Calling On FSBO Ads To Find Deals

Earlier today I found myself updating a new section on the Real Estate Investor Cookbook on For Sale By Owner Classified Ads and I was reminded just how effective calling on For Sale By Owner (often called FSBO) ads can be. While I personally prefer to spend money on marketing to get motivated sellers to call me with potential deals since I am willing to pay money to save myself some time, calling on FSBO ads can be a great method when you have more time than money for finding deals.

While calling on FSBO ads will result in your talking to a large number of un-motivated sellers, you will uncover a few motivated sellers during your calls. If you are wondering how many calls you might need to make, you can use the following as a general rule of thumb, but

Follow up:

be aware that in soft real estate markets, like we are experiencing now, you may see a larger number of motivated sellers.

For every 100 calls made to homes that are For Sale By Owner where you gather some basic information about the property, you can expect to find about 10 houses that are worth researching more. These potential deals are those that could work if the seller was properly motivated to sell. You won't really know if they are truly motivated until you go meet with them in person and make your offer. People that seem motivated on the phone may not be. People that seem un-motivated on your initial call may ultimately prove to be putting up a good front and when you meet with them in person you may discover them extremely flexible and motivated to sell.

It takes a special type of person to consistently call FSBOs day in and day out to find their deals. While it could be a great way for you start finding deals when you have more time than money, as you get more money than time, might I suggest that you outsource this part of your business and/or use marketing to find your deals. Using various job sites, you can find people that are willing to make these calls for you for a very small hourly wage.

Until my next post,

James