With the huge interest in Cash Flowing Rentals in Kansas City from investors nationwide, I thought it would be interesting to compare it to another rental market I have been seeing promoted on many blogs and websites as a cash flowing market.

I have also included info about the area from which many of our investors come from.

This information is according to Yahoo Real Estate neighborhood profiles.

Kansas City Detroit Los Angeles

Population 450,375 916,952 3,834,340

Population Growth 1.9% -3% 3.5%

Population Density 1424 6265 8388

(residents per sq mile)

Median Age 36 33 34

Medium Income $43,574 $32,426 $42,529

Median Home Age 42 yrs 57 yrs 34 yrs

Median Home Value $146,400 $32,426 $606,375

Ownership % 51.45% 46.05% 36.4%

Rental % 37.04% 38.54% 60.36%

High School Grad 82.9% 69.6% 66%

Unemployment Rate 7.8% 17.7% 7.8%

Returns of 20%-40%, stable economy, availability of affordable housing and an average price of $57,500 for Postive Cash Flowing Properties makes Kansas City a FANTASTIC market to invest in.

Kansas City Investment Properties & Cash Flowing Rentals

Missouri Real Estate Exchange

11333 Hickman Mills Drive

Kansas City, Mo. 64134

Office(816) 761-9400

Fax(816) 761-9401

Toll Free (866) 451-MORE

Email: danreedy@morekc.com

BLOG:  http://activerain.com/blogs/reedy6799

Bandit Signs are the cheapest and most effective way to market for a beginner by far. Bandit signs, that’s right bandit signs all those plastic corrugated signs you see out there, get it. I prefer hand written to printed signs. I’ve tried them both and the hand written ones are cheaper and work the same or better. You can look for a local place that sells them, 18 x 24 signs work best, get the blank ones. Also make sure what you get stands out too. I always cut then in half. Keep it simple, just put WE BUY HOUSES and your phone #, you really don’t need to put all that other stuff on them. Make sure you use a large permanent black marker. Make sure your words fill the whole sign to make best use of it. Print on both sides unless you are going to put them on telephone pools. You will get all different kinds of calls with different problems with their homes.

Although if you still want to get printed signs or you don’t have a local place here are a couple sites you can get them from. Need signs? Placement of signs is important too. You want to put them in high traffic areas. Like at merger intersections you want to put one on each side of the road. Put them on telephone poles high up so they won’t be pulled down. If you have a subdivision you are targeting make sure you are putting signs at all ingoing and outgoing entrances to the subdivision.
You must be willing to put at least 200 signs a month out to be successful. This shouldn’t cost you no more then 175-225 a month.

Good luck and don’t give up,

Sean Marmoy
MOKSRealEstate.com

There are many ways to find Investors and Bird Dogs but they all boil down to Networking.  A good place to start is letting those around you know you are interested in real estate.  You would be surprised with who just happens to have a friend or relative that is already involved in one way or another.  A lot of times WHO you know is just as important as what you know.  Here is a list of some more great ways to make contacts.

• REI Groups     -     These monthly meetings usually include everyone from first time investors to seasoned investors.
• We Buy Houses Ads     -    These signs are all over the place and the ads are in most papers.  Both property locators and Investors use this method to find houses as well as contacts.
• People working on vacant houses     -     Whether these people are investors or not they usually know one or more investors.  Leave them a way to contact you and ask them to pass it along.
• Craigslist or other listing sites     -     You can use these sites to contact people who have listed or you can create a listing telling about yourself and what you are looking for.

Once you find your investor(s) or bird dog(s) you should have a casual meeting and talk expectations.  Remember the bird dog is taking minimal risk but finding potentially great deals for the investor.  So compensation should be fair, if the fee is to high the investor can find properties another way but if it’s to low the bird dog won’t be as motivated.  Some people will recommend you put together a contract (or find one on the internet) to keep things fair and this may not be a bad idea.  Remember though there is no substitution for trust. An investor with a heart of a teacher and a bird dog with an ambition to learn can make a great team. This investor will make good money off this bird dog and probably gain a new perspective. The bird dog will more than likely become a smart investor while learning the ins and outs with minimal risk.