How to Make Money with No Money in Property by Spotting

Today I drove to a potential development site- it's an approved subdivision which the bank has reclaimed through foreclosure. It requires almost $1,000,000 in contributions to the government and the asking price is $2 million. That's alot of money!

Wait, don't you have to have $3 million to make money from this deal? Don't you have to qualify for $3m of financing? The interest payments on that would be unbelievable!

The answer is NO!

If you wanted to do this development yourself those obstacles would be overcomable, but for the beginning entrepreneur with alot of heart and not the financial wealth to take on a big project like this, there is a much better way to make money which goes by the name of bird dogging, scouting or spotting.

It works like this: you find a potential deal, verify that it is a good deal and let a much more experienced and wealthy developer do the work for the bulk of the profit. Why would you be willing to let so much potential money go? Well what do you think of a quick $30,000? What about $50,000? More? This sort of cash is normal in spotting fees for this size development.

Spotting is a great strategy if you have enough knowledge to know what is a good deal, but not the knowledge or money to pull it off yourself. You may even find a developer willing to show you the ropes in exchange for a smaller spotter's fee, which is worth it in the long run. And they may be willing to fund your future developments.

These sort of deals aren't available everywhere, they suit markets where the population is growing, or for some other reason the demand for new housing is increasing. But they are out there.

While you might not be the biggest fish in the pond, you connect a developer with a deal, they reward you, and then provide housing to people who reward them. It's a win win win! You and the developer make money and people get quality housing! Best of all you get your spotter's fee up front which means you can make some quick money.