How To Research Your Market

Posted on May 27, 2010 by Torrey

As a wholesale investor, the most important aspect of the business is having the ability to target the right neighborhoods to focus your marketing efforts. In this post I’m going to show you how to take the first step into researching any city in America to determine if you are targeting the right neighborhood.

If you wholesale properties to other investors, you want to know what area these investors are buying properties. One sure way to determine where investors are buying properties is by reading your local Housing Report. Every quarter, 3 months, your local city Realtors Association releases a detailed housing report for your city. This report shows the statistics for your area, what’s selling in the different city zips, days on the market, what different price ranges are selling, and the direction your market is heading. In the video below, I go over the most recent housing report for my area, Greensboro, NC.

Housing reports for your area can either be found on the internet or obtained from your agent. If you search the internet, you want to enter your local city Realtors Association. For example, I’m in Greensboro, NC, so for my search I entered “Greensboro Realtors Association”. Depending on your city, you may or may not be able to find the “housing report” on the internet. If this is the case, all you have to do is contact your local agent and ask him/her to send you a copy of the most recent housing report. If you have questions, you can have your agent explain the housing report to you.

Remember, real estate is simply a numbers game. Learn how to read the numbers, and you will be miles ahead of your competition. In the video above, I point out what to look for when you read over the housing report. I also encourage you to read the entire report several times so that you get a clear understanding of your market.

In the video I point out the two zip codes in my area that have the most sales for “bread and butter” properties. ”Bread and butter” properties are those that investors like to buy to rent out or sale creatively with owner financing or lease option. You can take a detailed look at the Greensboro Housing Report 2010.1 below. I would love to hear your questions and comments.

Greensboro Housing Report 2010.1

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