Is driving for dollars truly an effective strategy for acquiring deals?

You might have been told that driving for dollars is a great way to collect lists and acquire deals. It’s simple, easy, and doesn’t cost much at all — sounds like a great strategy, doesn’t it? But the truth is, it’s probably not the best use of your time.

In this episode of Collecting Keys Podcast, we talk about how effective driving for dollars is (or, in this case, isn’t) and what you should be spending your time doing instead. We also talk about building trust with and taking care of properties and tenants, which are always intertwined.

Here are some power takeaways from today’s conversation:

• Consider the class of your tenants
• Build rapport with tenants and prospective clients
• Instead of displacing tenants, do what you can to help them
• Take tenants’ requests into consideration
• Spend time having conversations and building trust with people
• Work for other investors and learn from them

Episode Highlights:

[0:41] Lessons From Their First Duplex

It was chaotic when Mike and Dan bought their first duplex together. There were property issues and confusion with the contractor — but in the end, they still own it now and it’s their best cash-flowing asset.

[02:51] Consider Tenants’ Class

Most people fixate on the class of the property, but what’s important is the class of your tenants. You should avoid C-class tenants in B or A-class properties. It’s also important to build trust with your tenants, but remember that some tenant modifications are as good as others.

[04:38] Dealing with Properties and Tenants

Mike and Dan officially did the final walkthrough on a property. It needs some work, but it’s easy to manage if they have to fix anything. But they recently learned that the tenants are Section 8. You can work with local housing authorities if you’re below-market rents to avoid having to displace tenants. Displacing them would be unethical and cost a lot of money.

[08:24] Taking Care of Properties and Tenants

People think investors just want to buy things, max them out, and sell them, but a landlord’s job is to provide housing. If you’re marketing your own property and buying it at a good price, you don’t have to turn it into an A-class property and jack up rents. If you want to hear about how Mike and Dan acquired property of the market by building rapport with the previous owner, tune in to the full episode!

[15:59] Driving for Dollars

Driving for dollars is simply driving around and looking for a crappy property. If you spot one, save the owner’s phone number and try purchasing the property. That’s why apps come in handy so you can find the owner, number, mail, and address. You should be able to adapt and grow with the market. Driving for dollars can work with the right mindset paired with other marketing and data strategies.

[30:03] Tips for New Investors

If you want to be an investor but don’t have money, work for an investor that’s getting deals done and be their acquisitions manager. This will help you get exposure to the investment process and learn how to conduct acquisition conversations  Work for the people that are doing what you want to be doing, then start investing.

Resources Mentioned:

collectingkeyspodcast.com
https://drinkinbros.com/
Instantinvestorprogram.com
instagram.com/collectingkeyspodcast
instagram.com/mike_invests
instagram.com/investormandan