Lucas just sent me the following email asking me the following about real estate bird dogging and finding investors…..

“How can I become a property locator in Mississippi? I have found a business property in my county. I am looking
for an investor.”

My answer is in the following post that I have previously published:

http://realestatebirddogs.net/real-estate-bird-dogs-need-investors-training-lesson-21/

Here’s a company, jobs4birddogs.com that says they are looking for real estate bird dogs and they will pay you $100 per lead.

Hello,

Thank you for taking interest in being a Real Estate Bird Dog. Well we all have our own motives for why we are here, may be just for some extra money, and maybe even just a foot in the door to the Real Estate industry. The economic condition of our country is have some issues and money is harder to come by. Because of this our business is expanding. The more house that come on the market for various reasons the more chances we have to make money!!! There is a credit crunch out there and the deals are getting better and better! This is were you come in during your spare time. How many good deals do you drive past everyday? You don’t know cause you don’t have the experience… BUT WE DO!!! Now is time for YOU to CAPITALIZE on something that has been looking you right in the face. We Pay a $100 Commission per “Good Deal” that we get from you! Its just that easy!!! Now the choice is yours. You want in or you don’t. We look for people that take action. We charge a one time fee of $9.99 to send out your informational package. Sign up below.

I would be very wary of paying someone to be a real estate bird dog for them. I would also not want to work for anyone that can’t even write a marketing spiel for their web sales page (copied above) that has such poor grammar, typos and spelling errors.

And, where the heck are they located?

You’d be far better off going to a real estate investors association meeting and find some investors to work with.

Being a “real estate bird dog” is a great, risk free way to start your real estate investing career. However, real estate investing and being a “property locator” is not for everyone. Bird Dogging is an inexpensive way to find out if real estate investing is right for you before you spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on courses, books and other materials. You will find out what is involved first-hand, and experience the challenges as well as the rewards. You can earn money while learning the business that way. Remember though that this is not a “get rich quick” program.

You will have to put forth some effort to be successful bird dog. You will need to generate hundreds of leads, which will take time, effort and commitment. You have to locate properties, look up information for each property lead, and then present it. You have to motivate yourself to keep finding leads, even when it seems like none of them are panning out. You get paid to find motivated sellers, saving us time and money, and all the while you are learning the business. It’s a win-win situation for everyone!

You must know your investor’s needs. Know what types of properties, what price ranges and what locations they are looking for and prefer to deal with. The investor is your customer, and you must bring them what they want. A successful “real estate bird bogger” is like a real estate detective. The client is the investor, the case is to find motivated sellers, the reward is the referral fee, and leads represent clues. A good detective will investigate as many clues as necessary to solve the case. Likewise, a good Bird Dogger will generate and investigate as many leads as necessary to find the truly motivated sellers. You must provide complete information to your investors.

It takes much more than an address and phone number for an investor to make a decision and know what’s a good deal. Go the extra mile and use public records and other sources to provide as much information as possible.  Once you set up a system that works you can streamline the process.

Good deals are out there. Don’t let anyone tell you that you have to be an insider to find good deals. However, like I’ve said before, it takes work to find the good deals. It takes a lot of work! You’ll probably have to look at twenty properties, analyze ten, and then make offers on five properties. If you are wholesaling properties, keep in mind that making an offer on a property and having your offer accepted are two entirely different things.

You can earn full-time profits as a part-time real estate investor by “bird dogging” for real estate; some of the most successful investors out there are part-time investors who have other sources of income. In fact, several real estate millionaires started out making $50,000 a year at their day job, but over a ten to fifteen year period, they became financially independent by investing in real estate part-time. The trick to this is to work smart so that your business always operates with full efficiency and yields maximum profitability. Good investors are well organized and know how to manage money, time, and people. They are very knowledgeable and work hard.

Being a “real estate bird dogging” can be very profitable especially when you learn more advanced skills and start wholesaling or flipping properties.  Here are some tips:

• Know what you’re doing and learn the fundamentals of real estate investing
• Search and find propertiers in the right market(s)
• Know which properties are worth pursuing, which ones will make a profit, and which ones you should avoid.
• Don’t expect every property you locate and provide a lead for to get purchased.
• Have the willingness to learn and work hard.

The trick is to locate properties ready to sell where the seller agrees to sell at our price (normally this is 80% of the retail price, after repairs). Then, completely fill out a Property Profile Sheet and work (often with a real estate investor) to obtain the seller’s commitment to sell, and an assignable sales contract. This requires more advanced knowledge, which we will cover in future blog posts.

Over the past few years, I’ve met many knowledgeable and hardworking “real estate bird dogs” who were able to double their annual income, year after year, by investing in real estate on a part-time basis. These were mostly people who didn’t start out with a lot of money in their pockets or wallets. But the one thing that all of these successful and profitable “property locators” had in common was the desire to succeed, and the persistence and determination to keep going when most other people would become frustrated and quit. So what does it take to be a successful property locator again?

• Your desire to become a successful real estate investor
• Your ability to work hard as a real estate investor
• Having financial resources and knowing what they are
• Your willingness to dedicate time and money
• Knowledge about your local real estate market size and conditions.

Doubling your annual income as a real estate bird dog, and eventually investing in real estate yourself will take some time. Many investors will be hard pressed to double their annual income in their first year of business. Just remember that you’re learning and to keep working hard.

The number of real estate transactions you’ll need to complete in order to double your annual income will mainly depend on your geographical location. For example, in one market, it may take you five $10,000 deals to make $50,000. In another market, you might earn $50,000 from just two $25,000 transactions. (Most deals, where all you do is locate the property tend to pay $1000 to $5000.  The more work you do on a deal, the more you will get paid) And if you happen to live in a high-end real estate market, you might be able to make a $50,000 profit from with a single deal! Just know that there are no guarantees in life and all property locators aren’t going to experience the same types of results.

There is a learning curve. So it’s okay if you “only” earn just a few thousand during your first year as a property locator. It is money that you wouldn’t have had otherwise had you not gotten involved in real estate! I am very confident that most of you reading this will be able to pay off your bills and become debt free in no time, and all it will take is putting to use the desire to become successful!

“Out of clutter, find simplicity.” – Albert Einstein

Some people are blessed with organizational skills. Their desks may be messy or neat, but they always know exactly where everything is, and things are set up to work efficiently. Other people, however, are organizationally challenged. If you’re among these people you’ve probably got piles of stuff you’ll go through “someday,” and you probably lose your car keys a lot.

It’s harder than ever these days to stay organized, but it’s not impossible. Disorganization creates additional work, making you feel even more rushed than you really are. You may find you’re late for appointments, or, if your problem is more serious, you may even forget to pay important bills. If you are disorganized, you will also find it very hard to stay on top of your business. However, anyone can learn to be organized. Here are ten tips that might help you keep track of your life and become more successful as a real estate bird dog:

#1- No right and no wrong: Remember that there’s no right or wrong way to organize your office. There’s only what works for you. Just as long as you can find things!

#2- Accept yourself the way you are: Find a system that works for you! If filing things works for you, then file away, just remember to check that file! But if you’re one of those people who won’t remember anything unless it’s “in your face” then don’t put reminders in a file. Instead, put them on your car seat, or put a sticky note on your rear-view mirror. In short, do what you have to do to get the job done, in a way that works best, for the way you work best.

#3- Set things up so you can do things just once: For example, when you go through mail, take care of the things that will just take a minute or two immediately. Then file away the paperwork.

#4- Keep a back up of everything on computer files: Remember, it’s not a matter of IF your computer will crash, it’s a matter of WHEN. Keeping a backup will make sure everything is secure, and then you don’t have to deal with paper copies of everything!

#5- Don’t let yourself get overwhelmed: If your office is a mess, don’t let yourself get overwhelmed by the prospect of cleaning. Start small. Tell yourself that today you will clean out just the front half of one drawer.

#6- Once you’ve got your office clean: Reserve a few minutes each day to re-clean, file paperwork, and do general upkeep. Don’t forget tip number 3.

#7- Get help: Look on the Internet for tips on organizing an office. If you’re really challenged, have yourself evaluated for adult attention deficit disorder. Hire an organizer or a life coach. Your increased productivity will more than offset the cost.

#8- Stay in reality: You have stamps, right, but where? The bottom line is if you don’t know where they are, then you don’t have any. That means you’ll have to budget time to find them or buy replacements.

#9- Invest in the proper equipment: Buy the equipment you need to keep it organized – dividers, files, more desk surface space, or whatever. Indulge yourself a little and make it fun. And don’t forget to put what you can on back-up computer files.

#10- Make it comfortable and pleasant: If you don’t like entering your office, there’s something wrong. Make it a space you enjoy.

Of course, there are many, many more tips for organizing. But the most important thing to remember is this: Staying organized is necessary and you can do it! Think it through and get help if you need it. You’ll find yourself with time you didn’t know you had!

Good organization is essential to good productivity and success as a “real estate bird dog”. Learn to do things in an organized way, or at least in an efficient way. Accept your shortcomings and work within them while you try to improve them. Find a way to organize that works for you and makes you happy! When you are organized, you can provide good, quality information in a professional way that will save your investor time and help them earn money, which in turn earns you money! Soon you will find yourself getting paid for your efforts and the properties you locate, and you’ll have real estate investors who are more than happy to work with you.

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To be successful at “real estate bird dogging” It is important to find a mentor because it is usually the most efficient way to learn, but it can be difficult to find a mentor to work with.  Most seasoned investors do not have time to mentor every “property locator” that asks them, so you have to bring them something of value. You do this by supplying good, qualified leads on properties thus saving them time and helping them to make money. Just as investors pick the people they work with and use for “property locators”, it is equally important that you pick the right mentors and investors to work with.

You have a responsibility to educate yourself before you approach an investor.  Do not waste their time trying to learn the basics.  Go a bookstore and buy ten paperback books and read them.  Go online and look for sites devoted to Real Estate investing such as The Creative Investor. Read their articles and participate in their forums – they provide a goldmine of information.  And go to local real estate seminars to learn and network with investors.

It’s also important that your mentor is someone who will understand the times of frustration or stress, and have a good support system to help you through it. However this works both ways, be there for your mentor and they will be there for you in return!