The national media has recently created quite a FRIGHT amongst most real estate investors with all of their doom and gloom news about the national real estate market. They make it seem as if now is the time to stay away from real estate investing all together.
The truth is, due to the enormous increase in foreclosures, there are more motivated sellers than ever, accepting bigger discounts on their properties than we’ve seen in years.
Many of these properties have no equity and are ripe for a very profitable short sale. And other sellers are willing to accept 60% of the value. Even if you have to sell it at 90% of value for a quick sale, that’s a big profit.
To prove that you can still buy properties at big discounts, I decided to conduct a little experiment. I asked Travis, my software developer, to step away from his computer and spend a day trying to buy bargain-priced houses. Here is his story…
He was excited to learn about this special project…
But things quickly went down hill. Apparently, he hasn’t listened to my teleseminar (available to members) regarding the “7 Worst Ways to Find Bargain-Priced Properties” because he started trying to find deals in all the wrong places.
He browsed through properties on the MLS. No luck. He placed a newspaper ad. No calls. He drove through neighborhoods looking for FSBOs. No dice. He even attended the local foreclosure auction. Outbid!
After a quick break, he posted his flyer on bulletin boards at local grocery stores. No bites. He passed out his business card at the real estate club. No leads. And finally, he put out 100 bandit signs in his neighborhood. No calls … except from the police department.
By this time, Travis was exhausted, disappointed, and ready to give up!…
But just at that moment, Travis looked at the calendar and realized it was October 31st. It was Halloween! Like most programmers, he’s a very logical guy. So he reasoned that all of this failure occurred because he wasn’t embodying the “Halloween Spirit”.
Travis recalled learning a special formula for “Halloween Riches” from a trip he took to the New Orleans French Quarter back in his college days. He was certain there were 10 steps in this formula. Unfortunately, he forgot 5 of them while consuming special Halloween beverages that night.
Over the next hour or so, Travis conducted the 5 special steps. Afterwards, he knew he was ready for action. He had a newfound sense of confidence and was ready to lock in his first deal.
But how would he do it? He was out of ideas. After all, he had tried 7 different methods for buying houses with no success. What was left?
Then it struck him like a house on the Wicked Witch of the East! “What have I been thinking?” Travis exclaimed! “I should have just logged into myhousedeals.com and gone after the wholesale deals or motivated seller leads in my area!” So Travis logged in, started researching some of the properties, and within 30 minutes, landed his first deal!
He then screamed in excitement, and we all ran into his office, curious to find out what all the fuss was about. We quickly realized he found a deal. After a few congratulations, Elise asked him for the secret to his success. Since he had myhousedeals.com up on his computer screen, we all assumed that pursuing deals on the website was his secret.
But guess what! Travis acknowledged the importance of myhousedeals.com in helping him find the deal. But he said, that was NOT the secret! The secret was applying the “Halloween Riches” formula. Alex asked him to show us the formula, but he refused. Then Lauren threatened to cancel his membership and drink his blood, and he quickly agreed.
Here’s Travis’s secret formula to “Halloween Riches” as displayed by Travis himself …
Step 1: Be festive by dressing up! It gives you the enthusiasm you need to build rapport with the seller.
Step 2: Drink a special stew. It gives you the focus you need while doing your due diligence.
Step 3: Let the pumpkin guide you to the right deal. It helps you avoid buying the wrong house in the wrong area.
Step 4: Consult with the spiders. They give you the confidence you need during negotiations.
Step 5: Eat 5 pounds of candy. This is just for fun.
We were all amazed at Travis’s persistence in executing these steps. But some of us doubted their effectiveness. Careful not to offend Travis, Lauren asked, “Travis, do you think logging into myhousedeals.com had anything to do with it?”
Travis replied, “Yeah, that may have been a small part of it. But the 5 steps are absolutely critical. Unfortunately, they only work on Halloween. And steps 2 and 5 are really making for a deadly combo in my belly right about now. But it’s worth it.”
Then Alex asked him about his future in real estate investing. Travis commented, “I’m really taking a liking to investing. I love the thrill of getting a deal quickly and easily. I can’t wait until next Halloween so that I can apply this special formula and repeat my success. I advise all real estate investors to buy a house each Halloween using my formula.”
While Travis’s advice is definitely interesting and I fully respect his opinion, I suggest that you don’t wait until next Halloween to buy your first or next property. I also suggest that you replace Travis’s “5 steps to Halloween Riches” with my own version.
My version is named “9 Free Gifts valued at $1,253”. You get these gifts when you sign up for the 30-day free trial to myhousedeals.com. For some reason, I think they’ll help you a little more than Travis’s steps to Halloween Riches. And from what I understand, they don’t send you to the ER with a belly ache either, which is nice.
To get your gifts and access to the deals, just go to www.myhousedeals.com/freetrial and sign up for the 30-day free trial today. And until next time, Happy Halloween from all of us at myHouseDeals.com!
Doug Smith
President
myHouseDeals.com