It’s become very common for Outer Banks property owners to receive calls or letters from people who are interested in purchasing their property. These investor/entrepreneurs have been purchasing real estate, fixing it up and selling it for decades. Often these folks are called property flippers. This is not wholesaling in real estate, but it is a related business. 
Investor Buyers
Wholesaling is related because the sellers of this type of property are often similar. Also, these investor/entrepreneurs employ many the same skills to make money. A wholesaler finds an owner who would like to sell and enters into a contract with that seller. They then market the property at a higher price. Often that is too a group of investors they know. Once they find a buyer they’ll sell the buyer the contract instead of the property. The wholesaler makes their money by selling the contract. Most times the wholesaler never takes title to the property.
Seller Characteristics
Three common characteristics of owners who sell to property flippers and wholesalers are that they are motivated to get rid of the property, they don’t want to be bothered with a bunch of people looking at their property and they don’t have the resources (money, time and energy), to offer it on the open market.
Digging for Outer Banks sellers
Data science is taking the wholesalers and property flippers business to the next level. Data mining companies provide these investors with information about people and their properties. That information is then put in an algorithm designed to identify people most likely to sell without putting the property on the open market. For example, an owner who is a few months late paying their mortgage would be a promising candidate. Just the fact that the property is not owner occupied and owned by the same person for decades could be enough to generate interest from these buyers though.
It’s important to keep in mind that property flippers and wholesalers don’t want to pay full market value. In other words, there’s a cost for a quick and easy sale. Each one has their own methods of determining the highest amount they’ll pay but it is unlikely that they’ll pay more than 80% of fair market value. Wholesaling in real estate serves an important service for certain types of sellers. If you are thinking of selling and need a good idea of what a buyer will pay today then, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We’d be happy to share our opinion of value based on recent similar sales.
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