Secret Search Tip #1 - Secret Internet tips

When people ask me where I've found all the great deals I've been involved with, I've tended to be somewhat "careful" with my answers. Yes, I have found some interesting opportunities on Loopnet and Costar. In fact, those are great sites with hundreds of prime Commercial Real Estate for sale. Our friends at NACREPS (National Association of Commercial Real Estate Property Scouts) are avid fans of the popular CRE sites. They also recommend other great sites in the outstanding training provided to all incoming Property Scouts. But, here's what I've found -- there are "specialized" free sites online if you're willing to do a little leg work. Specialized, a bit more "private", if you will, and somehow more friendly.

You may be thinking, "Maggie, what are you talking about? Friendly? What's not friendly about Loopnet?" And don't get me wrong, like I said, I like the big players. But to me, it's like the difference between going to a "chain-type" restaurant versus going to a funky, mom and pop, one-location-only restaurant. When you go with a chain, you know exactly what you're going to get. The french fries in Denver taste the same way as the french fries in Tallahassee. But you go into a "hole-in-the wall" diner, and you don't know what you'll get. The french fries could be crispy, or thick, or curly, or waffle style. The point is -- you don't know! And its an adventure!

Now you're probably saying, "So, Maggie -- can you please get to the point?!" The point is, I like to go off the beaten path when I search for my commercial properties. Lately, I've had great luck with Mobile Home Parks. It is absolutely amazing how much money there is in those parks! The way I've found them -- and many of them I might add -- is by searching on blogs. If you're reading my blog, you probably know how to search blogs, but some might have landed here by accident. So, I'll walk you through my process. I go to Google's search page, and across the top of the page are Web, Images, News, Shopping, G-mail, more. Go to the "more" pull down menu and select Blogs. Then search for the keywords of the Commercial Property type you're interested in. It could be Mobile Home Parks, or Apartment Buildings, or Storage Units, etc. What comes up in the search engines are the little mom and pop sites with absolute gems of properties for sale.

The reason you use blogs as your filter, is because if you use WEB as your filter, the first five or ten pages are all the "Big Guys" in the CRE business. The smaller advertisers get lost in the mix. By using the Blog filter, you can get more boutique style listers and some very lucrative opportunities. This takes a bit more time, but for me it has been worth every minute.

Some people like to go to huge big box stores where they buy the same stuff everybody else is buying; some people like to go to the out-of-the-way places where they find the unique one-of-a-kind treasures. Guess where I go!

By the way, if you're ready to be a property scout, check out their offer at http://www.propertyscoutcash.com/ it's very cool. If you want to be part of the coolest association for Property Scouts, check out http://www.nacreps.org/. I'll have more search tips for you another time, but for now -- happy hunting.



To your INCREDIBLE SUCCESS!