Real-ish Estate
Real-Estate Advice for Investors, Wholesalers and more
Real-ish Estate
Am I the A**Hole?
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Joan & Jimmie talk about the email they received from a wholesaler who says he makes a shit ton of money and who is gonna police him if goes against the new law?
@Real-ishestate
Hey, I'm Joan and I'm Jimmy and we are the Real-ish, the Real-ish Estate Podcast. We're excited to bring you the real shit you need all things real estate. We don't, we're just getting started, guys. It's our first one, so we're excited to have you. And so we don't have sponsors quite today, today, but we do have what we call shit from our own fridge. Do you want to pop this open for?
Speaker 2:us. Let's start this party off right.
Speaker 1:All right, that sounds great to me. So everything real-ish is everything that, or maybe nothing that anyone talks about, right? I don't know. Real estate current highlights. Let's take a peek um, what's up with this week we talking interest rates. No NAR lawsuit, hell no mm-hmm market trends did you just get your real estate license, or something?
Speaker 2:should I stage?
Speaker 1:okay, you're fucking done so kidding, listen, really real talk, you guys. It's not what we're about. We're not going to really give you that. I think you can Google that or maybe watch everyone's TikTok To find all that out, right? So, in full disclosure, we're licensed In many different areas Agents, all things. We're no lawyers. We're licensed in many different areas agents, all things. We're no lawyers. We're no CPA, unless you are, because you have 20 jobs, no, ok. And so, guys, just remember, it's for entertainment purposes only. You guys are going to judge us, we're going to judge you, all the things, and so we're just here to to talk, really right absolutely all right?
Speaker 1:so, um so, real ish means that we can give you real advice. Uh, jimmy, maybe we should tell them about ourselves, right? Why? Why are we uh?
Speaker 2:why are we the real ish?
Speaker 1:yeah, let's, let's hear it absolutely so.
Speaker 2:we're the real ish because we've been doing this shit for a long time, kind of winging it along the way. Give you guys a little bit of information about myself. I've been doing real estate for about five years now, started off wholesaling. We're going to be talking a little bit about wholesaling today. Right, that's where I started, started doing rentals and flips and all those fun things. Wholesaling kind of just bodes itself to pretty much everything. So excited to read a letter today that we got about wholesaling. So yeah, that's a little bit about me, joan.
Speaker 1:So fun fact.
Speaker 2:Hi, this is Kevin with the Quick Close team. We're your off-market home buyer connection for wholesalers and homeowners to thousands of cash buyers All over Virginia. We're the connection to make to sell your house fast, with no closing costs or repairs. When you need a ton of work or get shape, we sell them all. Go to the QuickCloseTeamcom or contact us at 804-946-9986 to get connected today.
Speaker 1:I didn't even know the difference between granite and laminate. Oh yeah, in 2013.
Speaker 2:Okay, all right.
Speaker 1:I'm like HVAC, what who? I don't think I did either, so.
Speaker 2:I think that's okay. 2013. Okay, all right. I'm like HVAC, what, who? And now I don't think I did either, so I don't. I think that's okay, you know so.
Speaker 1:I didn't so since 2013,. Right, so we're talking 11 years in real estate. Now I fucking tell everyone what to do and what to put in. It's really fun. It's been a fast track decade, and so I just do everything from brokering to wholesaling to buying holding you name it. I do it If we can make money in it real quick, we're going to find a way, and I've done a whole lot right, made the top percents of this and that, and so I am very well qualified, jimmy, to judge the shit out of people.
Speaker 2:Knowing you and being your friend. I think that's a true statement.
Speaker 1:Yes, yes, okay. So that's a little bit about us and we will bore you more, probably next episode, because Libras love to talk about themselves.
Speaker 1:So we're going to we're going to come back to that anyway. So I guess the straight, let's go straight into it. You guys All right. So where you're going to see is looking at our phones, because we receive letters and emails from people that ask us advice all the time. So our goal is to bring the emails or questions to you so you can help us judge others or maybe help them, whatever works. And we'll also be featuring guests on the show, all the things, and hopefully a sponsor, so it's not from just our fucking fridge Sponsored by our fridge Sponsored by our fridge and so anyway.
Speaker 1:So we're going to start with the letter, talk a little bit about wholesaling. We're here for all of it, so comment all the things that you're supposed to do on these podcasts, or if you're seeing a reel, whatever it is, you should just do it. Give us something to do at night in our woes after a long real estate day, anyway. So all right, jimmy, take it away.
Speaker 2:You've got to read it for us Absolutely Wholesaling, near and dear to my heart. I'm excited to read this email. So here we go. We will name this wholesaling. Am I the Asshole? Okay, so I'm not your typical real estate agent. I'm a wholesaler with a unique approach to finding lucrative investment properties. I just need to find someone in a distressed situation and bail them out quick. Well, here's the thing. I don't bother with real estate licenses. While people are dealing with regulations and paperwork, I operate with the freedom and flexibility to get deals done quickly. Let's be clear my methods may not be conventional, but they get results. I'm not afraid to bend the rules and if it means putting profitable deals within reach, I make a shit ton of money and make people a shit ton of money. Okay, all right, we'll see. Now Virginia is requiring a real estate license and I say not going to happen and I'll find workarounds. Who is policing and who is going to stop me? What will you guys be doing? Signed am I the asshole?
Speaker 1:Ooh me, what will you guys be doing? Signed.
Speaker 2:MI the Asshole? Oh, that's a good one. Is he the asshole? Oh, man, that's a. You know, this is your typical wholesaler right Slinging and just running through the motions. And now that you know Virginia's cracking down on this stuff and putting regulations around it, I think people are trying to be more creative. So so what are your thoughts?
Speaker 1:Interesting. So first of all, I think if you're in real estate, you're probably the asshole anyway, At least to most people. Even if not, if you don't want to admit it.
Speaker 2:You will grow into an asshole at some point in time.
Speaker 1:Or many times a day, right. So I think that I mean this is a really good one. So this has been quite a buzz in Virginia which is like do I get a real estate license? Do I have to? Are they policing it? And I think the real answer is that no one really knows, but the governor just signed off on it. So it's going to change a lot of people's business strategies, whether you're ducking and dodging it or whether you're going to go with the flow. Whether you're ducking and dodging it or whether you're going to go with the flow, I'm pretty sure that most people have the same idea that this guy does right, like what do I do? Do I have to? And who's policing it? What's the wrong thing to do? And so I think it's funny, though, right, he says I make a shit ton of money, right, so that might make you an asshole, he says I make a shit ton of money, right, right, so that might make you an asshole.
Speaker 1:You probably should be benefiting everyone in the deal, but whatever To each his own. Whatever puts your boat, Whoever I'm the asshole is, we buy houses, so you can be an asshole and call us with your deals Right.
Speaker 2:Absolutely Call us.
Speaker 1:So anyway, but I think that, so I do both. I'm licensed, as you know, jimmy, and I will assign a contract. I buy them too, and it's not my primary business. But sometimes you have to pivot and it hasn't really got in the way of me doing business. I mean, I think that there's an extra ethical thing that you're bound by, right, but you're either a shitty person or not. Anyway, I don't think a license will change that.
Speaker 1:So I've been pretty successful at it and it hasn't stopped me. What do you think? Because you don't have a license?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I don't have a license in the process of getting it. But you know, obviously there's got to be a little bit more creativity. I still think there's plenty of opportunity to make it work and not be a shitty person. Not saying this person is, I think they're just, you know, kind of going through the motions like a lot of people are trying to figure out how they can still make a shit ton of Money but still, you know, make it work. You know, for them financially it sounds like they're killing it.
Speaker 2:Um, so I mean, I think you know I've heard about people double closing. They want to do double closing and maybe paying fees and all kinds of other structures. But there's definitely some gray areas, because I think nobody really knows right at the end of the day how they're going to crack down on this, how they're going to police it. And I look at it like kind of like tax evasion, right, like a lot of people avoid taxes and it's like, oh, it's cool that I haven't gotten in trouble yet, right until you do. So. I think it's the same thing. As they bend the rules, it may be something that later on, you know, things start changing and they crack down and they may not feel that burn right away and there's tax avoidance and then evasion right and avoidance is legal yeah, so maybe the same kind.
Speaker 2:I don't know. I'm not telling you I'm doing this is we're definitely not attorneys. Do it, but you can.
Speaker 1:There's there is, there's workarounds, there's double closings. I recently sold my LLC. That's another good idea.
Speaker 2:Yeah, another good thing that people are doing.
Speaker 1:We basically assigned our LLC to someone new, and $500 to do that, to make that kind of transition happen because we needed to, and so that was because I got it under contract with just this one particular address LLC, right, I think there's lots of things that people do already. So now, what makes it illegal? Right, I think they said over two a year, right, but you know, double closing LLC, like I don't know, and I don't know if those are OK or not.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 1:I think everyone's going to wing it in July. I think everyone's going to wing it in July and it's going to be this huge shit show. I will say this, jimmy I think there's some real estate agents who have been waiting for this to happen so they can turn that ass in.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, absolutely yeah. I do think, just kind of jumping in, that it's going to level the playing field substantially. I mean, I've been reached out to by a bunch of my colleagues who are wholesalers, and a lot of the good ones right are like oh, I'm going to get my license, I'm doing it now, I'm doing it the right way, because they don't want to worry about any of that shit at the end of the day. But then there's some folks are like nope, I'm just going to do what I've been doing, like my guy here on the email.
Speaker 2:Just fly underneath the radar and just see what happens, and they might be totally fine or they might, you know, who knows, somebody might come knocking at the door. I have no idea, but we'll see how it shakes out in July for sure.
Speaker 1:It will. Also, I'd like to point out that there is a difference. It only requires you to be a licensed real estate agent, not a realtor, and most people don't know that's two different things.
Speaker 2:There's two different things, yeah.
Speaker 1:So you don't have to be associated with NAR and MLS, and if you are, it is going to put a stop to a lot of your off-market marketing because there's all these extra filters. So, if you do get your real estate license right, I think that you have to keep in mind of what firm you're joining and what your goal is. Absolutely, if it's just to have it to wholesale, you probably want a non-affiliated NAR license agent, right, right. And if you're going to utilize MLS and like, okay, now I'm pivoting and I'm going to be a realtor, you know. So I think people should do their research and and they can figure that piece out. But to you know, dude to answer your question though, so let's answer it. You know, are you an asshole? I would say yes, because you ask.
Speaker 2:If you have to ask the question, you can probably take it.
Speaker 1:You're a big asshole. Do you have to get your license? I mean, I don't know. I think a lot of people are going to pivot their business and that's none of my business. Who's going to police it? I think I don't know. That's a good question.
Speaker 2:That is a good question.
Speaker 1:So other agents are going to turn you in. Other wholesalers are probably going to do that. Right, Haters, that's who's going to police it?
Speaker 2:And this is a serious question. And this is a serious question, like I see this, like there's kind of this secret society of you know hating and I wonder how that's going to kind of manifest itself. And you know, july, like some people that you think is your buddy, like all of a sudden you're like your competition, even more so. So now it's like okay, should we turn this guy?
Speaker 1:in or doing some shady business, or how that's gonna show up in July. I think that that it's going to be interesting. We should redo this again in about the fall and just write and revisit.
Speaker 1:It's going to be really interesting, just because typically what happens is when there's a change, people panic and make it way worse than it is A hundred percent, and I'm here for the shit show and all the assholes and the haters who turn people in, and that's why it's important to already be ready. So we had already been ready for this and we were already ready to pivot because we knew it was coming Right.
Speaker 1:So, so, yes, yes, am I the asshole? If you'd like to send a follow-up email or letter in? Yes, you're an asshole, is the answer. And again, just because you ask, Yep. And the fact that you put in here you made a shit ton of money tells me you didn't. Mm-hmm, okay, there's that. But you guys tell us what you think, right and you know. So this is great. So wholesaling right, we're pro. Wholesalers, right, we're pro, we do it. And so we'll just, we'll just wait and see so this is Jimmy.
Speaker 2:I think this is a great first letter, yeah, and I think this will be the first of many that are like this. This is just such a hot topic. Like I said, wholesalers are. You know. A lot of them were freaking out. Some of them were getting ready for this and working towards their license because it just bodes itself to, you know, to getting your license. I've got a question for you, though. I've seen a lot of agents kind of jump around to different brokerages. Do you think that certain brokerages are going to be more pro-wholesale than others?
Speaker 1:Oh, a thousand percent. I mean they already tell you can't do it now. In a lot of them I mean, and think about this, because you know I own a couple Small right. I'm not that girl I want to be, you know sign up, so I can be, but I think it's about liability. And so when you talk about wholesaling, there's a really fine line in ethics, right, Because what happens when you talk about wholesaling, it's there's a really fine line in ethics, right.
Speaker 1:Because, what happens when you say when someone looks at you that's about to lose their house and you know they have a lot of equity and they look at you and they say am I making the best decision? Am I making the most money? And you're a wholesaler, how do you answer that question when you know the answer is no? Because, let's be real, we know the answer is no and so you have to answer that honestly. It doesn't mean you have to change what you're doing, but you have to be ethical, right, and I will tell you that I have lost a lot of deals from buying them and flipping them to just when you meet someone and going. You know, Sarah, I think really you're better off listing, and let me create a bidding war because I have a license and I know what their best bet is.
Speaker 1:Right. And then, honest to God, though, some people don't belong on the MLS, we're right about that.
Speaker 2:We've walked through that, oh yeah.
Speaker 1:And so I'll be honest. What I try to tell people is this is the easy button and this is the make more money button. Which one do you want to push? Right, so you can still do your job? But that's why I think a lot of brokerages say no, because it takes a special kind of person to not go. Whew, I'm not going to make 40K, I'm only going to make 9K.
Speaker 2:Exactly, that's a hard pill to swallow for anybody.
Speaker 1:So I think that's why most of them say no, there are plenty, and I can't speak for anything outside of Virginia but there are plenty of brokerages that will let you. We will let you, and I know a lot of smaller brokerages that are investor-friendly will let you. We will let you. Uh, and I know a lot of smaller brokerages that are investor friendly will let you. So I think that's what people should do is start. I would interview the smaller brokerages. They also offer more investor experience than the larger ones.
Speaker 2:I've seen that for sure. I've seen that for sure. You talk a lot about the liability piece and people losing their houses. I actually had a deal recently where a lady was basically facing foreclosure and it was definitely a wholesale opportunity, right. It basically had no mortgage balance.
Speaker 2:Know, it really pulls on your ethical strings because you can obviously there's a ton of equity there, you don't owe much and then it's a situation like what do I do? I want to lose my house and I can just see so many wholesalers, kind of you know, glazing over me like, man, I can make a killing on this, mm-hmm. So being a part of a broker is like you have to almost train a thought, so to speak, and like is this really the right thing to do? And I think that's just in you innately, or you know what I mean. So I don't feel like a license is going to change that about certain people. So I just wonder how that's going to shape out with wholesalers that you know, kind of have that gray area mentality and it's just a lot of people that need help but there's a lot of opportunity to take advantage of that too.
Speaker 1:Yes, it is, and I think that is you know, jimmy perfect, because that is why now there's a license requirement. It's because before you couldn't hold people accountable for screwing people over.
Speaker 1:But with a license you can hold people accountable, and just because you make a lot of money doesn't mean that you took advantage of someone. That's not it right, um? But it does happen a lot, you know, um, I've gotten the calls where the old lady was had nowhere to go because the wholesaler just wiped them out, just didn't give them a chance to move, and force the contract. They didn't understand it, and so I think that you know that's why they're here. So the last man standing right.
Speaker 1:Like it'll be fine. I mean everything will be fine. You're either going to have a license or you're not. You're either going to get caught or you're not.
Speaker 2:Only the strong survive and only the ethical survive in this instance. It's going to be interesting, for sure.
Speaker 1:Yes, and you guys tell us what you're going to do if you're wholesaling. What do you think about wholesalers right, because I like to hear that the disgruntled agent is always fun to hear them talk about. Wholesalers Very different than the agent who does them right or has investor clients, or the flipper who doesn't want to pay more than 5K assignment fee. Screw your assignment fees.
Speaker 2:I've had those, it's funny when I first started and got into wholesaling how many agents I ran into, like you know, because I was just learning about wholesaling but how many agents I?
Speaker 2:ran into there was like oh, you guys, just, you know awful, you know what. What is this like? You guys are pretend agents and all this stuff and it's a very unique niche and it's grown so much, almost to the point of oversaturation. But it was just so surprising to me where, like so many agents kind of hated on wholesalers, so to speak, but now so many partner with them, right, because there's so much value that can be exchanged for the ones that do it. Well, I mean, I'm a wholesaler but I've also bought from other wholesalers which almost seemed sacrilegious as a wholesaler, but like it's a good deal, it's a good deal, it's a good deal, right, everybody likes a good deal. I'm working on one right now with an agent who's very pro wholesaler, has probably wholesaled herself, and they have no problem paying assignment fees. It's all transparent. So it's all about the relationship.
Speaker 2:It's all about being ethical, doing the right thing. Everybody knows what's going on, so I think it's interesting how it's changed over the course of the years.
Speaker 1:It's changed a lot, so a fun story I always got fun facts.
Speaker 2:It's a fun story.
Speaker 1:My first wholesale deal. I didn't know I was being like I was buying an assignment right. And it wasn't even for me. I was still a green agent and it was his first wholesale deal and he didn't even understand what he was doing so the lawyer at the time basically emailed us and went like you guys are idiots and it was fantastic. This lawyer is no longer in business because she's unethical.
Speaker 2:I think I might know which lawyer you're talking about. Yeah, I bet you do.
Speaker 1:And so. But basically I didn't understand. I'm just like what is like they didn't understand, they didn't have an assignment. We just did a regular contract in between.
Speaker 2:I remember that that was my first one. It was just a mess.
Speaker 1:And she just was like you guys are idiots. And so she fixed it.
Speaker 2:She told you guys that Pretty much.
Speaker 1:Oh wow, nicely, but she was like you don't know what the fuck you're doing, right, all right, which was true, yeah. And we were like, well, this is crazy. And so he didn't know. I don't think he even knew he was a wholesaler.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 1:It's just like, literally, this was 2014 or something before people knew it was or was talking about it. I didn't really have a name back then.
Speaker 2:It was kind of just one of those.
Speaker 1:It was wholesaling but like it was just there was only a few people who did it. Yeah, you know so in our area in Richmond. So anyway, we got through it and we closed it with all the wrong paperwork. It was so messy and that's it. And then, even after it happened, I didn't know it happened, right.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 1:So I didn't still give it a name.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, I just knew it felt dirty. Yeah, it happened right. Right, so we see, I didn't still give it a name. Yeah, yeah, I just knew it felt dirty. Yeah, I was like what just?
Speaker 1:gotta be wrong, like what?
Speaker 2:happened we just I don't write like well, I got paid, you got paid right.
Speaker 1:I'm like, alright, so you, you got the house, you got alright, I guess we're good like. I really just was clueless because there was no.
Speaker 2:This is so selling right it's no like banners come down from the sky. That's kind of like my first one. It was like a three-way JV. Absolutely no day. Not a three-way. It was a three-way. Yeah, it was crazy. It got pretty interesting.
Speaker 1:See, you guys didn't know, real estate could be so much fun.
Speaker 2:And you know it was split three ways, like we just kind of just muddled through the process Like nobody knew what was going on. They were teaching me and they halfway knew what they were doing. How much did you make? I made $8,900 on my first wholesale deal.
Speaker 1:Your take? Huh, that was my take. Three ways, nice yeah, and.
Speaker 2:I actually stepped in and did some negotiation to get the price, you know, modified because it was a triplex. It wasn't like Richmond. The buyer houses were so cheap back then. I think they bought the house for like $60,000. Triplex it was on Harwood Street and, like I said, we got it under contract and they basically just kind of coached me through it a little bit as best they could because they were still trying to figure it out and I was still trying to figure it out. And, like I said, at the end of the day we closed on it. Buyer closed. I was like what do you mean? He came in with all cash, just bought it, it's done. And they were just like yeah, come pick up your check. Who do you want to address to? I was like this feels dirty. I just made all this money.
Speaker 2:I just made more than my job pays me to the power of wholesaling. So that's kind of where we took off.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's fantastic. Again, another reason why it's being regulated because people out here are just non-regulated, don't know what they're doing and just ta-da.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, I'm here. Well, you did better than me.
Speaker 1:I was the agent in mine.
Speaker 2:I wasn't the buyer.
Speaker 1:And it was a really low price house. I think I made 400 bucks.
Speaker 2:Oh wow, hey, but you can learn nothing window.
Speaker 1:But I learned nothing. You don't think you you learned something right. No, I learned. I didn't know what the hell was happening.
Speaker 2:It took, that's fair, the next time I was.
Speaker 1:I was like, oh, it's one of these right, right.
Speaker 2:It's almost like I feel like with a funny part about every transaction. I feel like it's like a cookie cutter for the next one. You take a little piece of that and move it to the next one and do it a little bit better, sometimes a little bit worse, right, um, but definitely screwed up on something before and you know it just works out in the end or it doesn't or or it doesn't, and that's what we're going to come back and fall for.
Speaker 1:We're going to come back and go. How's everyone looking?
Speaker 2:out there, we should.
Speaker 1:I don't know. You guys tell us what we should do, like I think we should bring like a wholesaler on with us?
Speaker 2:Oh, absolutely.
Speaker 1:Another one right Like and let's just be like how's, or let's find the wholesaler that gets turned in.
Speaker 1:Oh, yeah, yeah, I can think of a few that might get turned in Right, and so that would be a good. I don't know, you guys let us know. And again, so, guys, this has been great. Can maybe they'll put it on the screen here or something? It's our first one, guys, so like, bear with us. Yeah, for sure, we're contact, information or comment or whatever that looks like for y'all. Or if you want to be a guest on the show, if you've got a good topic, like we're here for all of it. I really like the idea of having a wholesaler on here.
Speaker 1:What's working for you guys? That's it Wholesaler against real estate agents.
Speaker 2:We could have a whole powwow. Yeah, that would be nice. We're going to have liquor that day.
Speaker 1:If anyone's interested in sponsoring that show, that'll be wonderful. So, yeah, I think that wraps it up. You guys, we really appreciate you. Remember to share your experience. Remember to judge the shit out of us or what we talked about. Oh yeah, we're wearing how we sounded, all the things, what we need to do better. So that's it. So I guess. See you next time for more real-ish estate, the real shit you need.
Speaker 2:Absolutely Peace out guys. All right, we're out, all right.