The single most profitable activity that I do is to personally knock on the door and speak directly to a principal. It’s also the fastest way to find profitable deals.
By principal, of course, I mean a person who has the ability to do business with me. The could be a homeowner, co-owner, the person in charge of an estate or trust or even an heir.
Longer days means more daylight to visit houses and talk directly to an owner, perhaps one in distress.
What’s important is to be able to reach a person who may be otherwise unreachable, doesn’t answer the phone, open and respond to mail and may not use the internet.
What you are attempting to do is to ambush someone’s attention and get them to focus on you. You, in turn, have less than 30 seconds to convince them that you are not a threat to their safety and that they should talk to you.
Most would-be deal prospectors won’t knock on more than a few doors, if any. They either find reasons why it’s not safe, a poor use of their time, complain about the price of gas, traffic, or people who won’t talk to them or slam the door in their face.
I found my prior residence by knocking on the door of hi-equity property owners. In this case, I had persistently knocked on this one house in an area close to my (first) home. After multiple tries and talking to neighbors I discovered the back story: the owners were in foreclosure on both their 1st and 2nd mortgages, divorcing and both had move in with their new partners. A little more nosing around and a neighbor directed me to a another neighbor who was in contact with the wife. She and I met at her attorney’s office and the attorney obtained a court order requiring the owners sell to me or the clerk to sign the grant deed if either owner did not.
It was a beautiful thing!
Real deal prospectors are like hunters and fishermen: they look forward to the experience and adjust the schedule accordingly. It becomes a priority, perhaps an obsession, and are not satisfied until you have a deal.
I find it interesting that a common trait among all successful real estate investors is that we get a little distracted unless or until we’ve got real deals in play and ultimately close. A certain nervousness occurs, an energy that directs them to focus on finding and working deals, and it’s not satisfied until closed. I came from a family where deer hunting was a central part of our life (until my Dad’s death when I was 21) and for me, this explains why I share this obsession about real estate deals.
I still knock on doors, especially when I’m certain of the opportunity and want to make a special effort to connect with my prospect.
Don’t waste the long daylight days. Life will fill up your schedule with all kinds of busy tasks that you will surely forget a week or a month from now. People want and need you to reach then in person and it’s up to you to make that happen.
I just completed reading David and Goliath, by Malcolm Gladwell. It’s a great read about how underdogs turn their weaknesses into their strength. What are you reading?
This is my first post in some months. Got busy with family matters (my Mother’s passing, for one) and business. After all, deals pay the bills.
