What else do you do

[robdedgar]

I am going through bad business times right now and I am looking for ideas to make some extra money.  I have advertised things for sale on craigslist and ebay to no avial.  Anybodyelse have any other ideas, other than having a lemonade stand, lol.

[justin0419]

Work on cars, houses, etc. based on your talents. 
What about cutting grass?  Low overhead and good profits. 
Haul junk.
You can go donate plasma twice a week and generally make $40-50 per week.  Look for any medical studies in your area seeking participants.  They'll pay you too.

[PositiveOutlook]

robdedgar,

What business are you in?  Is it full-time real estate investing or something else?

[fdjake]

As far as Ebay goes.....This is what I have found...

Your PICTURES and especially your DESCRIPTION of the item are EVERYTHING...

Case in point....

I had a Land Rover that I recently sold on Ebay....It sold for OVER book value because I took very nice pictures of a VERY CLEAN and detailed vehicle.

The description hit on EVERYTHING someone looking for a Land Rover would be concerned with.  Head Gaskets in Land Rovers go at about 70,000 miles...(They used cheap fiber gaskets from the factory)  Even though my Rover had MORE miles on it than others listed at the time, it still sold for a higher price because I spent the time to educate potential buyers on this defect.

I went on to say that IF you are looking at Land Rovers that have NOT had the original head gaskets replaced.....YOU would be doing it soon after your purchase.  I also posted photos I took during the tear down.  I added photos of the cylinder heads at the machine shop.
AND included pics of the receipts for the new head gasket kit.

I basically had no competition on Ebay....There wasn;t a single LR that had what this one did....If I hadn't educated the buyers on the pitfalls of the head gasket problem the ad would have simply read....NEW HEAD GASKETS....

This is EXACTLY how I sell the HOMES I rehab....

People WANT a story.....It must be the TRUTH and it must make your Home, car, whatever STAND OUT from the competition....
If you do that......YOU SELL!!!!!!

[Bluemoon06]

I am an engineer with an MBA.  I work for an international chemical company.  I run the corporate auditing department.

[robdedgar]

I run a used cell phone booth at the flea market and advertise my inventory on craigslist and ebay.  I didnt sell any of my inventory on ebay so that was a waste of my efforts.  I offer loan modifications as well.  Even though the company I represent is a non-profit company people still think that I am offering a scam service.  I usually wear at least a shirt and tie to look more professional and offer to save thier home from foreclosure for FREE to get themto become a member of our non-porfit company.

I am looking to invest in real estate but I need to pay off debts and save somewht of a nest egg.  I was wondering what type of extra work would give me a better start to investing.  I have been thinking of mortgage brokering.  This would give me ideas on how to ask for money and would allow me to grow a nest egg a little faster.

any other ideas.

[jmd_forest]

Despite this supposedly being one of the best markets for RE investing, I've had very little luck finding profitable deals in my target areas. I've gotten back into an old hobby to repair and resell high end salvage cars. Conceptually its a lot like rehabbing houses...buy beat up units, make necessary repairs and sell for a profit but smaller up front investment, shorter turn around, and smaller profit.

jmd_forest

[sellnbama]

jmd,
I'm with you on that I done the same thing for years that I owned a bodyshop.My wife has a lexus LS430 I put a tailclip on.Both of us have had "fixed" cars for years.We stay in good milage nice cars for a bargain.I refuse to have a note on any car so this is great for me.I agree with you it does make money too,,whatever works right?   

[jmd_forest]

I just finished up a 2008 BMW 328xi (3700 miles) with modest front end damage. Sunk $16K into it and turned it around in 8 weeks (was teaching my son repair skills and that slowed me down plus he was in the middle of school finals so that slowed us down, plus took a 2 week vacation in the middle) and sold for $24K. I've got a 2006 BMW 330Ci (30K miles) currently under repairs. We've had it 2 weeks and I expect to be done in another 2 weeks and net about $7K.

In the spring, I handed down my 200K mile, Acura to my son, took over my wife's 138K mile Mercedes and repaired a 2007 Lexus IS250 salvage unit with 20K miles for her.

I've owned nothing but high end salvage cars for the past 20 years, We buy them cheap, put in all the necessary repairs, and drive them till they drop, typically 200K+ miles. Saved ourselves a ton of money over the typical American consumer and have used the savings to help move us towards financial independence as well as finance a few of the finer things in life.

Even so, I'd rather find a good deal on an investment property in my target area. Around here banks really aren't discounting  much.  I was recently outbid by $60K on a REO property that needed at least $40K of repairs and only sold at about about $40K under ARV. Its not the first time and I am pretty sure my numbers are accurate.

jmd_forest

[dmharp]

jmd,   

Would you go into some more details about flipping these higher end cars for me.

Like you, every once and a while when I happen apon a car that needs a lil work, I get it to fix up and sell .

Now these have always been cheap cars that when done I put up for around 3-4,000. I look to make around 1,200 . I always stuck with cheaper cars b/c they are easy to sell .  how do you sell these higher end cars ? do your buyer need to get a loan to purchase it from you? when you say salvage do you mean salvage title?
where do you buy these cars at?

Basically if you could give me some tips to moving into a higher price range , I would appreicate it .
Im a contractor and work is very slow right now so i need to figure out a way to make some more money.

Thanks , Dennis

[Bluemoon06]

Why don't you just buy a car for $3,000 and put it back on the market for $4,000?  All you would be out of is the advertisement cost.  Why would a person pay $3,000 for a car but not $4,000 for that same car? 

[robdedgar]

I dont even have 1000.00 extra dollars laying around to flip right now.  lol

[Bluemoon06]

OK,
I am on Craigslist right now and saw this ad:

1999 Mazda Millenia - $2900 (reliant stadium area)
________________________________________
Date: 2009-08-31, 4:02PM CDT
Reply to________________________________________

I have a very nice mazda millenia for sale for only $2900. The car runs very smooth and there is absolutely nothing wrong with this car. It has 125,000 miles on it and drives like new. It has very cold ac, leather, sunroof, cd and cassette player, woodgrain, etc. The first 2900 gets it and I can be reached at Thanks and God Bless.

He is going to take less that $2,900 for this car.  Why can’t you just negotiate this car for $2,000 and turn around and place this same ad with the same dollar value.  I am going to take less that $2,900 also, I just don't sell it for less than $2,500.  You make $500 with no work other than doing it.

[jmd_forest]

First step is to find a salvage dealer in your area. I would start by Googling "salvage title" and "whatever is the largest local metropolitan area near you" and sort through the listing looking for salvage dealers. Or search for "salvage title" in craigslist car listing. I've found a few I deal with within 50 miles of my home that I've been buying from for up to 20 years. I'd like to buy at the auctions or direct from insurance companies buy I don't have a dealer's license.

In my case, the salvage cars I buy usually come with a salvage title. I repair the cars and convert the title to a "reconstructed title" at the local motor vehicle. (You can't register and drive a car with a salvage title but you can register and drive a car with a reconstructed title) The terms "salvage title" and "reconstructed title" might be different in you state but these are the terms used in PA/NJ where I am. Occasionally, the car will come with a standard "clean" title.  This is NOT "washing titles" ...this is following the standard lawful procedure in your state to repairing a salvage vehicle to driveable status.

Before purchasing, make sure you FULLY understand the DMV procedure IN YOUR AREA for converting a salvage title. The last thing you want is to try and convert the tile and find out you never took the "before" pictures your local DMV requires or you didn't get VIN numbers from major used parts you bought or some other such BS required by your local DMV. Know the rules and follow them.

I sell the high end used cars by posting on craigslist and vehix as well as advertising in the strongest local newspaper. Some people get car loans, some people have cash, some people ....I don't know or care where they get the money. 

Cheaper cars are easier to sell but have lower profit and require around the same amount of work, just like a  "McMansion " will generally have higher profit potential than a trailer home. I do my best to ensure good profit the same way I do when buying a house..."you make your money when you buy" by paying the lowest price possible. I try to ensure a quick easy sale by buying cars that I believe are currently in "hot demand" with as low miles as possible, putting them into absolutely PERFECT mechanical, body,  and astetic  condition, and selling slightly below the competition.

I generally don't flip cars with no work because I believe in today's market of wide spread easy internet advertising, the market generally works out a fair price for the item being sold and it's hard to buy below market (not impossible, just hard). I build the value into the cars I sell.


Bluemoon,

I thought you had an MBA..."Why would a person pay $3000 for a car but not $4000?".....to save money!  I've always looked at it the other way, Why in God's name would I pay $4000 if I can simply shop around and pay $3000.  You know...efficient market place, competition driving down prices, supply and demand, and all that other Adam Smith, MBA type mumbo jumbo.

jmd_forest

[Bluemoon06]

Bluemoon,

I thought you had an MBA..."Why would a person pay $3000 for a car but not $4000?".....to save money!  I've always looked at it the other way, Why in God's name would I pay $4000 if I can simply shop around and pay $3000.  You know...efficient market place, competition driving down prices, supply and demand, and all that other Adam Smith, MBA type mumbo jumbo.

jmd_forest

The problem is that I have an MBA but I also am an engineer.  That means that while everybody else says if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.  The engineer in me says if it ain’t broke brake it and then fix it.  But I think the biggest reason is that I am dumb as a brick sometimes.

As I have said before I think it is important to know how things work.  If I can find a way to work this thing so that I do no work just take the slop in the price elasticity and just use that to my advantage (arbitrage).  For example a 1999 Mazda Millennia will sell for $2,000 it will also probably sell for $3,000.  If a person knows that I paid $2,000 yesterday for this car they are not going to give me $2,500 for it today.  But if they just walk up on me with a car listed for $3,000 they have no problem paying me $2,500 for it.  They get a great bargain and I make $500.