How To Find Property
When looking for property, it's not only where you look, but how you look that brings success. Searching online to locate properties for sale has become the norm, but unless you are familiar with a specific area, you may not be aware of the drawbacks associated with a property. The more you become familiar with a particular area and the current market, the better you will become at locating the property you want and recognizing a good deal.
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Instructions
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Steps for Finding Property
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Investigate the area in which you are interested with an online search to gather basic information about the community. City-Data.com will give you demographic information, and Zillow.com can give you a reasonable range for an area's existing single family home prices. A visit to the official city or county website for the location will help to answer specific questions about the community, as well as provide you with links to the Chamber of Commerce and local businesses.
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Purchase a good map book, and drive around the area of interest to you. A GPS unit can help you drive from point A to point B if you are in unfamiliar territory. Although there is no substitute for physically driving the area of interest, if you locate a specific property for sale and need to refresh your memory of the location, Google Maps and Google Earth allow you to view aerial photos, often up close, and in many locations enable you to take a virtual tour down the street.
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Search for property that matches your parameters using your local online multilist, or go to Realtor.com. If you are not sure how to conduct an online search, consult with a real estate broker. If you choose to have him or her help you with your search and submit a contract and negotiate a deal, you can sign a buyer's agency agreement. The broker's commission is negotiable, but it nearly always is paid by the seller.
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Jump on an online classified ad website such as Craigslist.com or Oodle.com to find properties that are for sale by owner or listed by a broker who is anxious to make a sale. You can locate bank-owned properties by going to a specific bank's website, and look for a tab labeled "REO Properties" or "Bank Owned Properties."
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Gather information on a particular piece of property, including the owner's mailing address, even if there is no "for sale" sign or the property is not currently listed on the market by going to the local county assessor's office, or visit the assessor's website online. If a particular piece of property, whether it's a home, commercial building or land, suits your needs, you can contact the owner and inquire as to whether he or she accept an offer to purchase without going into specific detail. Once you start a dialogue with the owner, even if the initial response is no, you may be able to eventually work out a deal.
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Tips & Warnings
Real estate investment clubs can be a great place to network, especially when searching for a hard to find property. Real estate bird-dogs are people who, for a fee, locate bargain properties or specific need properties for buyers. If you find a promising property but need time to put together financing or complete your due diligence, you can gain control of the property for a specified period of time with an option to buy. Fees, if any, are negotiable.
Consult with a real estate broker or attorney if you are uncertain how to proceed with a purchase contract after you have located a desirable property. Avoid making a verbal offer, even if you are caught up in the heat of the moment. Pay special attention to recently sold comparable properties when submitting an offer.
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- Photo Credit Image by: Keith Olsen
