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BY CHRIS FELTUS ON MAY 3, 2013
Driving for dollars, for those of you who are unaware, is simply the process of driving
targeted subdivisions with the intent of locating distressed and or abandoned
properties. This is a guide intended to help aid investors in locating distressed
properties by driving for dollars from steps A to Z, from locating properties to
marketing. This method can be utilized by real estate investors, wholesalers and bird
dogs alike.
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The key component when driving for dollars it to be vigilant and observant at all times. In general,
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the best time to drive is from 10 am to early afternoon during the weekday. At this time people are
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typically at work and it makes it easier to take your time driving through the subdivision.
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This process becomes easier if you are driving for dollars during Halloween, Christmas or a trash
Marketplace
pickup day. Why? When Christmas or Halloween is approaching a good portion of the
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neighborhood will have decorations of some sort on display. Likewise, during trash pickup day,
Company
garbage canisters will be out on the streets. Vacant properties stand out like a sore thumb, as they
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wont have decorations during the holidays or atrashcan out front on pick up day.
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do not t your criteria. For instance, if you are looking for high equity properties you need to look for
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deed dates 15+ years back. Once you have selected all the properties that t your criteria, create a nal
list. This list will be used in your marketing. Make certain that the current owner is not a bank, if so you
will likely need to discard it.
If you are unsure how to nd your local CAD try google searching [your county name]central appraisal
district or [your county name]tax assessor.Alternatively, you can research properties in the eld with
your smart phone or other wireless device on the CAD website.
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Red Flags
If you drive for dollars long enough you will stumble upon circumstances where the owners address is not
available. This creates a problem how will you market to this lead if you dont have their information? There
are a few red ags to look out for that indicate additional research will be required to nd the owner address.
Some of the more common situations are shown below.
Scenario 1: You drove by a property that was clearly vacant; however, your Central Appraisal District
(CAD) displays the property is still owner occupied. This is typically due to the appraisal district not yet
updating their records, which can sometimes lag behind 3 to 4 months. For example if you drove by a
property that looks like the image below, and your CAD indicates the owner still lives at that property,
you need to continue your research to nd the owners address because obviously they no longer live
there.
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Scenario 2:Returned yellow letters or postcards that were returned due to failed delivery
Scenario 3:When you research the property on your local CAD and you discover the owner address section
contains no data. This may come in the form of being completely blank or display No Data (as shown in the
image below) or perhaps a place holder such as Current Owner.
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Once you have searched public records its time to take the owner (and any of the grantors names recorded in the
Deed of Trust) and start plugging them into Google search. For starters try searching their full name as displayed in
the Deed of Trust. If that yields few results try combining their name + local phone area codes (as shown in the image
below). This can often reveal:
Landlines or Cell Phone Numbers of the Owner or Grantors
New Address of the Owner
Any Websites they own
Company PDF contact sheets
If you are unable to locate the owner, but able to track down one of the grantors, you can often get the contact
information you need by reaching out to them. Sometimes you will nd PDFs or About Us pro le sections on company
websites and you can use this for updated contact information. If you nd a website they own, you can do a who is
on the domain and retrieve information that way as well.
Skip Trace
If all of the above fail, you might consider utilizing a Skip Trace service. If you take some time to research using the
methods discussed earlier, you should not need to use a skip trace 9 times out of 10.
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In Conclusion
Thanks for reading, hopefully with a little bit of legwork and persistence you will discover some gems when Driving for Dollars.
Take action and you will reap results. If you have any questions, please leave them below and I will do my best to help.
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ABOUT AUTHOR
CHRIS FELTUS
Chris is an active real estate investor who buys and ips houses in the Dallas real estate market. He enjoys helping others along
on their journey. In addition, Chris operates as a licensed Realtor in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
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97 COMMENTS
There I a lot if goo ideas in this post. Now work. I might add a couple other items to look for. The has company may leave a door hanger if they
are going to turn of the gas and the city may mark the curb or street if they turn if the water. Our city spray paints the curb with an arrow
showing where the water meter is and sometimes try even write o if they recently shut o the water.
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Thanks for the nice comment and taking the time to read Mark.
Yes, door hangers are an excellent idea as well. In addition, I would suggest bringing business cards with you and some simple notes
to tape on the front door and garage of any vacant properties you nd.
The post you tape to the door could be simply read We buy houses for cash as is, if you are interested in selling please contact me
[name/ business/ phone number/email here]. The business cards can be used when talking to neighbors if you are unable to track
down the owner of the home. Often times, neighbors are very willing to divulge information as they dont want a ugly vacant property
sitting next door dragging their property value down with it. I will be touching on this in much more depth in the second part of this
series.
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I dont (currently) buy in Washington, DC but when I was driving home from an event in the city the other day I noticed a bright neon
side that the city had stuck on the street side of a house that said VACANT in big, bold letters.
My rst thought was well, that makes driving for dollars easy and my second one was well, that makes it easy for copper thieves to
know which houses to target.
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Thanks Glenn, I appreciate it. Hopefully you will be able to incorporate some of these ideas and generate additional leads for
yourself. The second part in this series should be up next week.
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Awesome Post, Chris! This is really an awesome post with a ton of actionable tips that I hope to incorporate. Im going to use your idea of the
picture on the envelope! Thanks, and I look forward to your stu !
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Thanks for the kind words Brandon! I wish you the best of luck in your business and hopefully a few of these tips will help yield some
additional investment properties for you.
Another tip, thats not included in this post, anytime your out on the road you can be driving for dollars. When I am driving comps for
an appointment I keep my eyes peeled for vacant homes in the same subdivision. When I am showing houses I keep on the look out
for distressed properties. Sometimes I will go o my planned route if I see a distressed property from the road side (ask my wife I
have done this on date night on a few occasions).
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Where do you put your return address? On the back? Does the post o ce accept this style? Great attention getter! And great ideas.
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Ive seen a good amount of these properties around but currently Im not in the postion to make a move on them. That really kills me to see those
possible deals just sitting.
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Have you considered wholesaling them to another investor Ron? Seems like that would be a perfect t for you given your situation.
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Simply open up Microsoft Word. Take the re-sized thumbnail version of the picture you would like to use and insert it into the word
document.
On the top menu bar of word (File, Home, Insert, Page Layout etc.) select Mailings. From here select envelopes -> options-> and depending
on the letter size you are using select the appropriate t, I use A2 the format for invitation style envelopes. Once you have done this
position the image roughly where you want it on the nal envelope (upper left hand corner in this case). Now insert a blank envelope into
your printer (assuming your printer can print on envelopes, most should) and print out a copy.
I put together a quick illustration to help you navigate through Word.
https://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/envelope_example.jpg
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Thank you for looking into that. I have a couple that I have come across in my neighborhood and was thinking about sending a
letter when I saw this post. Thank you for the tips!
I see you are in the Fort Worth area. Would love to connect some time.
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oops this post was meant to go below, but this will work too.
Good stu Chris, very well written. How many deals have you gotten done this way?
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I also want to stress the properties I got under contract in this manner were from repeat mailings. In addition, I believe the format I presented
in this blog post will only help increase your response rate. Compared to the standard yellow letter or postcard this is very distinct by
comparison. Even if they are already receiving mail on the property, they will remember yours.
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Thanks for reading and commenting Glenn, I am pleased you found this guide helpful. Take action and be persistent and you will get results.
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Super post! Lots of useful information. I am excited to see the rest of the series. Thanks for taking the time to share.
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Thank you very much Shaine! The next part in this series should be published sometime next week.
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Awesome post, Chris! Were excited to have you as part of the blog team.
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great article
Thank You for ideas
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I really love it when I learn something new in a blog. The picture idea is very cool. Have oyu used the picture idea with any other target such as 60/90 day
lates?
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Yes the BP Blog is a great way to learn some new tricks. I have learned a lot from BP and gured it was time to pay it forward and contribute some
articles of my own. In regards to the 60/90 day lates, no I have not, but I see no reason why you couldnt adapt this method to suit your needs.
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Thanks Shari!
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Chris thanks for the article, I like the picture idea you presented. I have just started driving for dollars but one issue that I have come across is that in the state of
MD, most of these properties seem to still be on record with the previous owner however it is actually owned by the bank. The property will be on le with the
previous owner however they have bank maintenance papers, etc on the doors. It gets a little hard to distinguish between bank owned or not. Do you run into
this problem at all and do you have any advice?
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Hey Derek, thanks for taking the time to read through my guide.
Yes, you will run into properties that show the previous owner on le but are currently bank owned. The reason why is typically the county clerks
o ce that inputs the data lags a few months behind, which is why the information has not yet updated in the CAD.
When you see bank maintenance or property preservation papers on a distressed property its bank owned at that point, and for my intents and
purposes I discard the lead. I hope that helps clarify. Please let me know if you have any additional questions.
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Thank you for all the information. I kind of being doing the same driving for dollars but Im a beginner in tax lien and tax deed investing. So when I run across a
vacant house, I do the research to see if the property tax have been paid on the house.
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Hi Chris,
Nice tips. Much appreciated. How did you come up with the image above of the subdivisions based on tax assessed values? Is that something your county
provides via their website?
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Thanks
Looking forward to the next post. What a great article. Love the step-by-step along with pictures.
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Thanks Shaun, I appreciate it. The next entry should be out sometime next week.
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Very good information . I drive for dollars at least once a week . The week days works best for me also . Try driving on weekends didnt work so well .
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Thanks Clayton,
Yes I speak from experience when I suggest driving during the work week if possible. As I am sure you discovered, driving during the weekend can be an
exercise in frustration. You need to be able to take your time driving through the subdivisions and analyzing the street scene. During the weekend cars will
pull in behind you and it makes the process more di cult for certain.
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Ryan, using Evernote that way is a SUPER idea!! no papers to pile up, keeps everything handy!
thanks!
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Thanks for the great information! Looking forward to more from you!
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Great article, Chris. Ive been collecting rundown/vacant properties while out looking at open houses. I have a couple of other direct mail campaigns going on but this will be
my rst that came from driving for $$$. Im kicking myself for not having pictures of the other houses right now! Ill be stealing your picture idea and using it often. Thanks!
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Thanks for taking the time to read and comment Brandon. Its not stealing when the information is given freely :). Best of luck with your driving for dollars
marketing campaign!
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Great post Chris!! One question though? Why do you work o of tax assessed Value?
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Tax assessed value is used when determining subdivisions to drive. It gives a broad ballpark range of the neighborhoods value. For instance if I am looking for
properties that have an ARV of 120k it makes no sense to drive a subdivision with an average tax assessed value of 65k.
As you can see in my original post, I map out all the subdivisions within the cities/counties I am interested in and I can very easily target my speci c
demographic.
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Working from tax assessed values may be helpful to some, but for many that is just not a good enough indicator of true ARV. I have rehabbed three
properties that had a tax assessed value of around $50K. I sold them for 104K, 108K and 115K.
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Thanks for the new strategy, Chris. I really like the idea of having a picture of the house on the envelopewho wouldnt open after seeing that?
On a side note, you mentioned you stay away from banked owned (REO) properties is this because the banks are not allowing you to assign or double-close on these
properties? Or do you believe theres just too much competition from other investors, making it di cult to have o ers accepted? Thanks for the post.
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I avoid REOs for the reasons you discussed. Too much competition and they tend to not have enough equity to get a great deal on.
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Do you use blank perforated cards in your own printer or send them to a service? Im wondering how to print the photos on a small envelop?
It seems really labor intensive compared to a letter. Dont get me wrong, I love the idea and Ive already been out collecting photos and addresses but Im wondering how to
simplify it and still get results.
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Shari,
You can outsource it or do it yourself. If you are wanting to use small envelopes, such as the invitation envelope, you will need to use the A2 template in your
printer and word. Not every printer is able to do this. If your printer does not have the ability to print on small letters (or its becoming frustrating) just use the
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could you use the same concepts when it comes to making the letters yourself, but instead of driving for dollars you would buy a list?
You dont outsource, correct?
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Do you attend the REI events in Ft. Worth? If so, which ones? Thanks, Chris!
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Hey Cindy,
I have not been attending REI meetings as much as I would like. But when I go I typically visit the AREA in Arlington and the Roddy Round Up.
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Thanks for the post Chris. Its great! I cant wait to put these tactics into action.
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Thank you Chris for this valuable post. I have one question about banked owned properties, if we nd one can we short sale it? And also are there other assumptions to verify
that its a banke owned property?
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Thanks for this Chris! Im just starting and this will be invaluable when I research my new market!
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Hi Chris,
I am coming to this a little late, but I am just trying to learn about everything. Thank you for being so clear. Even this post about one part of the process is the rst time I am
beginning to understand what wholesaling is and the e orts it may entail. Im going to nd the rest of your articles that are referred to in the comments.
Thanks
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Thank you so much for the nice comments Greer, I am glad you found the guide helpful!
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Hi Chris,
Ive found your information very helpful, but I was wondering if you could release a little more information on using queries on the TAD website, with respect to neighborhood tax
rates?
Tom
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On the weekends, walking for dollars works great too. Get your exercise and possibly get paid to do it!
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Chris this is amazing post you sent out highly helpfull i am new and getting all what you said together i will be doing some serious walking and nd me some properties thank you
chris can i ask you any question regarding wholesaling is okay
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Chris,
Do you have any experience or knowledge whether this strategy can directly be applied in Canada as well? I am not sure if we have a database like the local Central Appraisal District
(CAD).
Regardless, great post. Loved it.
Aj
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Great post!
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Great Info!
I am a Newbie myself. I will be testing these tricks for sure in my local market.
Thanks
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Great primer on Driving for Dollars. Answered some questions for me. Thanks!
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Chris,
I feel that this blog about Driving for Dollars part #1 and #2 has got to be one of the all time best, information packed articles on BP. I am sure others on here will agree with that
assessment. I cant thank you enough. I read it today and I am already incorporating into my lead generation.
Lance
Chris would you mind if I contacted you via email. I have a couple questions.
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Exceptional article sir, I appreciate your attention to detail and creativity in marketing.
Cheers!
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Fantastic information here Chris! Thanks for so much for taking the time to lay this out. Best of luck to you.
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The problem Im running into in my neighborhood is every house I run into is already bank owned. They have a paper in the window stating the property is being managed by and the
house has been winterized by Im getting frustrated because Im on a tight budget and driving for dollars is my best option as we are starting out as wholesalers. My wife ran into a
few properties where the elderly parents passed on or moved out and spoke with the families about if they wanted to sell ect.. and all of them went the realtor route. So far driving for
dollars isnt working for me. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
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Very interesting article. I look forward to trying this one day soon in my area. It sure does take a lot of work to set up passive income through rental properties.
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Great post, Chris, with excellent ideas. Thank you, you just gave me the push up that I was looking for. I am new in BP and REI.
I would like if you or anybody can give me an advice. As I have only a few thousands, I was looking in areas that are less than $60,000, handyman kind of, single family homes. Knowing that
the pro t I can make is low, no more than 10,000 or 15,000. My family wants me to go to banks loan and go for something in a better area. I prefer to start slowly ,adding more cash every
time I sell a house.
Any idea ? Thank you
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Good post, tho care to share how youre de ning sub divisions and pulling up that nice map? And why this: Make certain that the current owner is not a bank, if so you will likely need to
discard it.?
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Really enjoyed the post. I am new and have a very limited budget for marketing so driving for $$$ just seems like the logical step. Very imformative and enjoyed it.
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Cant seem to access the link to the second bible, it just redirects me to the rst.
Thanks and good info!
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Terri c post Chris. Thanks for sharing all the details. De nitely worth trying. Like tanner, im unable to access the second post. Ill drop a note to BP support. Looking forward to reading part
2. Thanks again.
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Like everyone above stated, great article. I am new REI and to your blog. Great actionable ideas. One question for you. Where did you have the birddog cards made? I would like to get a few
of those in to my mail carriers hand. And some of his co-workers too!
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Question Please,
How would you ago about submitting and trying to nd / get ahold of the Owner of the Property, If you Do NOT have Cash on hand to purchase the Property, but instead HAVE TO use Bank
Financing for the Purchase, as well as the Rehab .. So a Portfolio Loan ?
Thanks so much for the help and for a great article
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Anyone have an idea of how to nd out how long the current owner has lived in the property? Looking on my districts tax site only showed me the previous owners deed date and not the
current owner. Maybe Im missing something great post too!
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Have you tried printing the picture of the house on photo paper and using it as a postcard (putting your message and a stamp on the back)? It might stick out to them more than a small
picture on the front of the letter.
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Wow, what an awesome post! So much great information, thank you. Im new to bigger pockets and found your post one of the best Ive read so far. Do you get the majority of your deals
this way? Im thinking this is the best way for me to go as I love to drive and look for properties.
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