October 21, 2015 by Mark Ferguson

020: Land Investing and Direct Marketing with Seth Williams

Most of what’s been covered on the InvestFourMore blog and podcast have been fix and flip, rental, and wholesale deals. Today’s show is much different – land deals. Seth Williams got into real estate investing after reading the classic book, “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” and hasn’t looked back since. The very first deal he found was a land sale and he made a profit on it. That set the course for him becoming very proficient at finding and working land deals and in this episode of The InvestFourMore Podcast, Seth’s going to share the basics of how to find land, how to make contact and work a purchase, and then how to resell the land for the best price and least amount of work possible. It’s an out-of-the-box episode you’re going to love.

How to find land deals for pennies on the dollar

In the real estate investing world it’s not uncommon to see so called gurus telling you how to find and close deals for pennies on the dollar. Many times, those promises are too good to be true. But in this situation, it’s a real thing that can happen and Seth Williams has proven it time and time again. In this episode Seth is going to share how he finds his land deals. The source he typically gets them from provides a pool of very motivated sellers that fit his needs perfectly. You won’t want to miss this one.

Should you use an agent to sell land that you’ve purchased?

Clearly, it’s a viable option to sell land you’ve purchased through a real estate agent, and Seth Williams did that early on. But what he found was that his own efforts were a lot more effective and he often had the land sold before a real estate agent even got started. As a result he decided that in most cases he would simply sell the land himself. Not only did it save him the commission payment to a broker, it also enabled him to make the most out of the profit margins of some very small deals. You can hear Seth’s tips on how to sell land yourself as you listen to this episode.

What about title insurance? Is it needed or smart to have for a land deal?

Land deals are no different than typical real estate transactions in the sense that they too can have liens against the property, back taxes due, and other complications. For that reason a title search and title insurance may be a very good idea. But Seth’s background as a commercial banker enabled him to learn how to do the title research himself in most cases so that he can make the most out of his profits on a smaller land deal. In cases where there is a lot more money involved, he does go with a title company to ensure that he’s not missing anything or messing up the deal by his own oversights. Find out more about Seth’s strategy and tips for doing his own title work on this episode of The InvestFourMore Podcast.

In what cases would Seth hold a land purchase?

Seth Williams very seldom holds a land purchase in hopes that something big will come down the line. Instead, he typically tries to flip them as soon as possible to increase his cash flow and enable him to do more deals. The few times he has held a property is when he knows a new development or project will be starting near the land he’s bought. That way he can make a wider spread on his profits by selling when the land is in a place of greater demand. You can hear Seth’s thoughts on holding land, selling land, and even finding the right deals, as well as advice about getting started and moving forward in land investing by listening to this episode with Mark Ferguson.

OUTLINE OF THIS EPISODE

[1:01] Welcome to this episode, introduction of Seth Williams
[1:46] How did you get interested in real estate investing? What was your life like at that point?
[3:02] The niche of land investing and how it works to get started.
[4:58] Seth’s first land deal and how it worked out for him.
[7:11] How have prices of land changed over the years?
[9:22] Are there certain places or geographies you look for?
[10:43] Are you using an agent to sell these or selling it yourself?
[12:21] The disadvantages of using agents for this sort of deal.
[13:03] Seth’s full time job as a commercial banker.
[14:24] How SBA loans work and who they are for.
[15:44] How being a commercial banker helps Seth with his real estate investing.
[17:43] Does a land deal require or need Title insurance?
[19:01] Tips for how to work with a local bank and get on their good side.
[22:36] Taking cues from the bank to improve your own situation.
[24:17] Why Seth started his blog and how it’s going.
[27:10] Resources Seth has put together to help people get into land investing.
[28:23] Seth’s current investing strategy.
[29:39] Are there many land deals you would hold? If so, why?
[31:16] How do land deals work when farmland is in the mix?
[32:57] Seth’s parting advice to people who want to get started in Real Estate investing.