From creative financing to pre - foreclosure deals, there’s incredible potential in layering on mortgage data. Instead of a generic “I buy hous - es” letter, you could send targeted messaging on specific opportunities. Take a remorseful suburban buyer who bought in 2020 to flee a big city, only to discover in 2021 that their job has decided it will no longer approve working remotely. They may not have enough equity, but they may have a fantastic loan in place for you to cre - ate a “subject to” deal. Or, maybe a master lease situation? People data: Demographic data is one of the most powerful ways to target your marketing lists. While other amateurs are taking the spray- and-pray approach, you can refine your marketing list based on things like age, interests, and life events. Take, for instance, a 65-year-old couple who has lived in their home for over 30 years. Chances are they are sitting on a fair amount of needed repairs. Older owners statistically are net sellers of real estate. Whether it’s to be closer to kids or looking to downsize for retirement, messaging to these owners can be more focused on unique pain points like referrals in another state, timing of a sale, cash to move, or referrals to other local pros like CPAs and movers. Or, how about an investor that strategically targets owners based on the sex of the occupants? A female real estate investor could connect to the household’s female owner and strategically connect via a direct mail piece in her name, a phone call asking for her by name, or finding ways to connect via social media with a more personal approach. Kids in the home, activity inter - ests, and philanthropic causes are other unique examples of ways to make a connection. Communica -
tion is not just about text. Visuals are a powerful way to send clues and build trust. By curating lists on demographics, it opens up unique ways to change out pictures to con - nect further. The goal is to lower the number of touchpoints needed for conversion because we’ve done an excellent job refining our marketing list and messaging. When studying the competition, you’re likely to discover there’s consistency in price point as well as square footage. As an investor, you can join the party, avoid it altogeth - er, or figure out ways to wholesale these flippers precisely what they want. However, there are some oth - er ways to look at property data that most miss. Property data: Refining your STRATEGY #3 Creating Value marketing lists targeting property characteristics like the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, indoor square footage, outdoor living space, and property features is easy. For local developers, opportunities here are even more powerful when target - ing additions, new construction, lot splits, and upzoning opportunities. Is there a new large employer coming to town? Is the city looking at upzoning specific neighborhoods? Is a local college expanding in a way that will bring high-paying jobs to town? Will state and local legislation pave the path for new development opportunities? Property data combined with local development knowledge is a list very few investors can create. It’s not something Wall Street can mimic. While others compete and chase deals on what’s currently on-site at as-is values, developers can be more aggressive, knowing the value is in the dirt and future development.
STRATEGY #4 Do not Contact I said I’d give you three data-driv - en strategies to find off-market deals, but let’s finish with a strategy to save you money by asking one final question: Who should not be on your list? Vacant data: It’s not fun getting a mailer returned because you didn’t take off properties that the US Post Office has identified as vacant. Foreclosure data: If a property is in some stage of foreclosure, it may be a very different opportunity depend - ing on your list. Purchase data: If a consumer has purchased the property in the last 12 months, do they want or need to hear from you? Consider pulling leads off the list that have pur - chased within a specific timeframe. Listed data: If a property is cur - rently listed for sale, it could be a waste of money. If you’re a licensed agent, it’s a no-no. While there is certainly opportu - nity within these four data points, make sure you’re making a con - scious decision to include them. There’s plenty of opportunities for Main Street to succeed in 2021, we simply need to play a better data game. Let others waste money mar - keting to the masses. Get better at refining your marketing lists based on your niche strategies, and stra - tegically match the messaging in the right channels to better convert those opportunities. •
Aaron Norris is VP of Market Insights with PropertyRadar. He writes and speaks nationally on data, trends, and technology. He’s a licensed real estate and mortgage broker and has been in the industry since 2005.
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