that real estate investing fathers can’t get enough of - it’s leads. Leads on distressed sellers and properties, capital partners, and buyers.

5. Caffeine

It takes a lot of caffeine to keep going in the real estate industry. Check out these cool coffee ideas from Bullet Proof Coffee, and non-profit company 3 Avocadoes.

6. Summer Wear

Who has time to shop for themselves these days? Kit them out for summer with these innovative sandals as seen on Shark Tank from Combat Flip Flops.

7. Real Estate Event Tickets

Keep them pumped up, inspired, and loving the industry with tickets to an upcoming event. You really can’t go wrong as no matter what it’s for they’ll be able to network and learn something new.

8. Unlimited Cash

Hook your real estate investor father up with Best Transaction Funding’s POF letters so they can get out there and make offers on deals like a boss, with confidence.

Authored by Best Transaction Funding BestTransactionFunding.com is the leading source of transactional funding and hard money loans for real estate wholesalers in the US, where 100% financing, and saying “Yes” is what we love doing all day long.

There may be many factors involved in your success in real estate, yet one of the most critical is also one of the most overlooked - vendor relationships.

As great as any real estate investor or CEO is it takes a team to get each deal done. Even without any in-house staff or assistants that means appraisers, inspectors, title companies, lenders, media contacts, and more. Yet, these relationships are often taken for granted. If you want to achieve your maximum potential and last you need access to the best vendors. Not only do you need access, but you need the best vendors to be eager to work hard to do great work on your deals, and fast.

There are two main parts to achieving and maintaining great vendors…

The first is financial. How fast and reliable do you pay? There is often a temptation for real estate investors and companies to drag out invoices as long as possible. Many bite off more than they can chew, and try to use this lag time as a form of credit line.

The best practice here is to put yourself in the vendor’s shoes. How long after doing some work or closing a deal do you expect to get paid? What if you did the work to fix and sell a property but the end buyer or title company didn’t send you a check for 3 months? How would you feel? How motivated would you be to do business with them again?

Of course money only goes so far. If you’ve ever had a job you hated you have already experienced that. At some point the money just isn’t enough to keep you there.

The main part of this is how easy you are to work with. Toyota is famous for its approach to working with vendors. Toyota may push them hard, but they do it with a mindset of helping their vendors to be better and reach their potential, not just to squeeze as much out of them as possible.

If you are a difficult client the revenues you offer may not be enough. Sometimes this is just about being better at delivering clear requests and specifications to empower vendors to do their best for you the first time around. It’s also about treating them, and their staff well.

The best in this area are proactive about building relationships and making a positive impression with each staff member at a vendor who they deal with on a regular basis. Have you ever sent a thank you card to a title processor or loan processor? How about event tickets for a Realtor or mortgage broker to take their family to do something special? Do you talk well about them to others?

Your effort in these areas will form your reputation in the real estate industry. And you better believe that word spreads fast. Are you the investor or firm that vendors are climbing over each other to work with? Or are you running out of vendors to choose from? This dynamic will absolutely determine how long you last in real estate, and how high you go.

So what have you done to excel in these areas? Or what have others done in this respect that wowed you?

 

Authored by Best Transaction Funding BestTransactionFunding.com is the leading source of transactional funding and hard money loans for real estate wholesalers in the US, where 100% financing, and saying “Yes” is what we love doing all day long.

What is most important when selecting a business or strategic partner in real estate?

Partnering up in real estate is essential, if not at least incredibly powerful. There are many forms of real estate partnerships today. It can be a mentor and new investor, investing in a REIT or real estate crowdfunding offering, co-founders launching a business together, borrowing or loaning capital, or collaborating with another related business to refer clients.

Done well a partnership can make all the difference in success, and speed in reaching goals. Executed poorly it can be completely disastrous. So what do you need to know before getting involved with a partnership?

Check these four boxes:

Shared Values

Ignore the money and ego promises for a moment and really investigate whether you share the same values. If you don’t, none of the potential upsides will matter much. You will end up working against each other. In the medium to long run that could become far more costly and damaging to your reputation than any potential benefit.

Shared Risk

Billionaire real estate investor Sam Zell defines a true partner as someone who equally shares risk with you. So what are you risking? What are your potential partners risking? This doesn’t have to be the same thing on either side, but both should have a vested interest in making this partnership work.

Clean & Clear Exit Strategy

People change, companies change, plans change, and goals change. How are you going to part when it comes time to dissolve the partnership? Do not make the mistake of leaving this decision and strategy for later. That is guaranteed not to be fun or profitable. Create a clear path for going your own ways. Put it in writing.

Customer Service

Your success and reputation in the real estate world depend on service. You may be great at service, but is your potential partner? How do they treat people? How great is their team at customer service? Is this even a priority for them? Don’t just take their word for it. Check reviews, ask others, and test them out as a mystery shopper.

Have any other criteria you use when selecting partners? Have you run into challenges with partners in the past which could have been overcome by implementing these checks? Let us know…

Authored by Best Transaction Funding BestTransactionFunding.com is the leading source of transactional funding for real estate wholesalers, where 100% financing, and saying “Yes” is what we love doing all day long.

Elite productivity levels are key to empowering investors to get the best ROI on their time.

It’s not too difficult to make great money in real estate. Yet, to reach your full financial potential and to still be able to enjoy the free time you chose this path for it takes a conscious effort to maximize every minute.

Check out some of the tools that could help you get more done in less time…

1. Upwork

Upwork is the merger of outsourcing giants oDesk and Elance. Here you’ll find thousands of freelancers to help with your tasks. Perhaps even more importantly Upwork offers automated support for tracking the productivity of remote workers, bookkeeping, 1099s, and more.

2. FreshBooks

FreshBooks is great for all those other remote employees and contractors you haven’t hired through a platform. Time tracking tools can be used to monitor work activity of your in-house team while you are away from the office, and to track how much time you are really spending on each deal. It also makes recording expenses easy so that you are prepared to maximize your deductions when it comes to tax time.

3. Trello

Trello is one of the easiest to use project management dashboards. Load your tasks, delegate them to team members, and track progress and store documents all in one place. This cuts down on a ton of communication time and miscommunication.

4. WordPress

A high percentage of websites and blogs now all run on WordPress. Each website designer out there will have their own preferred system, but this works just fine for some pretty strong companies. The easy to use content management system which most of your team will already be familiar with removes training challenges and expense, makes it easy for you to control your own site and slash costly designer labor hours.

5. Google

The iPhone might look cute, but Google really packs a punch when it comes to integrated free and low cost business tools and apps. From Gmail to Drive, and Hangouts to internet marketing tools there shouldn’t be too much you need to do that you can’t do with Google. It’s a great starting suite of tools before you feel you need to branch out and pay for something more robust.

Those looking to slash the time it takes to fund their real estate deals will also find flash funding from Best Transaction Funding can provide rapid, no hassle cash for wholesale deals. For some this will save weeks or months of trying to deal with banks.

What are your favorite productivity tools?

 

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Subscribe now to HomeNotes and get $1 off the first month with code "BEST"!

 

We were recently interviewed by Vena Jones-Cox on WMKV 89.3FM (Cincinnati, OH) on Transactional Funding Fundamentals.  It is also on the archives of Vena's website, RealLifeRealEstate.com.

Check out this informative and insightful radio interview:  http://tinyurl.com/BTFonRadio

What’s in store for US real estate in 2016?

We’re usually already inundated with predictions for the year ahead in real estate by now. One reason forecasters may be late to the party this year is the potential for contradicting trends which leave a lot of uncertainty around the specifics of property market performance over the next 11 months. So what factors are at work now, and what can investors count on?

Interest Rates

Uncertainty over the potential for fed interest rate hikes has been causing chaos in the stock market. It’s still unclear how soon we’ll see a robust series of rate hikes, or if we’ll experience ‘Permazero’ rates for several more years. Odds are that we’ll see some lift in rates in the next 12 months, but they may be slow in coming in order to avoid cramping current economic growth.

Affordability

Lack of affordability is unlikely to ease any time soon. Between Freddie Mac’s new deal to expand the definition of ‘affordable’ to give $18 billion of tax payer money to multi-billion dollar hedge funds for apartments and soaring rents due to the Airbnb Effect the cost of housing is only going up. This may be great for local government revenues, but may cause as much outward migration as it supports urban re-development.

Commercial Real Estate Turmoil

The National Association of Realtors’ Q3 2015 report shows a glut of office space resulting in high vacancy rates. This is only trumped by hotel vacancies which are being hammered by private rentals. On the bright side retail is growing and could be one of the strongest retail sectors ahead if wages pick up and support consumer spending.

Crowdfunding

Industry experts have already lost faith in crowdfunding as being viable for non-accredited investors, even before the final SEC vote on Title III of the JOBS Act becomes law. Still, institutional lenders are reportedly quietly turning to crowdfunding portals as their new generation of mortgage brokers which allows them to get around stringent underwriting mandates and expensive in-house origination costs.

Multifamily

With massive investments being made in multifamily by builders and private equity funds there is a lot of dollars and power that may not want to see a softening of demand for rentals. However, the government could also rely on a resurgence in home buying and lending to push the national economy forward. With millions of boomerang buyers becoming eligible for mortgage loans again and buying homes so much more attractive than renting consumers will be eager to shun landlords if they can.

Stocks

Stocks and tech could continue somewhat supported by growth in real estate, but appear to be set for an overdue crash. This would create even more momentum, with more capital pursuing real estate investments.

Summary

While the specifics of the market in 2016 are still a little cloudy, investors should be able to count on balance, with growth, with more clarity and more robust growth after election no matter who wins.

Authored by Best Transaction Funding BestTransactionFunding.com is the leading source of transactional funding and hard money loans for real estate wholesalers in the US, where 100% financing, and saying “Yes” is what we love doing all day long.

 

We’ve only got a few weeks left to really knock it out of the park, and to finish the year strong. So how can real estate investors crank up the volume, hit their goals, and set themselves up for a great start to the New Year? How can they sell more real estate?

How Do You Stand Out?

What helps real estate investors and businesses stand out today? What makes the difference, and allows some to attract sellers, financiers, partners, and buyers with more ease than others?

Strong offers and well-priced properties in good areas are going to make for good volume. But no one wants to price themselves out of business, and it’s a lot easier if you have people lining up to do business with you on all sides already.

It’s not just about great looking marketing, and well timed messaging, or making more noise than the competition. It’s increasingly about your ‘why’.

As an investor and business owner you’ve got to have real clarity about your why. It’s what drove you to get into real estate. It’s what will keep driving you, and will keep you on the right track to your goals.

While this has often been buried under corporate looking lipstick, your why is increasingly becoming one of the best ways to standout, to connect, to resonate with others. It gives them a reason to do business with you versus the competition.

Examples:

So recent examples of this out there may include:

 

• Near death experiences or illness which creates an urgency to maximize time
• A desire to increase sustainability
• A passion for design
• Wanting to help distressed homeowners
• Helping to provide affordable housing
• Creating a legacy for children
• Simply wanting to make more money and have more nice things

 

Here at Best Transaction Funding we provide financing to real estate investors because they have been sorely under-served and we understand that serving them in turn helps the wider community of property owners and the economy.

Other examples you may be familiar with are Apple and Steve Jobs, Tesla, Airbnb, and more.

Letting People Know Your Why

So how do investors leverage their why? How do they share it?

 

• Write blogs
• Redo your about page on your website
• Social media
• Press releases
• Print marketing
• Emails
• Publishing videos

 

Summary

With just weeks left to finish 2015 on a high note one of the best moves for real estate investors is to open up and share more about why they do what they do. Be authentic in telling your story, but don’t be shy about getting the word out there. You might be surprised at the positive feedback.

Authored by Best Transaction Funding BestTransactionFunding.com is the leading source of transactional funding and hard money loans for real estate wholesalers in the US, where 100% financing, and saying “Yes” is what we love doing all day long.

It’s a weird season for real estate right now. Yet, while some are trying to figure if it is a cup half full or half empty scenario, others are already gearing up to celebrate the end of another awesome year in real estate.

Scary statistics

Everything suggests we should be on the brink of the real growth phase in real estate. The recover went well, and the job creation and revenues that brought ought to be kicking in and resurrecting the US housing market for real, any minute. Yet the fed didn’t raise rates in September as feared. One new index says house prices are falling in NY and DC. Add in the roller coaster ride of the stock market in recent weeks, and some might think Halloween has come early this year.

Why savvy investors aren’t spooked

Experienced investors that have been around for a couple of years are more than familiar with quirky stats, and this traditionally soft time of year for home sales prices. They see money is cheap, it’s inexpensive to buy real estate, and recognize the great window to buy low and flip higher between now and the end of year rush.

Trick or treating among zombie foreclosures

Adding to the current deals on the table are many more zombie foreclosures, and distressed properties coming through the pipeline. Savvy property wholesalers with good connections are spoiled for choice. It’s like a big bowl of real estate candy. All they have to do is knock on doors, make the calls, send the emails, keep blogging, and being social, and if it wasn’t for transactional funding they’d have way more deals than they can handle. This is time to be laying down a barrage of contracts and offers to fatten up inventory.

Cashing in

ln just a few more weeks we’ll be in peak party and spending season. Starting at Halloween it is all about the sales, events, and festivities, people feeling good, needing to buy gifts, and to invest. And that all means great sales opportunities for real estate marketers.

For those that have been around a couple of years all of that seasonal real estate marketing collateral should already be getting polished, and be being loaded into systems to be delivered on autopilot. Then the biggest challenge right now is probably what costume to wear this year? Or whether to buy the new Range Rover Autobiography or another of the new range $200k plus cars coming out right now.

If you are new to wholesaling real estate it’s time to get on that, and get ahead of the curve.

 

Authored by Best Transaction Funding BestTransactionFunding.com is the leading source of transactional funding and hard money loans for real estate wholesalers in the US, where 100% financing, and saying “Yes” is what we love doing all day long.

Some local municipalities around the country have declared "wholesaling" real estate as illegal.  They contend that selling houses without owning it first is a violation of the law and may require a license.

Not so fast...

 

PS: Apologies for the audio in advance.  As always, we try to give you the best content we can to help your business.  In case the audio is not clear, our guests are Maurice A. Thompson, the Executive Director of 1851 Center for Constitutional Law, and Vena Jones-Cox, aka the Real Estate Goddess.  Maurice's website is ohioconstitution.org and Vena's website is regoddess.com.

Case Study of HUD same-day, back-to-back transaction with BestTransactionFunding.com

Using BestTransactionFunding.com Transactional Funding for HUD Transactions

Investor explains how transactional funding can be used by flippers

BestTransactionFunding.com featured on CNBC

1. No Qualifying
Transactional funding requires no qualifying like you have experienced when applying for a conventional or even hard money mortgage loan. There is no credit check, so it doesn’t matter if you have had a few bumps and bruises in the last few years or you previously went through a bankruptcy or foreclosure. You won’t have to verify your income, how much money you have in the bank or even if you have a job. You don’t even need an appraisal. All you do need is a qualified end buyer who you will flip the property to.

2. Quick Closings
You can get your transactional funding approved and to the closing table in just a few days, which is why it is often referred to as ‘flash funding’. It is great to have as a back up even if you have plenty of cash just in case something comes up so that you won’t miss your closing. Plus many property wholesalers today will only give you two weeks to close if you want to get the deal. So if you want the best bargains and the biggest profits you really have no option but to pay cash or use transactional funding.

3. Act As A Cash Buyer
The speed that transactional funding provides and the fact that there are no underwriting hoops to jump through means that you can really act as a cash buyer and demand even bigger discounts when making offers on properties. This will give you a decisive edge over your competition and allows for either making a larger spread on each deal or being able to flip houses with a lower retail price tag so they move faster.

4. 100% Financing
Transactional funding provides 100% financing of your purchase price plus closing costs enabling true no money down real estate deals.

5. Lower Risk
Having access to a great transactional lender means being able to flip homes quickly and easily, getting in and out without the risks associated with holding or speculating on appreciation.

6. It’s More Affordable
If you have used conventional mortgage financing or hard money lenders to fund your real estate deals in the past you know that hefty junk fees and paying lots of points can seriously dig into your profits and make or break a transaction. You will find transactional funding a lot cheaper, leaving more money on the table and in your bank account.

Looking for a little inspiration to take your real estate investing to the next level and want to know how the pros are really able to make so much?