Think I'll try birdogging

[ikedunne]

I had a couple deals fall thru either because I couldn't find financing or the financing made the deal (cashflow) bad for me.

I'm thinking I should do some birddogging for a while and build up some cash. 

Someone mentioned $500 for birddogging...is that normal?  By the way, I'm in Chicago, but my J.O.B. keeps me on the road.

[reiauctions]

Yes, bird dog fees are usually $500-$1000, it depends on the deal and the investor paying you for the referal.

[jparkx1]

what happens if a birddog(er?) finds a property for an investor and hands him all the info on it, then the investor doesn't hold up his side of the deal?

are there contracts made for these kinds of transactions?  or does someone just end up getting screwed?

[reiauctions]

I honestly beleive the investor will hold up their side of the deal.  They have too much to lose. 

1) No more deals from you...ever
2) Word of mouth from you that they messed you over will hurt their business.

Not paying will hurt their business way more than the money they save from not paying you a small $500 fee. 

I simply don't see any real investors doing that to you.

[$Cash$]

ikedunne,

My recommendation is to have the proper Agreement between you and the Investor.  Remember this is a business transaction. 

I wish I could say a handshake will work today, but you will find that having your Agreement with the investor in writing will save any questions about what someone thought someone said later on.

Having an Agreement is just the prudent thing to do, so that everyone is on the same page.  Having helped train thousands of Bird Dogs, I can tell you keep it business for everyones benefit.

John $Cash$ Locke

[ikedunne]

I would think that the investor is also protected......from me giving the same thing to 10 other investors.

My thoughts are that an investor wants a birddogger that is exclusive to him/her.

 

[$Cash$]

ikedunne,

You are correct, the investor wants to know you are not shot-gunning the lead to a lot of other investors.

Just put a time limit on the Agreement, if the Investor does not perform find another one who will.  This way you will gain respect and the top investors will start coming to you, as the go to Bird Dog when they want a great deal.

John $Cash$ Locke

[ikedunne]

So....what does an investor pay for?  Name, address, current mortgage balance, "scale" of how eager the seller is?

I'm trying to compare this to what I do in my normal life....lots of sales and prospecting and I close my own sales.  So not sure where the hand-off takes place.

 

[Lamar]

Investors usually pay you when they close on the deal. Some will pay just for recieving a good deal from you, but most will pay after they close. I started out birddogging and that is how I got payed. I did a contract with my investor, which was called an Independent Contractor Agreement. Just get an agreement, if you can. If not, you don't want to sweat it because, the bottomline is that you want to get paid. So if you find him a good deal and he doesn't follow through then never work with him again. It's truly his loss. He may have made money on that deal, but he will never be getting any more good deals from you.


Don't birddog forever though. It's a great place to start, but the real learning comes from doing deals yourself and moving up in your REI career. Good luck and again, feel free to pm me if you want.