One of the toughest things you will face as an investor is keeping deals together.  For an example, one of  my short sales .  A newer townhouse built in 2006. Current owner owes 280K on the property but we are able to sell it for 200K.  There is a first and second mortgage.   It’s definitely a great deal and I had many buyers interested.  The only issue with the property is that it’s not in the greatest part of the neighborhood.  The area is up and coming and the price is definitely right.  It’s also near a well known college in NJ.  We got an interested buyer and have been working with him for the past 3 weeks.    It’s a newbie investor who’s looking  to rent out properties or do quick rehab flips. This property would have to be the rental he’s looking for because there really isn’t much to fix on it. 

The deal was going along fine until the buyer began to tell me about other properties he’s interested in.  Everything started to fall apart.  In this market I firmly believe buyers are out there but they have a lot to choose from.  The price, area and condition of the property need to be right for your buyer.  It’s very important to know your market for the house you’re dealing with.  Not all strategies will be the same for each house just as not all buyers will be the same for each house.  I would suggest having a back up on all your deals.  No need to put all your eggs in one basket.  Also, continue your marketing campaign. If I’ve learn anything as an investor, it is, the deal isn’t complete until you close.

The buyer I had was nervous about the mortgage payments in relation to the rent he would receive.  He also started to look at properties with a lower asking price…so he told me 2 days ago.  We decided to sweeten the pot for him, to give more of an incentive to stick with us.  Pay his taxes for a year (NJ taxes are pretty high);  Or, pay the first 3 to 4 months mortgage.  These are just added bonuses to give incentives on buying the house.  There are many different incentives then the typical pay closing cost or giving toward repairs.  As it stands now, the buyer is thinking about the new incentives.  Regardless of that, it’s time to be aggressive with finding another buyer.

PS.  Check out my new photo gallery. I have before and after pictures of past rehabs, click here

Happy Real Estate Investing!