If you find yourself inundated with mail and phone calls from people wanting to buy your house, you’re not alone. Real estate investing is a growing field where individuals or companies try to buy houses that aren’t currently listed for sale. Because there is no public listing and no agent, the investors need to go directly to the homeowner to make an offer. That is why they are contacting you!
Who are real estate investors?
Investors are individuals or companies interested in the real estate market. They specialize in finding real estate deals and then either investing in the deals themselves (acting as the principal investor) or passing the deals on to others (acting as a wholesaler, or secondary investor).
Why are they looking for me?
It is not easy to find real estate investments on the market. Most of the houses on the MLS are in great shape and therefore desirable to a typical homebuyer. The houses will likely have a decent amount of demand and competition. An agent is usually involved and because they earn a commission, the house is even less desirable as an investment.
Investors look for houses where it is possible to make money by solving a problem in a way only they can. Usually, these are situations where the house needs significant repairs or the owner’s situation requires the house to be sold quickly. If it’s repairs, the investor can spend the time and money to fix the house up and then sell it or keep it as a rental. If it’s a quick sale, the investor can use cash instead of obtaining a loan, allowing them to buy much faster than the typical homebuyer.
How do they find me?
They search databases available online or at county records offices to find houses or homeowners meeting certain criteria.
Some common criteria include:
- houses in foreclosure (where a fast sale can stop the foreclosure proceeding)
- inherited houses (where the owner may live far away and have no interest in dealing with the house)
- vacant houses (where the owner may be interested in getting rid of a liability)
- older houses (which may require significant repairs)
How can I get them to stop contacting me?
You can reduce the amount of mail and phone calls you receive simply by ignoring them. Of course, this method may take some time to work since investors are persistent.
Another option is to answer the inquiries, tell them that you are not interested, and ask them to take you off their list. There are usually protections in place that prevent them from contacting you after you have told them to stop.
Other options include taking advantage of the national Do Not Call Registry, which is a database of numbers that marketers are not allowed to call, or taking steps to reduce the amount of junk mail you receive.
Lastly, you may consider taking privacy measures to minimize how much of your personal information becomes publicly available, and even consider taking legal action against serious offenders.
What about sellthehouse.info?
We are also real estate investors, but instead of inundating you with unsolicited offers, we seek to provide as much education and value as possible. Eventually, someone who needs our services will find us and reach out. This way, we can work with the people who want to work with us, and not be disruptive to everyone else. Interested? Let’s talk.