Real Estate Wholesaling

Real estate wholesalers find off-market properties from motivated sellers, get them under contract at below-market prices, and assign those contracts to investor buyers (flippers or landlords) for assignment fees.

You're essentially a middleman connecting motivated sellers with investor buyers, earning fees without purchasing properties yourself.

Success requires deal sourcing and marketing to sellers, property and deal analysis, building investor buyer list, negotiation skills, and understanding contracts and legality of wholesaling (varies by location).

Assignment fees typically range from $5,000-20,000+ per deal depending on deal quality and market.

Successful wholesalers complete 1-5+ deals monthly.

Startup costs are relatively low compared to other real estate investing—marketing budget for finding sellers (direct mail, digital ads, bandit signs typically $1,000-3,000 monthly), earnest money deposits when getting properties under contract ($500-2,000 per deal, returned at closing), LLC and legal setup, CRM for managing leads, website and marketing materials, and education totaling $5,000-15,000.

Finding deals involves marketing to motivated sellers (probate, foreclosure, tax liens, divorce, tired landlords, vacant properties), direct mail campaigns to targeted lists, digital marketing (PPC, Facebook, SEO), driving for dollars finding distressed properties, networking with attorneys, realtors, and potential sellers, cold calling, and building deal flow systems.

Revenue comes from assignment fees when deals close, potentially double closing on larger deals, consulting with other wholesalers, or teaching wholesaling.

Operating costs include ongoing marketing (often largest expense), earnest money deposits (tied up until deals close or fall through), software and CRM, driving and market research, potentially virtual assistants or acquisition managers, and networking.

Challenges include wholesaling regulated or illegal in some locations (know your laws), requires consistent deal flow (marketing intensive), many leads needed for one deal (conversion rates low), some investors skeptical of wholesalers, and deals can fall through wasting earnest money and time.

Success requires consistent marketing generating seller leads, quick accurate property and ARV (after repair value) analysis, building strong investor buyer list, negotiating below-market contracts (leave room for buyer profit), moving quickly on leads, understanding local wholesaling legality, potentially specializing in specific property types or seller situations, and systematizing the process.

Wholesaling is real estate investing with lower capital requirements but still significant hustle.