Bird dogs can range from casual contacts to professionals. A casual contact is someone to whom you simply say, "Hey, I'm looking for vacant houses to buy. If you find any, please let me know." Depending on your area, it could be a pizza delivery person, pest control operators, meter-readers, delivery drivers, mail carriers, service people (plumbers, HVAC specialists), etc. Let them know you'll pay them a fee. It could be a referral fee or a per-lead fee.

Professional bird dogs are people who are trained to scout for properties. One source is high school or college students who want to earn extra income. Another is new investors who are trying to break into the business. An effective method of finding bird dogs is to advertise in the newspaper.


Write a simple classified ad with wording similar to this:

It's likely you'll get lots of people calling you, so avoid getting bombarded by all the calls by letting the messages go to an answering machine. Ask callers to leave their name and number and let them know you'll get back to them.

You can use several different methods to pay bird dogs. You can pay them anywhere from $1.00 to $5.00 per address or $5.00 to $10.00 per lead, or $250 to $1,000 per deal. In order to make the job worthwhile, you have to direct birddogs to neighborhoods where they'll find a good supply of vacant properties. Otherwise, it won't make financial sense for them. For example, if you direct them to a neighborhood where they find only two houses per hour of driving, that's only a $2.00 per hour rate, plus they have to pay for their gas. Nobody's going to work for that rate! On other hand, if you direct them to an area where they'll find, say, 30 houses in an hour, then it will pay for a birddog to do the job-30 houses X $1.00 = $30 per hour.

When you hire bird dogs, you can't just send them untrained. You have to tell them exactly what you expect of them. One method I use is called "per address." With this method, I want the bird dog to take photographs of the properties. Another method is called "per lead." In this case, the bird dog not only takes the photograph but fills out a form about the property. The form details what's wrong with the house and what kind of repairs are required. In regard to photographs, be sure to have the bird dog snap photos of both the front and the back of houses. This is necessary because the front of a house may look great while there's damage in the back from fire or from other causes. Basically, the more a bird dog does, the more I pay him or her.

My recommendation is that you use the "per address" method with bird dogs. That way, your costs are lower. However, remember that you can be flexible and use a combination of different methods. For example, I've used the technique of paying $1.00 per address, and then when I made a deal, I paid the birddog $500 on top of that. I've found this method useful for a simple reason: If you don't pay per address and only pay upon the closing of a deal, you'll lose bird dogs quickly because they're not making any enough money. They'll be gone within four to six months. With my combination method, you give bird dogs enough incentive to keep working and finding great deals for you.

I use several inexpensive and effective methods to attract the attention of sellers. Each of those methods is described below.

SIGNS
Depending on local ordinances, you can put out "We buy houses" signs at strategic points in neighborhoods to attract the attention of sellers. By strategic points, I mean put them out at every entry and exit to a neighborhood and at different intersections so they're easily visible and will attract the greatest number of viewers.

If you're farming lower- and moderate-income neighborhoods, you can put signs out one time to see what happens with them. If they're picked up quickly, then you don't need to worry about putting them out again. If the signs stay up for, say, a week to two weeks, then continue to put them out. You want to make sure everyone in the neighborhood knows that you're buying houses.

Some cities will let you put the signs up on telephone poles; some won't-it all depends on the local ordinance. Be sure to check ahead of time because some cities will fine you for doing so, and the fine can be a substantial amount.

Another method I use is to place signs in the front yards of vacant houses if I haven't been able to track down the sellers. This often attracts the attention of neighbors who think that you're trying to sell the house. When they contact me, I tell them, "Hey, I don't know what I'm going to do about the property yet. Let me get your information. Tell me, how much can you pay? How much can you pay per month? How much can you put down?" This method builds up a list of interested buyers. Then, when I do track down the sellers, I know what to offer and can make money on the deal.


Letters
A letter is a particularly useful technique when you've located owners who are facing bankruptcy and/or foreclosure. The emphasis should be on helping the owner out of a bad situation.



Flyers and Post-it® Notes
These items are part of your mass marketing strategy. You can hire companies to do door-to-door flyer distributions (look in the Yellow Pages). The cost can be low, depending on how many you want distributed. I've had costs in the range of 8 to 12 cents per flyer. You can lower the price even lower by doing a joint mailing with local pizza or other restaurants. In many cases, they'll be happy to joining forces with you to get their costs down. The really beneficial part of this arrangement is that they'll give you back the addresses of vacant houses.

In terms of Post-it notes, you can hire companies that will print your information on these notes. Do a Google search on the Internet, and you'll find many firms who offer this service. You can stick them on doors and attract the attention of potential sellers and buyers.

Want to find wholesale properties and neighborhoods the easiest way possible? Go to www.DoDeals.com

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