Hi, I'm Matthew Whitaker with Evernest (formerly GKhouses) and today's question I'm going to tackle is What Is The Best Way To Find A House In Denver You Buy As A Rental? I'm going to take you through some things that I've learned in almost 15 years of investing.
Bought My First House!
I started buying and selling houses when I was 23 years old. Bought my first house, renovated it by myself, actually dragged my younger brothers in and forced them to help me renovate it. So, I've been doing this for a long time and I'm going to tell you some kind of key points that I've learned.
First:
Let's Start With The First Thing. The First Thing Is I Would Say Is My Lesson To Every New Rental House Buyer Is Master An Area. (What Is The Best Way To Find A House In Denver Yo Buy As A Rental?) I think what happens is newbies start out and they try to do a very shotgun approach. And what I think is you need to start being more like...very pinpoint in what you're looking for. What I tell people is to find an area and learn an area and know that area, master that area better. That can be a neighborhood, that can be a zip code, but you want to know that zip code or that area way better than everybody else. So that's the first clue is too find an area and master an area.
What Does That Look Like?
I would decide number one when you're finding an area, what class am I looking for? Am I looking for class A rental where there's very little risk. I'll rent to some very creditworthy people. The rents are high, the returns are much lower, but it's probably a lot fewer headaches. Or am I looking for class B, class C where the credit...where the people's credit is maybe a little bit worse but the returns can be higher? What type of class neighborhood I'm looking for. So I would decide in my head, "Hey, this is what I'm looking for."
Master An Area!
Then the thing I would do is master an area. What does master an area look like? Once you've kind of picked an area is first understanding the price, what type of price do I want to pay for a house in that area? What is kind of my sweet spot in terms of what I want to be in that house for total once I buy it and then renovate it? Where is that sweet spot?
Second:
The Second Thing Is The Product. So, One Of The Things We Talk About A Lot Is The Age Of The Home. You know, older homes require more maintenance. So I would be very specific when I'm picking an area about what is the vintage of the house, how old are these houses? Because most of the houses in the area are built around the same time. So understanding, "Hey, this house was built in the mid '70s, this house was built in the late '90s. Knowing what you're looking for in terms of the area or what generally you're going to find in those areas will also tell you about the types of returns you're going to get.
And Then The Last Thing Is The Most Important If You're Looking For A Rental House Is The Rent Amount.
I mean, knowing what the rent is is super important. The first thing I would say, is, master an area. The second thing I would say is being consistent. I have found that buying and this is really a sales technique, but I found that buying houses has really become more from a product of me being consistent than it is from me being the first or the second on the scene.
Now, You Certainly Want To Be The First Or The Second On The Scene.
You do buy a number of houses like that, but I think a lot more houses shake out. I think you find more houses over a long period of time by being consistent. What does being consistent mean? It means making consistent offers. It means following up.
There Is No Reason You Shouldn't Follow Up!
When an offer gets declined, there is no reason you shouldn't follow up with the same offer or another offer a month later. People's situations change. And what I found is the more organized I can be, the more consistent I can be, the more likelihood. I am going to be about finding houses, and if I can be consistent and consistently put offers in front of people, then I'm going to consistently buy more houses.
Third:
The Next Thing I Would Say Is Once You Decide Exactly What You Want And You've Been Consistent, Once You Know Your Buy-box And One Fits Your Buy-box, Pull That Trigger. You Cannot Afford To Wait. That's one of the things that I've seen is as we start to master buying houses, we become more...the first newbie investor is kind of scared to pull the trigger, but the person that's been doing it a long time knows, "Hey, this fits my sweet spot, this fits my buy-box." And they're able to pull the trigger. And what I would tell you is if you've done all your research and you've done everything I've told you, points one and two and one meets the criteria, pull the trigger. Now it's going to be scary. I get it. And you're going to make mistakes, that is part of this process, but be willing to pull the trigger. Don't be gunshy.
Fourth:
The Fourth Thing I Would Say And The Last Point I'm Going To Make Is Build A Reputation. (What Is The Best Way To Find A House In Denver You Buy As A Rental?) One of the great things about specializing in an area is you can build a reputation for being an investor of that area. And when people like wholesalers or investor agents, when they get a house and they know you like that area, you're going to be their first call.
Live Up To Your Commitments!
Especially if you've been performing...you kind of live up to your commitments and you perform, you're going to be able to buy based on your reputation. If there's a certain area that you're kind of a ninja in and it fits your buy-box and somebody calls you, you can literally buy houses on the phone like sight unseen because you're such a great investor that you know the vintage of the house. You kind of know the layout because generally in these neighborhoods, houses are fairly similar. So, that's the fourth point. Build a reputation.
So Going Through, Focus On A Place, Become An Expert.
Number two, be consistent. Number three, act fast when one meets your buy-box. And the fourth is to build a reputation. I'm Matthew Whitaker with evernest. If you have any other questions about getting started with rental house investing, I hope you will reach out to us. We'd love to help. Thanks so much.
