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Why is this land so cheap? What’s the Catch!

By: Mark Podolsky | August 18, 2011

 I grew up hearing this expression all the time, “If it sounds too good to be true then it probably is…”  We all know what it feels like to get ripped off either by over-paying for something or under-paying and it doesn’t work.  This fear serves us well.   However, in the land business you have to be especially careful of “deals.”  Doing your homework is the only way you’re going to know if it’s a deal or a problem.  Almost daily, someone sees some of the inexpensive land I’m selling online and wants to know the catch.   Usually, the only catch is I bought it right and I’m quickly flipping for a quick wholesale gain.  Sometimes, it’s just simply supply demand where there is just so much rural land you have to price competitively.   I think you should always be more cautious and less trusting online and ask the seller a ton of questions prior to any acquisition.  It’s the only way you’ll be more certain that your deal is really a deal and not some scam.  The good news is, with Facebook and Twitter the days of a land seller taking advantage of people with shady transactions are numbered.  It’s just too easy now to have your reputation destroyed over night by one bad deal to one customer.   The old adage of buyer beware is here to stay, but suddenly the tables are turning…

Avoiding buyer’s remorse:

Nevertheless, once you determine you’re getting a great “buy” make sure you are clear on why you’re investing in the property prior to your investment.   If your main intention is to one day retire on the property and build be certain you have talked to the local Planning & Zoning board and discuss your plans.  Maybe what you want to do is not allowed.   If you want to raise horses or goats same thing.   If you’re just buying as your legacy to your family one day then obviously the research doesn’t need to be as exhaustive.  Just make sure that all of your questions have been answered sufficiently before pulling the trigger on your land purchase.

If you have a land buying story you want to share with me feel free to do so in the comments or by sending me a message.

Why You Should Buy Land in Nevada (as opposed to other states)

By: Mark Podolsky | August 3, 2011

 
Why is Nevada property so special?  Why not invest in California, Wyoming or Montana?  The reason you should be especially keen on Nevada is because:

In Nevada there is no personal or corporate income tax, no inheritance or gift tax, estate tax, and extremely low property taxes.
Despite the hit Nevada has taken economically, Nevada is the fastest growing state in the U.S. for the last fifteen years.  People love to sin and Nevada let’s you hit all the vices without judgement or punishment.

I have a perfect 71 acre parcel ready to be taken down.  See the details here.

Chrome/ Firefox / Safari Extension tip:  Ghostery.  If you value your online privacy.  Check out Ghostery here.

 

Ounce of Gold or an Acre of land?

By: Mark Podolsky | July 27, 2011

 

I found this article today on landthink.com and found it very interesting– landthink article.

Let me know if you’d rather own gold or land?

I certainly agree with the author.  Can’t hunt or fish on gold…

The Kindness of Customers

By: Mark Podolsky | July 16, 2011

I was listening to an audible.com book the other day titled “Cutting For Stone” and it was an excellent listen about a surgeon from Ethiopia that trains in the U.S., and his view of the United States as an immigrant etc. Anyways, there is a line in the book about how even though America is a tough place to survive and people will try to put you down there is always someone there to pick you up and help you.

I have been the recipient of such kindness on many occasions, but in my youth I took it for granted.  I had no real perspective on how fortunate I was to have someone go out of their way to help me.  In my younger narcissistic days I was constantly hustling and thought that in some way I would get them back one day for their kindness.  Well, I’m ashamed to say that those people come and go I without social media in the Nineties I lost touch with many of those people along the way.  Nevertheless, now that I’m older and wiser I’m more aware of the kindness and generosity of my customers.

My latest investor named Adam, whom I’ve never met face to face has on many occasions gone out of his way to help me with my business.  He told me about docusign.com , suggested affiliate links to improve my cash flow and every time I talk with him has an idea or two to improve my business.  So when I heard that line in the book it made me think of him and how lucky I was to have someone like that in my life.  He probably just enjoys helping people out not realizing how he literally transformed the way I do business.

So, Adam if you’re reading this you know I’m filled with gratitude for all you’ve done to help me out and improve my business and customer service (I’ll email him anyways).

So, it’s my turn to pay it forward.  Email me or call me if you ever need help with analyzing a land transaction or anything else you think I could help with.  I want to be more like Adam.

 

Another Reason to Love Land

By: Mark Podolsky | July 6, 2011

I’m preparing for a big move and I started getting really resentful of all the stuff we’ve accumulated over the years.  Unused toys, hardly worn clothes, canned goods never opened (going to the local food bank today) and the list goes on and on.  Then I had a customer email me to say money was tight and they would have to default on their note.  I only hope they weren’t buying more “stuff” and letting their land go for something that would eventually break, become obsolete or go out of style.  In fact, this is another reason for me to love land is that it takes up literally no space in my life and yet I get all of the benefits of ownership and use out of it.   Moving in 118 degree heat has been miserable, but enlightening to all of the “stuff” we have that we don’t use, never used or just had for just in case.  If we had never acquired this “stuff”, but invested in more raw land that we could camp on, hunt on or just experience with the family I know we’d have been much happier.

What do you think of “stuff” versus experiences and land investments?

Leveraging Time

By: Mark Podolsky | June 10, 2011

I just bought a bunch of lots in Southern Arizona near Tucson and Bisbee and I listed a project on elance.com to leverage my time mapping the entire project.  If you’re not focused on working on your business and instead you are working in your business then you are just not using your time efficiently.

With elance I am able to get people from all over the world with better computer skills than myself to work for less than $10 an hour.  Sure, I could do all the maps myself (and trust me I have), but my attitude now is I should be out making offers since that’s what really makes me money versus working on the nitty-gritty details of running my land business.

I love the marketing aspect of land and keep a hands on approach to the customer service, but even though I am not ready to outsource that function I probably should.

Think about all the things you do in your day and analyze where your time is best spent and then leverage technology to leverage your time to make more money, be more fulfilled and enjoy your life.

Let me know what you think.

The Almost Perfect Business

By: Mark Podolsky | June 7, 2011

My old mentor Raj and I would often discuss the perfect business.  The perfect business would have no inventory, no employees almost no headaches.  The perfect business would be a one time sale of a product or service people had to have or really wanted to have.   There would be a one time sale with little maintenance and people would continue to just make payments monthly with little turnover.  Basically, we agreed that the absolute perfect business was… Wait for it. You’re going to be surprised… Insurance.

Think about it, no inventory, no cost to acquire the inventory and when it comes to auto and health insurance it’s mandatory to have it.  Basically it’s the perfect business.  Well, I have found the “Almost Perfect Business” in Land Sales.

Land is well just land.  No maintenance required.  No inventory to store just legal documents.  Land that is financed is a one time sale and the monthly payments keep coming in and if someone fails to pay you  you simply re-sell the land.  The problem with Land being the perfect business is the up front costs associated with actually first acquiring the land.

Otherwise, land sales would meet almost all of the requirements of no inventory, no employees, no headaches associated with the inventory breaking down, spoiling or becoming obsolete.  Land has always had a strong demand (maybe not in the last few years, but there is demand) and if you finance it’s a one time sale with monthly recurring revenue.  Plus, your balance sheet looks so much better than any Insurance Broker and people won’t run away from you at parties…

If you’re interested in learning more about owning your own land business (it’s fantastic part-time way to make extra money) let me know and I can help you for a nominal fee.

Then, you can discover for yourself the Almost Perfect Business to start making money in Real Estate.

How to Negotiate Your Land Acquisition

By: Mark Podolsky | June 2, 2011

There are books galore on the art of negotiation and they all have excellent information and each one has a definite spin on the time-tested art of negotiating. Basically, everything in life is negotiable, but you have to be ready and willing to deal especially in land and real estate.

First, everyone expects to negotiate at some level in real estate so you aren’t offending anyone like you might be if you walk into a retail store asking for a better deal than what they are offering at Old Navy.  Nevertheless, you would be shocked to learn how few people are up for the fight for fear of losing the deal or coming off as a Jerk.

First, you need to due your research or due diligence on the property and calculate all the costs associated with the transaction plus what it will cost you to have the property perform for you its highest and best use.   Once you have this number you can begin negotiating down from there.

Second, be aware of the current market conditions.  Right now, conditions are favorable for buyers as there are more sellers than buyers and prices are depressed. If your seller isn’t realistic about the market then do not even bother wasting your time on protracted negotiations.  If they are being reasonable then proceed.  When it was a seller’s market, you had to be more choosy and work harder to find the right transaction as there is more competition and in fear of losing out a tendency to overpay.

Make an offer and if it’s low explain why it’s so low.  Don’t just make a blind low ball offer and expect the Seller to quickly counter.  A little extra emotional labor on your part about the offer will go a long way towards a win-win final price.

Wait.  Wait and then wait some more.  Sometimes you won’t hear back from the seller for two weeks and this is fine.  Be patient and then make another offer if they have not countered your first offer within two weeks.  Again, explain your offer.

Be prepared for the counter up from the Seller and then start the process of if I give you a higher price on my offer I will also need a lower down payment, lower interest rate, better terms, etc.  Don’t give without getting something.  If it’s just a simple cash transaction then see if they will pay more of the closing costs or some other concession.

Once you settle on the price make sure you have not gotten overly emotional over the deal and paid more than you wanted because you had to have the property.  Just pass and know there will be another deal down the road.   There always is.  Never overpay. Ever.

Let me know if this blog post has been helpful.

 

Do you own Land? We will buy it!

By: Mark Podolsky | May 27, 2011

If for whatever reason you are looking to unload a property you own call or email us and we’ll make you an offer!

Our number is 800-428-3760 and email is [email protected].

In this market it won’t be a great offer, but an offer nonetheless.

You can also try to sell it yourself and contact us and we can help you do that as well for a small consulting fee.

Want to Make tons of $$$ in Land? Make offers.

By: Mark Podolsky | May 25, 2011

When I started buying and selling raw land it was all about hitting the County tax sale auction circuit.  I would travel County to County doing research, driving around the areas and getting a good feel for the area.  Once the tax sale auctions became standing room only I started searching for companies that owned and sold land.  I would make offer after offer after offer until finally someone agreed to my low ball price.

In the land business and real estate in general if you aren’t making an offer a day then you just aren’t trying.  Get to know an area, make contacts and start making offers.  They can be ridiculous offers, but error on the side of being too low.  Just make offers and good things will begin to happen.   Remember, in real estate you make money on the buying (because you’re buying below market value) not when you sell.

Tell me a story about your best offer.

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