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How to Find a Great Realtor to Run Your Property “Comparables” (Comps)

Establishing value on your property is critical. Skill number one above all other skills to master.

The most important aspects of being a real estate investor is the ability to establish value on houses or properties you are considering buying, wholesaling, or flipping. Irregardless of location, be it California, New York, Houston, or Dallas its a must know skill to learn in time.

But how do you master comping property if you do not have Multiple Listing Service (MLS) access? How can you practice and practice running comps (like I have until you breeze through it), looking at land, comparing variables like year built, location, lot square feet, bed and baths, subdivision and lastly what is the property next too? Is it next to a commercial center, stinky ranch or pig farm or a nice area with a creek or lake? These factors are important to know in learning to master running comps on property.

Before you can become proficient with running comps you need MLS access from a realtor if you are not one already. And this is how you do it. You want to find a realtor you know on a personal level, maybe a friend, friend of the family, or relative. If you don’t have a realtor on hand you need to make friends with one.

This is how you go about making friends and getting MLS access. Drive for dollars and find a vacant, boarded up house ones you want to consider buying or wholesaling. Find two or three, then call a few Realtors up tell them you are real estate buyer or investor and need a good realtor to buy through and run comps.

Start off only giving them a few addresses to comp then a week later give them a few more, meanwhile take them out to coffee get to know them, their likes dislikes, hobbies, etc. Form a relationship with them. A week later give them a few more comps to run, be sure the houses are in your actual buying areas of interest. In other words make sure its real comps of real houses. Its one way to get to know your platinum areas.

Phone your realtor talk to him or her about the houses he or she comped. Make the chat a casual conversation. Ask them if they would like you to refer them (realtor) to the sellers who want to list. Of course the realtor will say yes! Let them know not all sellers you meet are desperate or motivated sellers and some simply need a good realtor to list with.

Then when a seller does not want to sell ask them if they would like to talk to your realtor to see if listing is right for them. Call the Realtor and give them the seller’s name, phone, address, and the condition of the house. This will show the realtor you are serious. No one works for free. Keep track of those referrals maybe the realtor will give you a small finders fee once listed and sold, just don’t ask for one at this point. Your sole goal is MLS access! The gold standard of running comps.

Somewhere in the discussions you are giving them the comps to run, they start to get a bit overwhelmed at the extra work load of running the comps for you. This is what you want. They need to realize in the back of their minds without you mentioning it, they should just give you MLS access.

However, when you feel its a good time tell them you can “save them time buy getting MLS access as an “real estate assistant” or such, just whatever is easier for them” which they can ethically do. This is why, they have real estate assistants who run comps for them, look up properties on the MLS and help out in the office for them.

If you are giving them leads they are going to be more than happy to give you the access you need once you establish trust with them. It is wise to be working about 2-3 Realtors at once to see who is actually a big picture or forward thinker. Do this until they get you the MLS access. Do this until you can speak their language. Do this until you get your MLS access. But stay in touch with the other Realtors, because you never know when you will need them too.

Let this soak in a bit and see if it helps you to get the MLS access you need. Zillow or no other comp service is worth a darn, hey its hard enough to establish value with the MLS as it is. Some Realtors will say they can run the comps but a realtor see’s comps through a different light than the investor. Here is one major difference, WE write the $200,000 check to BUY the house, Realtors only list the house. We better be right-on with our comps! Get it!?! So they see running comps through a different pair of glasses, and this is one of many reasons why you need the actual MLS access yourself.

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Getting Mortgage Loans With Bad Credit: How to Maximize Approval Chances

For anyone with low credit ratings, it comes as very good news to learn that this is never the element of a loan application that causes it to be rejected. There are other factors and, as such, ways to prepare and ultimately improve the strength of an application. Even when seeking a mortgage loan with bad credit, approval is possible.Lenders look for specific pieces of information in a mortgage application, information that will lead them to the conclusion that repayments are probably going to be made without a hitch. But with bad credit ratings an element of the equation, securing mortgage approval is going to involve the lender getting a gentle nudge towards confidence.There are a few simple steps that can play a big part in that, and with enough planning and preparation, the mortgage loan needed to buy your new home can be yours.1. Get The Numbers RightThe first place to start is to get your numbers in order, otherwise known as careful and accurate budgeting. There is no point in applying for a mortgage loan with bad credit if the lender is unable to afford the repayments. So, get to know how much in monthly repayments can be comfortably afford before submitting an application.Make a list of all of the existing debts that have to be paid each month, including current personal and other loans, outstanding utility bills, credit card balances, and regular household and daily expenses. When these are calculated, then the amount of excess income is known, making securing mortgage approval easier in the long-run.Remember the debt-to-income ratio that lenders adhere to strictly. It states no more than 40% of income can be used for loan repayments. If the amount of debt is already near the 40% limit, then it may be necessary to lower the existing debt before applying for the mortgage loan.2. Lowering Your DebtWhen it comes to applying for mortgage loans with bad credit, it is worth noting that lenders understand a low credit score is no indication of foolish money management. And if there are clear signs that the low score has been approved, then the lender are happy to take that into account when assessing the application.The amount of existing debt an applicant has has a definite influence on the debt-to-income ratio. So, if some of the debt can be cleared, the ratio can be made better. This in turn can lead to securing mortgage approval. Cutting the debt can be done most efficiently through a consolidation loan, clearing the debt in one go and so improving the credit score fast.With better scores come lower interest rates, better terms and a more manageable monthly repayment schedule. And with the extra cash that is freed up, repaying the new mortgage loan is made all the easier too.3. Cutting the Mortgage SizeFinally, a very useful strategy in securing approval for a mortgage loan with bad credit is to actually reduce the size of the required loan. Admittedly, this is not an easy thing to do, but it can be done by making a larger down payment.If 10% of the purchase price of the home is put down, instead of the usual 5%, then the amount needed to complete the purchase is obviously reduced. For example, with a $200,000 home, it would mean a $180,000 mortgage instead of a $190,000 mortgage.This has a very positive influence over securing mortgage approval because it lowers the principal borrowed, and therefore the monthly repayments. This makes the mortgage loan all the more affordable for the applicant, which in turn removes one of the chief impediments to approval.
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First Line Manager – Know Thyself

In the forecourt of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi are the words, “Know Thyself.” This is an admonition to people to remember they are not God; and, to enter the Temple with humility. Ben Franklin said, “There are three things extremely hard; steel, a diamond, and to know one’s self.” Most first line managers struggle to define themselves.”Knowing myself,” as a manager is a challenge for me. This challenge started when I was twenty-four, and is still a challenge for me today. I have made progress. I know first line managers are all different; we come to the job with different expectations and experiences. I bet most of us know we have to define ourselves to the people we manage. To do this, we must first know ourselves. I am a first line manager and have been since 1971, except for two years. I can give you my perspective on some of my learning moments. I hope you can gain some insight in my progression to “knowing myself.”Being a General Manager of three motels taught me; the more managers you have between you and employees, the further you are away from the actions of the employees in the departments. I know I must transfer my energy through managers to have an impact on their department employee actions. This is hard to do. My expectations are high. I hired a college fraternity buddy of mine to manage the restaurant in my first motel. He was not effective. We discussed his lack of performance in my office. He started to cry. I learned I did not want to manage my friends. Also, I learned, I did not like being removed from the employees on the front line. This is my first realization; I missed being a front line manager. I was the restaurant manager and the General Manager of the last motel I managed. This is the best of worlds, a general manager and a first line manager.From 1976 to 1978, I work as a Territory Sales Manager for a chemical company. I am just responsible for my actions. There are no employee problems. The only employee I must motivate is me. This is easy. Each morning I get in the seat of the car at seven o’clock. I work my daily sales plan. The first year I have a forty percent sales increase in my territory. This is a lonesome job. I am alone each day; just me, a sales bag, and a car. My second realization, I miss the manager’s role; that is, working with employees to accomplish company goals. Even thought I am successful selling, I prefer managing people.Years later, the Vice President of my division said we need to get you to the corporate headquarters for more experience, my prompt answer, “I do not want to go.” I know I will not survive at the corporate headquarters, might as well admit it. I am sure this ended my journey up the corporate ladder. I am where I want to be; a first line manager, close to employees and customers.Thus, I know, I want to manage employees that are close to the customer. Even with all the issues involved with the job. Some first line managers do not come to this point and dislike handling all the issues with being a manager. Maybe they are in the wrong job.This is the point. Being true to myself makes me happy and passionate about my job.”Know Thyself.” then, “To thyself be true.”

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