Spray and Pray
Joe Niego of Chicago talks about business being a game of Spray and Pray. We generate as many leads as possible and pray for them to turn into transactions.
I tell my buyers that real estate purchases are a process of elimination. We’re going to search for the right geography and house attributes and eliminate the duds until we get down to the last one or two — the ones that best fit the bill. We’ll write on one, negotiate the price and move toward closing.
Today is a little different. Foreclosures and short sales are popular among buyers today. Everyone is looking for the phenomenal deal. I’m excited to help people buy these distressed properties–but it ain’t easy. Banks don’t operate like typical sellers. They are hard to get along with.
Today if you write an offer on a short sale or a foreclosure you have approximately a 1 in 4 chance of getting it accepted – even if it’s the best offer. You have a 1 in 3 chance of even getting a response. Many of us are frustrated because this is not how the business is supposed to go. Well, like it or not, this is how the business is going today.
The spray and pray approach works like this: if you want a distressed property, be prepared to put out a bunch of offers. Most will get rejected or ignored. But we just keep putting them out until we get a winner. You will get frustrated — honestly, I will too! But this is what we do in this market. We put out the offers and pray one gets accepted.
You’ve got to keep a positive attitude when looking for a distressed property. But it’s worth the trouble, if you get a great deal.
It’s a good life.
Category : Blog
