I’ve been in the wholesale real estate business for over eight years. It is second nature to me, so I sometimes forget that it is still a widely misunderstood practice. While most everybody understands the core concepts of conventional real estate transactions, the wholesale real estate business is much less recognized as the nuanced, viable practice it really is.
To help people better understand the wholesale real estate business, I’ve laid out its principle concepts here.
Simply put, the wholesale real estate practices boils down to flipping the contract of sale on a house. The Seller and Real Estate Investor agree to a sale price for the Seller’s home or property. The contract is signed with some or no earnest money down. The investor then quickly flips that contract, selling it to an investor at a greater price.
The investor is a cash buyer with the goal of rehabbing and flipping that home or perhaps using it as a long term investment. The Seller receives cash for their home without the prolonged timeline or hassles of the more widely used process of listing with a Realtor. The wholesaling Investor makes money on the contract sale to the Investor, and the Investor picks up a property that will generate income for him/her.
I first discovered the wholesale real estate business while working as a licensed Realtor. Frustrated with the confines of the retail real estate industry, I was drawn to wholesale real estate. This practice utilizes attorneys, title companies, and other professionals, just like retail real estate, but the [eafl id=”1883″ name=”FMSN Webinar” text=”Sellers”] are far more motivated to sell their homes or properties.
As I developed relationships with investors, learned more about the business, and grew my own network, it was an easy decision for me to leap out of the slow-paced, cumbersome retail real estate world and into the wholesale real estate business.
Why do I still love the wholesale real estate business?
Just like any entrepreneurial endeavor, this business can be tough – but it also allows me to live my life on my own terms. I am solely responsible for how well my business does. I work harder some months than others. I feel enormous pride in growing my business to where it is now, and even bigger excitement at where I am heading.
You would be hard-pressed to find another industry with as many possibilities for the entrepreneur with little to no startup funds, or with as strong an educational and investment path for those who can invest in the early stages. It is a hard-earned but absolutely attainable level of success, once the correct steps are taken.
There are lots of reasons people need to sell their home fast. Perhaps they inherited a property, the property is in disrepair, they are relocating, going through a divorce or some sort of financial struggle? These are just a few reasons a seller would want to work with an investor like myself.
Let’s look at an example of a typical wholesale real estate transaction with one of our most common types of Sellers…
A Seller reaches out to me with a need to sell his home quickly. That home may be worth $400,000 in top condition and full retail price, but needs a significant amount of cosmetic updates as well as some major repairs. The Seller owes $100,000 on the mortgage and $10,000 in back taxes. He’s fallen on hard times and just wants to get out from under the debt fast. We agree on a sale price of $220,000.
Our attorneys approve the contracts, and we have a deal. I have investors in this area, and sell this contract to one of them for $240,000. The investor closes on the contract, invests $70,000 on renovations, and sells the home retail for a $90,000 profit. I have made $20,000 by flipping the contract, and the Seller is debt free with $100,000 cash in the bank. This entire process depending on the state your doing business can take as little as 10 – 30 days.
The wholesale real estate business is more than a business.
It provides a service to people that allows them to move forward with their lives. Having worked hard to rebuild my own life after my own hard times, this is the most rewarding part of my work.
Perhaps the better questions is, What’s not to love about this business?
Duplicate Dave's Real Estate Wholesale Business
Real Estate Investing is one of the fastest and most lucrative ways to generate cash flow. The key is having the right knowledge and the right tools for growing your business.
