When you first decided to start in real estate investment that you were probably instructed to formulate a buyers list. This was a list of names of people that were looking for property. You were told that "with a good buyers list you may never have to put a property on the open market."

The "Buyers First Program" was designed to take that a step further. Instead of wholesaling to real estate investors with all the associated risks, I chose to work with Real Estate Agents and use the entire MLS as my inventory. I develop a "retail, end buyers list" to give to agents. Buyers First is fully RESPA compliant and is readily accepted by the traditional Real Estate community. You already know that Real Estate Agents only do things that are fully disclosed and traditional in nature. Dealing in the regular real estate arena, it has to be simple and fully compliant or agents won't participate, and correctly so.

A list of buyers usually consist of familys that are looking for a home. They may want a 5 bedroom 3 1/2 bath property in a certain area for school district purposes. Folks on the list may be only looking to spend a certain amount for a set price range.

Making a list of buyers is easy. One of the best ways to do it is with a three line classified ad promoting a special report titled "You Can Still Purchase a House Even if You Have Bruised Credit but have a Small Down Payment" or "The Seven Questions Every Home Buyer Should Ask A Real Estate Agent." With that in the local newspaper and a toll free number, you can locate many people looking for a home. Some folks will call and are just curious. The easiest way to handle these people is to allow them to ask questions and answer them to the best of your ability. They usually call back later telling you they are now in the market for a house. Any way you do it, your list is made up by the contacts you make.

You can also gather names from family and friends. People know people. Google Ad Words is yet another proven, inexpensive way. By having a list, you can make groups and categorize the prospects.

You can then get your mortgage broker pre-qualify people that are on your list. Some people will have credit issues and others will be in the process of repairing their credit. These are perfect prospects.

Formulating a buyers list means you have a good start on a marketing plan of action. Every business has a client base. Think of your buyers list as your client base. The more you have, the more business you can do. The more you do, the more money you can make. By formulating a buyers list, you are building a strong, stable and long term real estate investment business

Jack Sternberg